Do you want these hands representing your brand?

AI automated transcription services are popular with podcasters in the entertainment field, but can you afford to use them for your business podcast? Here is why you should never use ai automated transcription services for a business podcast.

Why AI Automated Transcripts are Popular

Podcasts dedicated to entertainment or just chewing the fat may benefit from using automated transcription services.  They are downright affordable and the transcript can be generated very quickly.  Many of these podcasts use a quick and dirty automated podcast transcript to create show notes. But as a business person, with the pressure to save money in today’s economy, should you take advantage of these services–for your podcast production, interview, new product roll-out, or training session?  The answer: No, run the other way!  Serious Damage to Your Brand Could Occur!

Why Almost No One Should Use AI Automatic Transcripts

AI-generated automated transcripts are inaccurate, to say the least. Are you willing to put inaccurate information on your website? Will the automated algorithm spell your company name correctly, your officers, or even your products and services? Likely not. Stay tuned to the end of this post and we will share a link that emphasizes this point.

In James Cridland’s post on podnews.net, he suggests that podcasters should want total control over their content. He says, “…automated transcripts are mostly correct but partially wrong – and they’re not ideal to publish on a website in some cases. For complex legal reporting, having an incorrect transcript on a website could open the podcaster to legal trouble.” I would agree, but also believe that smaller less obvious mistakes make you look sloppy and unprofessional. Is that an image you want to project to your listeners?

Manual Transcription is Better for Business Podcasts

For the cost of a good dinner, an average 30-minute podcast can be transcribed with almost 100% accuracy. We provide such a transcript, labored over by a native English-speaking professional. We manually look up all industry-specific keywords, officers’ names, and how your company spells your branded products and solutions. Our transcription services will make your company look professional and you will gain loyal customers–quite the alternative to automating your transcript.

Skeptical?  Click on this link to go to WAAF’s The Hill-Man Morning Show. [Editor’s note: this legacy link is no longer active].  You can pick virtually any show, but be sure to expand the “Transcript” under the video to view the “Not For Consumer Use” transcript.  It’s right next to the note, “Robot Overlords Only; Will not be 100% accurate”.  Click “play” and prepare to be entertained; yes, both from the show and the text!  I think this will erase any doubts you might have.

The post Never Use AI Automated Transcription Services for a Business Podcast appeared first on AudioFile Solutions.

Ryan Dube from MakeUseOf.com recently wrote a great tutorial on how to use voice-to-text functionality within Express Scribe transcribing software.  This is a great solution for recording yourself (dictation) and getting a very quick and accurate result; however, be aware that this is not a solution for transcribing voice audio files.   Why?  Voice recognition software must first learn your voice.   Other voices will tend to confuse it and produce what Ryan calls “garbage”.   Interviews, group discussions, or any recording that is in a less-than-ideal environment will also not transcribe well.  The noise and/or lack of clarity in these environments will create more “garbage” from your voice-to-text software.  Want to see an example?  I recently wrote a blog post that links to a radio station’s use of automated transcription software.

Also, keep in mind that the best transcripts not only include the correct spelling of words, but also the correct punctuation, formatting and so much more.  A relatively simple thing like the correct handling of homonyms may never be a realistic goal of voice-to-text programs.  Also, professional transcriptionists will hear discrepancies because their ears have been trained to hear and comprehend the details.  If something said later in the transcript does not jibe with what was said earlier, your professional transcriptionist will bring this to your attention.  Voice-to-text software will never be able to do this.

Lastly, terminology research is key to a great transcript.  Here at AudioFile Solutions, it is not uncommon for us to verify 40 or 50 terms in a typical interview.

For these reasons, the automatic transcription of audio files is clearly not ready for prime time and, in my opinion, should be left to a professional.

Read Ryan’s complete article below.

Begin Article
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When you do a lot of phone interviews that get published in text format on the web, transcribing audio files becomes a big part of one’s life. There are a lot of people that have the need to transcribe voice to text, such as doctor’s that record a log of office visits, journalists that conduct audio interviews, or even students that record class lectures.

For years, I’ve been looking for a high-quality free voice to text software solution that will automatically take an audio recording and transcribe it to text. Such an application will put a lot of transcription companies out of work, but it’s a dream that I believe will come true some day. Recently, I conducted another hour-long interview… (continue reading the full article here: How to Use Voice-to-Text Dictation on Express Scribe.)

The post How to Use Voice-To-Text Dictation in Express Scribe appeared first on AudioFile Solutions.

General Transcription Job Requirements:

1. Expert in MS Word and transcription software.
2. Accurate grammar and spelling.
3. Above average typing speed.
4. Top notch listening skills.
5. Proofreading with 100% accuracy.
6. Proficient with Internet investigation.
7. Attention to detail.

Job duties will include general transcription, legal transcription, interview transcription and more.  This may include transcribing focus groups, meetings, conference calls, videos, and the like.

This job can be performed at home with a turnaround time (cycle) of 1-3 business days.  Workload varies and can range from 0-4 hours of recordings per cycle.  Candidates can limit their workload based on their availability.

