Top 3 Transcription Myths Shattered

Transcription services are high in demand around the globe, with many work-at-home transcriptionists operating in a wide range of industries, including law, business, and healthcare. The majority of work can be completed from a computer, making this an ideal job for someone who is fast at typing. Despite this, there are a few myths hovering over this industry. Below are three of the biggest misconceptions about transcription.

1. Transcriptionists must be fast at typing.

Although the more words typed per minute equals a faster turnaround time and better hourly wage, lightning-fast typing is not a requirement. Accuracy is more important than speed; however, working at a snail's pace is not desirable either. Guidelines differ depending on the client the transcriptionist works with, therefore no matter what the typing abilities, adhering to a client and verbatim requests are the most important thing. That, and a keen ear will help a transcriptionist gain plenty of clients.

2. The software can replace manual transcription.

If you scour the web you will likely stumble across software that claims it can speed up the transcription process. Although some software may be legitimate, most will result in incorrect content. Audio playback control software might be less costly than hiring someone per hour; however, the price is reflected in the quality. Dictation apps can be convenient if you're in a rush, but technology doesn't come close to the precision of a human transcriptionist.

3. An hour-long recording takes 60 minutes to transcribe.

This myth has been floating around for years but is untrue. It's difficult to say how long it would take a transcriptionist to interpret audio recordings, because a number of factors affect the process, such as the audio quality, the technical nature, the accents, the client formatting needs and most importantly, the transcriptionist's experience. While a long audio file with one voice may take 60 minutes or less to complete, a short audio file with multiple voices could take as long as four hours to transcribe. In order to figure out how long a job will take to complete, these things must be taken into account.

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