Comparison Shopping

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2. Does the service have experience transcribing the type of work that you need to have done? And who have they done similar projects for that might be able to give a reference?

Have they done?

What about special requests like:

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3. What are the questions that transcription prospects never, ever ask?

• Could you give me some information on your transcription staff?
• What's their academic background?
• Where are they from?
• Do they have any particular competencies, based on the nature of the work you need to have done?

It's advantageous to choose a service based on their ability to provide transcriptionists with the background, education and life experiences that best match your project goals.

Relying on experienced companies with top-notch reputations is your best guarantee of value for your transcription dollar. Aside from selecting a mature service that has a strong history of providing top-notch work in a variety of subjects, what is more important is the quality and depth of the transcription group. While you probably will never have direct contact with most transcriptionists (unless it's a 1-or 2-person operation next door), it is important to get a good idea about the backgrounds of the staff.

Factors listed below are critical to quality transcriptionists:

Education Diverse experience General knowledge

Diverse cultural backgrounds Keyboard speed Intellectual curiosity

Any other tips?

• If you have a large project under tight deadlines, select a service that doesn't rely on a limited number of transcriptionists. Between sickness, holidays, vacation, personal problems, etc., projects can very easily be delayed.
• If you're trying a new service, send them a short sample of what you need to have transcribed and evaluate the results, as well as the cost. In the long run, it will save you time, money, and anxiety.
• A note to the wise - if you are considering outsourcing to Asia or the Philippines, send a 15 minute sample to evaluate their ability to transcribe Americanese. Usually they will do a sample at no cost.
• Don't limit your search for transcription services to local sources alone. With electronic transmission of audio and e-mailed transcripts, you now have access to top-quality nationwide sources and equally quick turnaround.
• One last point on turnaround. If your transcripts are part of projects that generate direct income, the more rapid the turnaround, the quicker the completion of the project. This not only gives you a competitive advantage, but it also means getting paid more quickly.

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4. What are some of the variables in a project that could affect the transcription process and costs and why this information should be identified to the transcription company when trying to get an estimate?

Subject matter: general, technical, etc? Accents/dialects, speech patterns? Fast or slow talkers? Quality of recording equipment? Identifying speakers in group setting? Do you want false starts edited out? Umms & ahs? Stutters? Edited out?

Number of speakers interacting? Recording environments, e.g. ambient noise? Finished formats - standard or custom? Purpose of the transcript - for notes (rough draft) or publishing (heavy editing)?

Why are these variations important? Because each of these factors can make a difference in what you will eventually pay for your transcript.

How do these types of variables translate into predictable project costs? With great difficulty! For example, most established services charge an hourly rate for the type of work listed above. They tend to use an average industry production standard of 5 hours of typing for each hour of audio. Depending on any number of the differences listed above, one hour of audio tape can take 4 1/2 hours or 6 1/2 hours.

The hourly rate charged may be the same, but the cost could vary substantially.

Note: It should be noted that most of your established, professional firms will contact you immediately if they discover anything in the audio that could adversely affect the projected estimate of the total cost.

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5. How do transcription services bill for their services?

No matter what method of billing or rate structure is used, there are certain questions that should be delved into.

How do they charge? By the word? By the line?

By the page? By the hour? By the project?

When rates are quoted for any of these billing methods, questions should be raised, such as:

• How do they define length of words? Average number of words per line? Per page?
• How many lines on a double-spaced page? (There is a major difference between 24 and 26 lines per page - 8.3% to be precise.)
• Do they use 10-point, 12-point, or large font size?
• What margins do they use? 1" all around? 1 1/2" left margin, 1 1/2" bottom margin, 1" top and right margins?
• How fast do their transcriptionists type?
• If the audio is less than stellar quality, do they still charge the same rate?
• If they charge by the project, will they guarantee their bid, or insert a "not to exceed clause" in their contract?
• What premium do they charge for rush or emergency jobs?
• If by the page, do they charge extra for less than stellar audio?
• If by the page, who eats the extra time for additional audio - the company or the transcriptionist? (Yes, it's a loaded question.)

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6. What technical support is offered for transcription of the wide range of digital and analog formats?

Can the transcription company offer high quality conversion of any commonly used digital formats including .wav, MP3, Real, and QuickTime? Additionally, does the company transcribe video from analog sources such as VHS, and digital sources such as MiniDV or DVD? Also, can the transcription service provide resources for complete conversion and transcription of reel-to-reel audio tapes?

There may be occasions when you've made every effort to ensure the best possible recording, but for whatever reason, something went wrong. Does the transcription service clean up poorly recorded sound so that it can be transcribed?

Perhaps you would like to have your recorded content digitized. Does the company provide digital files of your analog/video tapes for use in streaming over the internet, distribution on CD-ROM, or simply for ease of accessibility? Are they capable of creating an archival copy of your audio?

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7. What is the best way to send recorded content for transcription?

If you've recorded digitally, make sure you can deliver your content via SSL, encrypted FTP (File Transfer Protocol) using the internet. Make sure the service offers private FTP accounts, so that only you have access to your audio files. Sending files electronically prevents delays, and loss of tapes and disks in transit, which expedites the overall process.

This means as soon as recordings are sent, the service will put your project into its queue and begin transcribing right away - no more expensive shipping costs and loss of sleep due to packages that never made it!

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While the transcription industry has traditionally relied on home typists, it is suggested to select a service that insures that all production is monitored under professional supervision. This results in greater confidence that the quality and integrity of the work, as well as the turnaround time, will be insured.

WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!

The most important fact that should be taken into account (even if you do not transcribe your recordings) is the quality of the recording. The computer people got it right many years ago - GIGO - Garbage In, Garbage Out. If you put any value on your work, you should invest in equipment that will always result in good-quality audio. Since most of the work listed above is done in less than ideal environments, your recording equipment should be of such quality that it will result in the best recording possible. While some poor recordings can be electronically cleaned up or enhanced, every additional action taken by a transcription company will add to your eventual cost - in one way or another.

Always Remember:

Even if you do your own transcribing, always have a back-up copy of your original before you begin transcription.