Audio conferencing has been a great communication tool for businesses since it is easy to use, offers excellent accessibility and is cost-effective. Businesses are increasingly using this option owing to these advantages. There have been emerging new trends in audio conferencing which help companies to connect with people at offshore locations ahead of emails and voice calls. These trends make conference calls more convenient and enable faster collaboration, quick decision-making and immediate problem-solving. Audio conferencing with conference call transcription can further enhance your outcomes as it gives you a detailed report of what happened during the conference. After considering the trends, we will see how transcription services are vital to blend with the emerging trends.
A 2013 survey by Wainhouse Research (WR) revealed three major trends transforming audio conferencing such as:
- External Dynamics – The use of virtual meeting becomes very much necessary as workplace demands are increasing. In order to make virtual meetings more convenient, there emerged web conferencing, HD quality desktop video conferencing and unified communications. These solutions when integrated with a software-based VoIP audio client, deliver high audio performance at a lower cost than traditional audio conferencing services.
- User Behavior Changes – With technology advancements, users are straying from traditional desk phones to adopt cell phones, soft phones and smartphones that support IP connections and advanced audio capabilities. The Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) movement has also contributed to this change.
- Advancements in Conferencing Technology – Technical advances in audio conferencing has also brought about a significant change. Wireless internet access along with other aforementioned factors facilitates the use of wide band audio codecs, advanced noise processing and spatial audio rendering, which redefines the overall audio conferencing experience.
The latest survey by Wainhouse Research (WR) on the use of audio conferencing services by IT decision makers, conference moderators and participants reveals that since the use of audio conferencing services has become wider and deeper, it becomes crucial to make administration, access, control and participation easier. Web portals and convenient call access are critical for an audio conference user today. When the participants were asked which type of device they used for conference calls, 33% replied through PC using a headset, 20% said from a speaker phone in a conference room and 14% said via mobile phones.
How Transcription Services Can be Useful
- Going Digital – Transcription services provide quick and efficient digital transcription so that organizations can analyze every meeting using conference call transcripts. Service providers access your audio conferences uploaded via internet through secure means of transmission, get your transcripts ready within the required turnaround time and send them back to you quickly via the internet.
- Enhanced Accuracy – Though advanced technologies provide good audio quality, there may still be background noise that may lead to errors. Inadvertent errors may also occur if there are many conference calls to transcribe within a short time. Transcription companies employ a separate quality assurance team comprising proofreaders and editors to review the transcripts and eliminate even minute errors.
- Eliminate Language Barriers – With advanced conference technologies, every company wants to be global and connect with people from every corner of the world. However, it will be difficult to capture native words and phrases; sometimes sensitive words or phrases may be misinterpreted while interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds. This will affect the accuracy of transcription. Transcription companies offer the service of skilled and experienced transcriptionists trained in various languages, accents and dialects, and who understand the cultural background of the local audience very well. Thus the issues caused by language barriers can be eliminated. Businesses can also save the time required to correct the completed transcripts.
- Rich Customer Experience – By relying upon transcription service providers, different kinds of conference calls such as focus groups, interviews and group discussions can be transcribed.
