7 Factors to Consider When Choosing A Transcription Service

Identifying the best transcription service to hire from the multitude out there can be quite a challenge for many. Whether looking to have your videos transcribed for production, or need a transcription of in-depth interviews, or simply wish to broaden your audience base for your podcast, you should only hire the best for the service.

You may also require a specialist translation service, for example, the translation of terms and conditions requires an expert in that area to ensure that your translation is accurate.

Having an idea of what exactly to look for in these service providers can however help save you both time and money. Some of the crucial factors to consider include:

1. Level of Accuracy

Accuracy is one of the key elements to look for when looking to have a transcription done. Like any other service, you might not be able to know the best in the industry until you’ve tried them. That said, trying several companies, or even having them submit a sample of their work for evaluation, should help you make a more informed decision.  Whether the provider was recommended to you by a friend or another company, you might still want to test their capabilities and accuracy level.

It is by hiring the most accurate and competent transcriptionist, you can be assured of precise data capture, hence improved reliability. This is particularly essential as it can make or break your company’s marketing efforts.

2. Turnaround Time

In addition to accuracy, how fast the provider can turn in the work, as well as meet deadlines are essential things to consider in the hiring process. Whether requesting a long file or not, the transcriptionist should be able to keep up with the tightest of deadlines. One way to know if a company can handle your workload is by asking what their turnaround time will be for bulk requests.  The most experienced companies should be able to project realistic timelines on which they can have the orders/projects completed.  Some companies are also capable of delivering high-quality work even when under pressure. This should be your go-to provider whenever there’s an urgent project that needs to be completed on time.

3. Audio Formats

The transcription service provider should be able to work with and support various audio formats.  Working with such a provider should save you time since you wouldn’t have to convert the media files yourself.  Audio formats generally depend on the type of project. For instance, some files might be in raw audio formats or even raw video. You can also hire a transcription service provider to help handle the conversions for you. This is essential when you need hard copies to be converted to digital media.

4. Features

Uploading huge recording files can be quite a task for many companies. For this reason, the provider’s website should have the capability to support the uploading of large files simultaneously. A good site should support more than 1 gigabyte per recording. Other features to look out for include the ability to input timestamps into the transcript. This way, you will be able to analyze the recordings much better for quality monitoring. You might also want to look for a company that provides unique templates and discussion guidelines per piece.

Once done transcribing the files, the service provider should have a convenient way to deliver the completed work – such as email. Email is the preferred method as it allows one to share files with project partners and colleagues with ease.

5. Pricing

For more information, discuss pricing in detail with the preferred service provider. While you should only pay for services rendered, the price needs to be reasonable enough.  The transcription charges need to be affordable for you and within a set budget.  Any possible upcharges should be discussed before signing the contract.  There are times when you will come across dirt-cheap transcription services. While you may wish to use these providers to save some cash in the process, investigate why their rates are that low.  The provider might have a more efficient way to a transcript or use automated or human transcriptionists.

6. Confidentiality and Security

Most company transcription service files will include meetings, earnings calls, conference calls, and many other sensitive files and data.  There are times when the company will want market research transcriptions on products under development done. File production companies will also want some of their files transcribed to help save time and money. That said, you need to be assured that the data delivered to them is confidential and kept secure. Look into each provider to see if there are cases of data leaks from previous customers.

Data leakage can be hurtful to your company and, hence, should be avoided at all costs. Some of the best transcription service providers go the extra step to ensure their client’s data is safe and secure. Take time to learn about the provider’s confidentiality and security measures in place.

7. Customer Service

Always look for personalized customer service for the best service. Although some companies will provide generalized customer service, other companies will give direct access to your project manager. This makes it possible to make follow-ups and even request adjustments without having to go through the phone-tree customer support system. Working with personalized customer care, and especially the project manager, should help make the process much more manageable.