A few words about transcription - is it worth it?

Transcriptions are simply a record in the form of a text audio or audiovisual recording, i.e. its transformation into text. The person making this recording usually simply listens to the recording and rewrites the text, creating, for example, a record of conversations or dialogue heard in the recording. Transcription is commonly done, for example, in the case of radio broadcasts, podcasts or other recordings of conversations, the text of which is somehow useful . What is useful to know about this activity, and what difficulties may the transcriptionist face?

Lista

1 When should you turn to the transcription service?

2 What are the difficulties with transcription?

3 How to start providing such services?

4 Big competition, few orders?

When should you turn to the transcription service?

The transcription service is most often addressed to people working in professions such as a lawyer, doctor, journalist, etc., but also students often use this service – transcription is a much more useful solution in the case of texts, because it is much easier then to find the desired fragment, the whole is structured, and often devoid of sounds such as “hmm”, “yyy” and other interludes that are used only in conversation, but not necessarily in written text. Professional transcripts are offered both by special translation offices and, for example, by individuals who have good hearing, and are able to understand effectively even blurred elements of a conversation, which for some reason are not recorded in good quality.

What are the difficulties with transcription?

As mentioned above , transcriptions can be difficult to do if the conversations recorded on the video are not clear, the words are muffled, and you have to listen carefully to understand what the people are talking about. Sometimes the quality of the recording does not allow for a complete and reliable record, which is why the description is “incomprehensible” or the so-called guess method is used, i.e. when the recording is accompanied by a video, and we are able to read the words spoken by the interlocutor based on the movement of the lips . A person who transcribes should have significant writing skills, but also fluent listening. In addition, it is quite a time-consuming activity, so if you do not want to spend time on such a task yourself.

How to start providing such services?

The basic issue regarding professional work in creating transcriptions are, first of all, specific skills, and this is primarily patience, accuracy and diligence, because some recordings are, for example, used in court as evidence in court cases – one incorrectly translated or rewritten word may undermine the credibility of such work and certainly the person who did the transcription. Court transcripts are meticulous documentation of the course of a trial, which can then be very useful in recreating its course and re-analyzing it, if necessary. The transcripts themselves seem like a fairly easy job, mainly because all you have to do is write down the words you hear in the correct order, thus putting them in writing.

Big competition, few orders?

Transcription services are quite common on the market, but due to the relatively low level of difficulty, such services can be performed by virtually anyone. With this in mind, it is worth making sure that it is only an additional service of our business, not the only one – transcription orders are quite low-paying, and additionally, there are rarely standing orders that can ensure financial liquidity. Transcripts , although they have been on the market practically since the appearance of recordings of all kinds, are still not so popular on the commercial market, so the number of orders, e.g. on a monthly basis, will be definitely smaller than in the case of commissioning ready texts for positioning the website. So if we professionally write texts, create content for websites or advertising texts, transcriptions can be a great way to earn a small amount of money in a month.

People working in this profession most often have quite a lot of experience in the field of creating texts, so they should also be good at transcribing texts of all kinds. It is worth looking for orders on advertising portals, but also portals dedicated to people engaged in copywriting, because this is where people are most often sought for transcription. And although the beginnings may be difficult due to the fairly large competition, it is definitely worth trying to get your first order – it is always an additional income for your monthly budget, and nowadays each order is worth its weight in gold!