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1. |
How long does it take to transcribe a one-hour long recording? |
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There
is no definite answer to this. Transcription industry standards
dictate that 10 to 15 minutes of speech takes one hour to type and
therefore a 60 minute recording should take somewhere between 4 and 6
hours to transcribe, based on a good quality recording without any
hindering factors. |
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2. |
What factors are involved which dictate the length of time it takes to
transcribe a recording? This depends on a number of factors.
These include: |
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The quality of the recording: |
Poor quality recording is often due to the recording equipment,
recording volume, type of microphone and in the case of analogue
recorders, the brand of tape used. |
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The clarity of the voices: |
Poor clarity of the voices is most likely to be due to the speaker
being too far away from the microphone, or by speaking too low, or
too fast. If we can’t hear it, we can’t transcribe it. |
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Choice of recording environment: |
Background noise is another major factor of a poor quality
recording. This is because the choice of recording venue has been
poorly chosen. The microphone has often done its job well,
picking up every single clatter, roar or background chatter, at
the same time as the original speakers. |
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Number of people speaking: |
Some recordings involving multiple speakers take longer to
transcribe due to the tendency of speakers to interrupt and
overlap or by the difficulty of identifying a single speaker
amongst the many. |
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There are various other factors which may influence transcribing
times, and these can be regional or foreign accents, specialist
and / or technical terminology, microphone positioning, and speed
of speech. |
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3. |
Will you tackle poor
quality recordings? |
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We
are still always more than happy to endeavour the transcription of
poor quality recordings if appropriate. It should be noted however
from the outset of the additional time it will take to complete the
transcription due to the various factors mentioned above |
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4. |
I have an audio file I wish to have transcribed. How do I
proceed? |
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Please simply contact us
either by email or telephone stating how long the audio file is, what
type of recording and the content. We will be able to provide you
with a per audio minute rate straight away (based on a good quality
recording) and we can then proceed from there.
Click here to see how we grade transcription
categories. |
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5. |
How do I pay? |
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If it is a one off
transcription that you require, depending on your circumstances we can
either take payment by credit / debit card once the work is completed
via the telephone, or we can issue you with an invoice.
Click here for an explanation of our rates. |
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6. |
I have xx years of experience as a secretary and am looking to work as
a freelance transcriptionist from home. Do you have any work for
me? |
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Please contact us
directly via email, and you will be sent a check list listing strict
admittance criteria along with an application form. Following
this, if you are deemed a suitable candidate, you will be sent
instructions along with a test file for transcription, and it will be
on this basis you will be assessed as to whether you are suitable to
join our team. Click here for further
information about joining our team. |
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7. |
I am concerned about confidentiality. How can you reassure me? |
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Due
to the nature of most of the work we do, we totally understand the
need for strict confidentiality, and are happy to enter into a
confidentiality agreement if deemed necessary. It should be
noted that our transcribers are required to enter into a
confidentiality agreement with us before commencing any work.
More on confidentiality. |
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8. |
What is 'Verbatim'
transcription? |
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This is a full
transcript of everything that is said in the recording which includes
the common 'ems' and 'ers', 'you knows', 'I mean', and 'sort of' etc.
These types of transcripts are often required for interviews by
universities for qualitative analysis and by the legal profession. |
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9. |
What is 'Smart Verbatim'
transcription? |
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This is an intermediate
transcription, by keeping it verbatim, however simply omitting the
'ems' and 'ers' and other meaningless utterances. |
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10. |
What is
'Intelligent Verbatim' transcription? |
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This type of
transcription is commonly used for lectures, meetings, conferences,
symposia, and some interviews. All housekeeping issues are omitted
from the transcript, and the 'ems' and 'ers', 'you knows', 'I mean'
and 'sort of' utterances are left out. In addition, abbreviations can
be removed on request and replaced with formal terms, such as 'I've'
is replaced with 'I have', and 'you're' is replaced with 'you are'.
Please note that this option will slow the transcription process down
a little and in turn will affect our fee outcome. |
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11. |
How can I be sure it is safe to send my file electronically? |
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The service we provide uses 128-bit encryption for security during upload and
download. This method of encryption is secure enough to transfer large
legal documents, medical records, and audio files.
SendThisFile®
is HIPAA compliant.
Secure FTP
service |
