Writing down your long-form thoughts, ideas, or notions is a painstaking effort, so it is preferable to record them as an audio file and have them professionally transcribed. Similarly, transcribing any speech, lecture, seminar, meeting, conversation, etc. accurately into notes helps individuals absorb the subject better. Using audio transcription services to convert audio to text can increase accessibility and also help to eliminate confusion caused by things like regional dialects, aural distractions, background noise, etc.
Importance of Audio to Text Transcription
Transcribing the spoken word from an audio recording into text is known as audio transcription. A larger audience can access your material if you add a transcription to your video, podcast, or other audio file. Audio transcription not only makes it simpler for users to access content, but it can also help decipher any misunderstanding brought on by regional dialect, audible distractions, background noise, or speech interruptions. Benefits of audio transcription extend to content creators as well. Your SEO will automatically improve when you include an audio transcript from your podcast or video because all of your keywords are now in written form, which search engines can understand.
Different Ways to Transcribe Audio to Text
- Transcribing it yourself: This means converting your audio file into a transcript on your own. You must pay great attention to your audio recordings and take care to adhere to accepted transcription patterns so that your writing is readable and understandable. If you only have a limited amount of relatively straightforward audio content, manually transcribing it can be a suitable option. It can be difficult and time-consuming to manually transcribe lengthier, more complicated recordings. Here are the steps to transcribe your audio file:
- Step 1: Organize your schedule.
- Step 2: Continue listening and typing.
- Step 3: Replay the audio and listen for any issues.
- Step 2:Repeat
Most estimates place the time required for transcription at about 4-5 times the length of the audio recording. So, make sure to clear your schedule.
Go section by section, or listen to the complete audio file and type as you go. How you work will determine this fully. Just be prepared to type a lot!
Since it is unlikely that you will have precisely transcribed everything on your first attempt, go back and check your work. Make sure to listen to the audio again to listen for any problems.
To get everything right, you might need to listen to the audio a few times. Press “play the audio” to make sure you have everything transcribed accurately.
Although this may seem like an easy process, it is very time-consuming and you are likely to make a lot of errors or find it difficult to understand the audio, which can compromise the quality of the transcript.
- Transcribing using automated software: Another method for transcription is automatic transcription software. These software programs are made to automatically create text transcripts of films or audio files using AI assisted voice recognition technology. This approach is particularly popular for taking dictation. Even though automatic transcription is frequently quick and inexpensive, it can occasionally be inaccurate, especially if your audio content is complicated or contains a lot of accents. If you decide to use automatic transcription, it’s a good idea to go back and review your final transcript file for any mistakes.
- Upload the audio file: You can upload the recorded audio file directly to the transcription company’s safe and secure network or paste the URL of your audio media file. You can submit audio files in any digital file format that can be played by a media player, including voice recordings, phone calls that have been recorded, podcasts, and video files. Transcription software have a quick turnaround time but there will a lot of errors.
- Select your transcription option: After submitting the audio recording, you can specify how quickly you need the transcript. Your audio should match the timestamps in each paragraph. This enables you to quickly access particular sections of the audio transcript. You can opt for verbatim transcription to catch each and every word in full, including the “ah”s, “mm-hmm”s, and “ums”.
- Download & Receive Your Text File. When your file is ready, you’ll receive a notification through email and can download it right away. Even though these software options are sophisticated, there are still a few downsides, such as difficulty in understanding audio in noisy environments, distinguishing regional dialects and slang, identifying voices, etc. It is necessary to verify the authenticity of the transcript.
- Hiring a transcription service: An excellent option for creating precise, clear audio-to-text transcript files is transcription services. This technique can be used to transcribe a variety of audio files when carried out by a qualified transcriber with transcription software. When using transcription services, it is ideal to give your transcriber as much pertinent information as you can in order to get the most accurate results. For names or terms that may appear in your audio recording, you can specify the proper spelling.
These transcription services produce top-notch work for a fraction of the price of hiring a second person. Using professional transcription services is really simple. Once you’ve decided on a business, just visit their website and follow their directions. You must create an account before uploading your audio file. In addition, some businesses could inquire as to what turnaround time you desire. You can sit back, relax, and wait for your totally correct transcripts after providing them with the relevant data and making the required payment for the service.
Out of these three options, hiring an audio transcription service is the best option to transcript audio to text. This is because they ensure three levels quality, good security and confidentiality, and quick turnaround time. They are also familiar with the language and technical words used by your healthcare organization, and have experience in the market in which it competes.
