I am often asked the question “What is Transcription?” when chatting to people about what I do and am often quite surprised when people don’t know. Put quite simply, transcription is the conversion of speech-to-text from video or more commonly digital audio recordings. However there are a lot of steps to go through to transform a digital audio file into a useable text document – and there are many reasons in business for needing an accurate record of events. Our clients upload their digital audio files via our secure online server, which...

In the lead up to the end of 2009 and in the first week of 2010 I’ve read a lot of blogs listing the writer’s goals for this year. I think this is great and I have a list of goals I’d like to achieve too, but I prefer to make my first blog for 2010 a retrospective look at what I decided were my must-have items from last year. Here I have decided to list everything that has made my business a success in 2009 and helped build it to the operation it has become. 1. Must-have networking group – The Australian Businesswomen’s Network (ABN) I joined...

Christmas is a time of giving, but it also a time for being with friends and looking back at the year that has gone before, celebrating what has been achieved. I intend to do just this when I attend the CCBiz Christmas Cocktail function at Ettalong Mantra on Friday night (November 27), both as an event sponsor, but also a member of the Central Coast’s own networking group. It has been a big year for The Transcription People, with our move from our home office into the HighPoint Building at Erina, as well as the business’s growth. We have big plans for...

Being a busy transcription business, we often receive around ten job enquiry emails per day either requesting information or submitting resumes for transcription work. Whilst this can be quite time consuming to review each email and resume, the process is often shortened by the occasional email that I don’t even waste my time reviewing. I have been shocked over the years at people’s lack of consideration and social etiquette with something as serious as asking for your employment. The following can deter me from even considering an application: Not...

I was inspired to write this blog post after attending FlyingSolo Live in Sydney recently. One of the best speakers on the day was Andrew Griffiths an Aussie who has done very well in business in Australia. His keynote speech at FlyingSolo Live talked about his personal and business journey and how he once trusted a business adviser who came his way during tough times who turned around his ailing business and promoted him into the A-League of small business entrepreneurs. One of the things that Andrew spoke about on the day which I could totally relate to...

On behalf of The Transcription People I would like to thank our amazing clients for their support and for nominating us in our local Express Advocate Business Achiever awards for 2009, we are finalists in the Business Services category. This award is run by one of our local area newspapers and recognises businesses located on the Central Coast in New South Wales. Our office is located in Erina, just outside Gosford, about 60 minutes drive North of Sydney. Although the majority of our clients are located outside of the Central Coast, they are located all...

When using a transcription service one thing you must check is the security of the file transfer mechanism used by that transcription service. The vast majority of audio we process at The Transcription People is confidential, this means that the audio our clients send to us must be sent to us across the internet securely, this means encrypting the audio from the sender all the way through to our servers. How do we encrypt audio and what should you look for when hiring a transcription service? There are a couple of common ways to transfer files across the...

Olympus have long been the market leaders in both tape and more recently digital voice recorders and dictaphones in Australia and I am sure in most parts of the world. Olympus Voice in Australia is run from their head office in Melbourne with an additional office located in Sydney. In 2009 Olympus Australia have been very agressive with updates to their product range and we have seen a number of recorders discontinued and replaced with newer models. The greatest impact of changes in product line have affected the digital dictaphone range, most commonly used...

I love my role as proofreader for The Transcription People. Proofreading is one of several key quality control measures that The Transcription People have implemented to ensure their clients are totally happy with the transcription service we provide. After one of our transcriptionists completes a transcript from a digital audio file it is my role to proofread the transcript whilst listening through the audio, before it is returned to the client.  It is my responsibility to ensure the transcript is 100% accurate. Accuracy means ensuring that the typist’s...

The corporate world can be a bit grey at times – you travel to work on the same route, sit at the same desk every day, complete the same tasks, go to meeting after meeting… After 15 years of this grey existence I wanted to add some colour to my work life. While working in the very corporate world of American Express, I started my own virtual office business, AMC Professional Office Services, from my dining room table in 1999 with my husband. It was a side business at first, but became much more when I was made redundant. I wanted the opportunity to work...