- Joanna B.
5 Common Challenges That Transcriptionists Face In Doing Transcription Work
Transcription, like any other type of profession, does have its own set of complications every once in a while. Becoming a transcriptionist is neither easy nor hard. Those within this profession would have to follow a particular set of guidelines in order to do the job well and efficiently.
Complications happen in any profession, even the simplest ones. Basically, the transcriptionist just has to find a way to breeze through these complications in order to focus on both the quality as well as do the work in the most efficient way possible. The more efficient a transcriptionist is able to do their work, the bigger amount of work they will be able to achieve.
5 transcription problems
It is important for the transcriptionist to be familiar with the common problems that others run into. This is important so that the transcriptionist can avoid or know how to handle these difficulties in the future. Here are a few challenges that a transcriptionist needs to know in order to properly breeze through them whenever they occur.
1. Dealing with deadlines
When it comes to deadlines, not a lot of people have learned how to master the art of sticking to them. A common problem for a beginner transcriptionist is the perception that there is too much time for a project.
The correct perception for a professional would be that no matter how much time there is, they will make a schedule in order for them to efficiently deal with the deadlines. While sometimes there might be unreasonable clients, it is important for transcriptionists to know their own abilities in order to discuss with the client regarding expectations.
It is better to intentionally leave a little excess time in order to get rid of the cramming pressure. Of course, with the excess time, it is important that the transcriptionist should not relax too much.
2. Adjusting to the latest technology
For those that transcribe the traditional way, the whole process of converting every single audio to text is very time-consuming. Moreover, topping it up with edits within every sentence would just be inefficient nowadays. There are new ways to make a transcription and the transcriptionists of today need to adjust to the new technology.
Transcription tools have started to come out in order to assist the transcriptionist in getting the best work done in the most efficient way. An audio-to-text transcription tool is very important nowadays since it eliminates the need for heavy transcription and the transcriptionist can focus straight on editing. Of course, not every transcription tool works that effectively, it is still important to pick the right one.
3. Credibility
When it comes to being a transcriptionist, credibility is very important. A negative review can really hurt the transcriptionist’s reputation or could even terminate any arrangement made with that specific client. In the world of transcription, once a good client is found, it is important not to let them go.
As a transcriptionist, getting clients is hard and while some transcriptionists are experts on where to look for new clients, others still suffer from finding occasional clients every once in a while. Using the right transcription tool could help increase the uniformity of quality when it comes to all of the transcriptions required by the client.
4. Faulty audio
Faulty audio can be the downfall of most transcriptionists since this would really take a long time to decipher and transcribe. What makes things worse is if there is overlapping audio which could make things harder to understand. In such a case, there are two things that a transcriptionist can do in order to remedy this problem.
The first thing that a transcriptionist can do is to cut the audio into smaller pieces. This is extremely important for those orders that include hours and hours of audio. For a five minute transcription, this might not be necessary. Use an audio splitting transcription tool in order to break them into smaller bits and digest them one by one.
The second thing a transcriptionist can do is to run everything through an audio-to-text transcription tool that automatically gives results as well as includes timestamps within the platform in order to note which part of the transcription needs work. There are a lot of audio-to-text transcription tools out there but finding another one with an easy to edit interface could be hard.
5. Motivation
A big mistake that most beginner transcriptionists make is that they allow themselves to get drained too easily by overextending their efforts and eventually run out of juices and energy. Becoming drained is a serious problem especially if there are still loads to transcribe.
There is a technique for transcriptionists to be able to not only transcribe as fast as possible and thus getting more workload done, but rather for them to be able to still transcribe despite not really feeling like doing so.
The solution is to use an audio-to-text transcription tool. Izitext.io has a feature that tells the user how accurate the transcription may be. The more accurate the transcription is, then the less the need for reruns for editing. With the help of this transcription tool, all the transcriptionist needs to do is to focus on the quality of the final product.
Basically, the solution to many transcription problems is for the transcriptionist to use the right transcription tool that not only gives accurate audio-to-text transcription but also includes a very fluid and understandable platform that is easy to use and easy to navigate. Having timestamps on the transcription tool is a huge plus point since it can help those with clients that require timestamps to automatically do the work for the transcriptionist.
Are you looking for ways to simplify your transcription? You may want to try out Izitext.io. Not only is the transcription automatic, it even enables easy editing because each word of the transcript matches to the corresponding part of the audio file. Timestamps are also automated. With its great features, work could be made easier for you.