Monday, December 2nd
2024 Transcription Service Reviews
Go Transcript
- Starts at $0.84/minute
- 6 hr turnaround available
- 99% accuracy guaranteed
- Customer loyalty program
- Mobile app
GoTranscript began as an Edinburgh-based startup in 2005. With a team mostly made up of native English speakers in the UK and the US, they offer human-powered transcription services that don't rely on inaccurate speech-to-text software. If you're looking for translation services, they do that too.
Cost structure of plans is based on turnaround time
The 5-day service is the cheapest, priced at $0.84 per minute. The 3-day service costs $1.03 per minute, the 1-day service costs $1.22 per minute, and the 6-12 hour service costs $2.34 per minute. All plans offer discounts for bulk audio uploads, which means that the more audio you need to be transcribed, the lower the cost will be. If this seems confusing, don't worry - you can use their cost calculator to get an accurate estimate.
Upload your files directly to site or via shared link
Starting a project with GoTranscript involves a couple of straightforward steps. Users first upload their audio or video files, easily done either directly via their web platform or through a shared link. GoTranscript requests audio submissions with a minimum quality of 44.1 kHz and clear, loud volume for accurate transcription. Users are encouraged to reduce background noise and contact Customer Support if they have any doubts about the audio's suitability. The next step is payment, which can be done with all the major credit cards, debit cards, and PayPal.
4-step transcription process
Once the financial part is squared away, the files go through a careful 4-step transcription process. This begins with basic transcription, followed by a general review, detailed proofreading, and finally, multiple quality checks and edits, which collectively aim for a 99% accuracy rate. The finalized product typically lands in the user's email inbox in Microsoft Word format, but GoTranscript offers an option for other formats if you request it in the upload process comments.
Full Verbatim available upon request
Transcriptions come in Clean Verbatim format usually, but you can ask for Full Verbatim instead. Clean Verbatim means they remove any unnecessary words or sounds like "um" for an easy read, while Full Verbatim writes down everything exactly as heard. GoTranscript lets clients pick between adding timestamps either every two minutes or when the speaker changes.
Loyal customers are rewarded with discounts
If you frequently use transcription services, GoTranscript's loyalty program can save you a few bucks. By visiting the Customer Loyalty Program page while signed in, you can see how many hours of audio you've uploaded. If you've uploaded 2,500 minutes of audio, all future projects are eligible for a 5% discount. 5,250+ minutes earns you 10% off, and 10,000+ minutes is worth 15% off. If you're a college student, you're immediately eligible for 10% off.
Partial refunds for late projects
GoTranscript promises to deliver transcriptions on time but acknowledges that issues like poor audio quality might cause delays. If they don't meet the promised delivery date, they say they'll provide a partial refund.
24/7 customer support
Clients who face issues with the transcriptions or translations can contact GoTranscript's Customer Support within seven days of receiving their materials. Support is supposedly available 24/7 via email and live chat.
Fake reviews?
When we looked at GoTranscript's customer reviews on a couple of third-party websites, we were initially pleased to see that they had earned a 4.3 rating and had reviews from actual customers. In the past, many of their reviews came from the freelance transcriptionists they hired. However, we quickly noticed that there were several identically-worded 5-star reviews from different users that had clearly been copied and pasted. This suggests that Go Transcript is paying for fake reviews. Unfortunately, because of this, we don't think we can reasonably trust the content of any other 5-star reviews.
Quality of transcriptions is often poor
Taking a closer look at GoTranscript's lower-rated customer reviews reveals some concerning issues. One user from Singapore pointed out that despite its affordable price, the transcription service was lacking with the Singaporean accent and specific medical terms, requiring a lot of extra editing work. Another customer expressed frustration with not only receiving a transcription instead of a requested translation but also experiencing a delay in delivery and a refusal of a refund when the mistake was pointed out - so much for that satisfaction-or-your-money-back guarantee. Another customer even said that their transcriber seemed to have been guessing at unclear words. These negative reviews seem more believable compared to the identical 5-star ones we found earlier.
Look elsewhere
GoTranscript looks okay on the surface, but unfortunately, we just can't trust a company that appears to be purchasing positive reviews. We also spotted a few grammatical errors on their website that lent to the impression that GoTranscript's sleek website and promises of 99% accuracy are something of a facade. We recommend you look elsewhere for your transcription needs.
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The 10 Best Transcription Services
Where Can You Find the Best Transcription Service?
Imagine you've just wrapped up a lively brainstorming session with your marketing team. Ideas were flowing freely - but no one remembered to take detailed notes. Here's where transcription services come to the rescue. They can turn all those spoken words into a clear, written format, so no winning idea gets lost.
Simply put, transcription services take what's said in audio or video and turn it into text. And this isn't only useful for missing meeting notes. It also spans across various fields like legal, medical, and business, making sure important spoken information is accurately captured and easily revisited in text form.
Transcription Service FAQ
Continued from above...
You'll find two main types of transcription: manual and automated. Manual involves a person listening to the audio and typing it out, capturing nuances and context but potentially taking more time and being a bit pricier. Automated uses technology to transcribe quickly and usually at a lower cost, but may miss the mark on accuracy, especially with tricky audios or specific jargon.
Some services offer both manual and automated types of transcription services, while others offer just one. Some transcription services even give customers complete control over the transcription process by providing them with tools to dictate and edit within the platform themselves.
What you may not know is that transcription services can do more than just turn spoken words into text. Some services offer extras like identifying different speakers, adding time stamps, and keeping track of specialized terms. Also, given that some recordings can contain sensitive information, top-tier services prioritize robust data protection to keep your information safe.
In terms of user experience, high-quality transcription services focus on making things easy for clients from start to finish. This includes an easy-to-navigate website, straightforward file uploading, clear pricing, and timely delivery of transcriptions.
Trying to find a trustworthy online transcription service can be tough. Most have thousands of transcriptionists, which means the quality can vary a lot from project to project, and reading customer reviews might not give you a clear picture of what to expect.
Before you pick a transcription service, think about these points to make sure you know what you're looking for:
- Pricing. Understand what you're paying for. Good services will tell you upfront about extra costs for things like poor audio quality, strong accents, adding timestamps, or handling multiple speakers.
- Quality control. A quality control team should review your final transcription before it makes it to your inbox to make sure it's good quality, meeting both the service's and your standards.
- Customer service. If your transcription isn't satisfactory, the transcription service should offer to fix it or refund you some of your money.
Top Consumer Reviews has reviewed and ranked the best transcription services available online today. We hope our evaluation will help you find the right service, where every spoken word will be accurately - and affordably - captured in text!
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