Closed caption editor

Timeline: Q1–Q2 2023

Role: Design Lead

At the time of this project, JWP’s closed caption editor generated a disproportionate number of support tickets. Customers were frustrated. Support was overwhelmed. PMs and Account Managers fielded constant complaints.

The tool technically worked — but editing captions felt slow, fragile, and confusing, and for content editors working through hour-long videos line by line, that friction compounded quickly.

Here’s how I created a buttery-smooth experience that satisfied our content editors— and kept the support inbox at a manageable level!

Problem space

Caption editing requires precision. Content editors need to:

  • Navigate quickly between caption blocks

  • Understand where a caption exists in time

  • Check the captions against the video to ensure proper alignment

Editors found it difficult to navigate between captions. New captions would appear in unpredictable locations. The video preview scrolled offscreen, making it effectively impossible to know whether captions matched up to the corresponding voiceover.

What I changed

Made navigation easy and intuitive

Content editors expected to be able to move fluidly through the list of captions. But the existing product made them hit “confirm” and physically click into the next caption.

I removed unnecessary button clicks, allowing the user to edit continuously without interruption.

Introduced a timeline

Content editors expected to be able to move fluidly through the list of captions, but the existing product made them hit “confirm” and physically click into the next caption.

I removed unnecessary button clicks, allowing the user to edit continuously without interruption.

Kept the video preview in view

Content editors needed the video preview constantly, but it scrolled offscreen. This meant the user had to scroll back and forth all the time, which was really annoying.

I made sure the preview was fixed and visible at all times, making it easy for users to check their work.

Impact

The new Closed Caption Editor released to critical acclaim. The results were:

  • A significant reduction in help desk complaints

  • Faster caption creation and revision cycles for content editors

  • Increased user confidence during caption editing.

Most importantly, we shifted the tool from a “reactive liability” to a predictable, intuitive system that saves time for our customers… and our help desk crew!