In short
- Write the narration for the ear, separate from the on-screen text.
- Agree names, product terms and abbreviations once, in a glossary.
- Plan for other languages from the first script, because most run longer than English.
- Make updates cheap by keeping one script per slide.
Script
Keep the narration and the on-screen text different. Reading the slide aloud wastes the learner's time and splits their attention. Narration should say what the slide cannot: why it matters, how to apply it, what to notice.
One script per slide or per short chapter. It keeps files small, makes updates local and lets you reorder modules without re-voicing everything.
Pacing
Leave time for the learner to look. Pauses after a new graphic, a question or a number let the point land. Where an animation builds on screen, the voice should follow it rather than race ahead.
Decide how long you want between slides and tell the producer. Pace is part of the direction.
Terms and names
List product names, acronyms, people and places with how each is said. Decide whether an acronym is spelled out or read as a word, and how it is said in each language. A glossary agreed at the start saves a round of corrections.
Numbers, units and dates
Write them as they are spoken and say how each should read. Units, decimals, currencies and dates are written and said differently in different markets, so check them per language.
Localisation
Plan for text expansion. Most languages take more room than English for the same idea, and screens, animations and timings must allow for it. Give translators the context for each line, not a list of strings.
Use the accent of the learners. A course for Mexico is not the same course as one for Spain, and learners notice.
Updates
Keep the voice notes and glossary from the first release so that a changed line sounds like the rest of the course. Version your files by module and language so that the right one reaches the right course.
Decide who approves changes and in which language they review.
Delivery and accessibility
Agree file naming and format with whoever builds the course. Provide a transcript for each module, and captions where video is used, so the course is usable without sound.