If interested, please read our blog articles that explain in more detail what we are looking for:

3 Keys to Providing the Best Transcription Services
The Best Transcription Companies — How to Find One

Testing is required.  Please inquire HERE (tick “Job Openings”), or call 719-477-9600 and tell us you want to apply.

AudioFile Solutions, LLC is a professional transcription company since 2002.  We are based in Colorado Springs, one hour south of Denver. We provide nationwide service to our customers in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the UK.

The post General Transcription Job Opening: Work-at-Home Transcriptionist appeared first on AudioFile Solutions.

Transcribing takes focus and a special skill set. Quality work, with value, will help create repeat customers for years to come.

Here are 3 key principles to providing the best transcription services to your clients.

As a transcriptionist, help your clients put their content into context and it will keep them coming back.

1. Do you offer top-notch transcription skills? You need to be a fast and accurate typist with a tremendous grasp of grammar.  You must maneuver in transcription software like you were born doing it, follow client-provided style guidelines, and never waver from the deadline-being-the-deadline. When you provide digital audio transcription services, you’re ultimately evaluated on keeping your word and delivering the words on time. Don’t dabble. Make sure you have what it takes to succeed.

2. Do you like to learn new information? Offering transcribing services gives you a view into industries and subjects that may be new to you. Don’t deliver a final draft with (inaudible) or (indistinguishable) notations when a quick search on the Internet could verify these terms you’re unsure of. In addition, ask the client if they can provide a list of commonly used terms from the recording. This will help you provide a more accurate transcript.  Offering these value-added services is not lost on the client; they know when you’re going the extra mile.

3. Are you viewing things from the client’s eyes? The transcript is the end-product delivered to the client, but what else does your client receive from you? Do you do an audio proof (not just proofing while typing the raw transcript) to review the quality of the transcription? Do you offer a final read-through to ensure comprehension? Are you alerting the client of items that may be discrepancies in their transcript? A “good enough” transcription is never an option. Deliver with the quality that you’d expect to receive.

If you’re a top-notch transcriptionist or if you’re a company seeking transcription support that meets YOUR mark, contact AudioFile Solutions today. We provide the best transcription services to our clients on a daily basis and would like a chance to prove it to you.

The post 3 Keys to Providing the Best Transcription Services — For Transcribers appeared first on AudioFile Solutions.

• Title
• Date of audio / video recording
• Speakers’ names
• Any frequently used technical terms/names (if possible)

The “technical terms” above will help to make your transcript as accurate as possible.  We investigate unknown terms and names stringently, but your help in this area is greatly appreciated.

Then, think about whether you want us to transcribe your recording verbatim, or a variation thereof.  We typically omit verbal stuttering, incomplete words, ahs, and ums.  But there are two additional areas that, if we omit them, it makes the transcript much easier to read.

1.  Someone—like an interviewer—saying, “ok”, “right”, “yes”, and other terms to express the fact that he/she is listening to the other person.  I like to call this a “rhetorical” use of these words, but suffice it to say, they serve no other function than to make the other person feel comfortable that he/she is understanding what the other person is saying—they have no direct relationship with the content of the recording.  Obviously, in cases where, “ok”, “right”, and “yes” are used in a “non-rhetorical” context, we would not omit them.  Here is an example.

As spoken:

John:  …and I was thinking to myself that the chocolate was the best I had ever had.

Interviewer:  Okay.

John:  The flavor was unlike any other.

Interviewer:  Right.  Uh-huh.

John:  But then I remembered that it was made with cocoa from an illegal supplier…

Interviewer:  Yes.

John:  …and I had to take it back to the store.

Transcription Rewrite:

John:  …and I was thinking to myself that the chocolate was the best I had ever had.  The flavor was unlike any other.  But then I remembered that it was made with cocoa from an illegal supplier, and I had to take it back to the store.

You can see that the rewrite above is much more succinct and easy to read.  In most cases, we recommend that you direct us to make these omissions, but it is entirely up to you.

2.  In the normal course of speech, many of us will use “filler” words/phrases that have no use within the structure of a sentence.  They also have nothing to do with the content of the recording.  These are words/phrases like, “kind of”, “sort of”, “like”, “you know”, and many others.  Some of these words double as valid parts of a sentence, in “non-filler” applications.  Obviously, in these cases, we would not omit them.  But in cases where they serve no useful purpose, we recommend that you direct us to omit them.  Here is an example.

As spoken:

John:  …and I was, like, thinking to myself that the, sort of, chocolate was the best, you know, I had ever had.  The flavor was unlike, you know, any other.  But then I remembered that it was, sort of, made with cocoa from an illegal, kind of, supplier and I had to take it back, like, to the store.

Transcription Rewrite:

John:  …and I was thinking to myself that the chocolate was the best I had ever had.  The flavor was unlike any other.  But then I remembered that it was made with cocoa from an illegal supplier and I had to take it back to the store.

I’m sure you will agree that the above rewrite is much easier to read and does not change the content one bit.  But, of course, the decision to omit these “filler” words/phrases is completely up to you.

Let me take this opportunity to thank you for trusting us with your audio or video transcription project.  We work hard to make sure you are 100% happy with the work that we do for you.

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