Transcription work is one of the most popular online jobs today. It is the process of listening to audio files and converting them into text. It may sound almost effortless, but this job is far from easy and requires a perfectionist to do it successfully.
A good transcriptionist must be an excellent listener and someone who doesn’t leave things to chance. You must also be able to understand different dialects as work may come from people from other countries.
You must also have a high typing speed to do as many jobs as possible. The jobs are usually plenty, but they can take forever if you are not fast enough.
There are also guidelines and rules to follow when working with different companies. Each company has specifics on how they wish their work is done, including the grammar to use, how to quote the speakers, identify who is speaking, etc.
These rules MUST be followed. Otherwise, you will not get paid.
Fast internet access, a computer, and a pair of the best noise-canceling headphones are the tools required to do this job.
Reasons Why You Should Consider Transcription Work:
Contents
- 1 Reasons Why You Should Consider Transcription Work:
- 2 Here’s Where You Can Find Transcription Jobs:
- 2.1 1. Speechpad
- 2.2 2. Upwork
- 2.3 3. Rev Transcript
- 2.4 4. Scribie
- 2.5 5. Transcribe Me
- 2.6 6. Quicktate
- 2.7 7. GoTranscript
- 2.8 8. TigerFish
- 2.9 9. CastingWords
- 2.10 10. Ubiqus
- 2.11 11. Athreon
- 2.12 12. SyncScript
- 2.13 13. Focus Forward
- 2.14 14. Daily Transcription
- 2.15 15. Audio Transcription Center
- 2.16 Conclusion
- You get to work from home. This means that you can also attend to your chores as you work. A stay at home new mom would appreciate this job, as it does not take her away from her newborn child.
- You have flexible working hours. This is a stay at home job, where you choose when to work, and when not to work. No one will be at your neck, giving you unrealistic deadlines.
- You get paid for what you do. This is both a benefit and a limitation. The beauty of getting paid for what you do is that you can work as much as you want, but then again, if you do not work, then you are not paid.
- There are many transcription jobs. Many companies are willing to hire transcriptionists; however, it is an intensive job, and the pay is not the best, but many people have been living off of transcription work.
Here’s Where You Can Find Transcription Jobs:
1. Speechpad
A well-established company that pays its transcribers very well. It is excellent for beginners, as you get guidance and you earn some good money.
It is one of the best paying transcription companies today and ensures a fast response to queries. As a transcriptionist on Speechpad, you are always assured of prompt payment. They can pay you up to $50 per audio hour, one of the highest rates.
Sometimes, however, jobs can be scarce for new people, and you may be required to build up your profile to get higher pay.
2. Upwork
Upwork is one of the largest and the best employers for freelancers. You can practically find all sorts of jobs that you are looking for on their platform, including transcription work.
The beauty of the jobs posted on Upwork is that you get to deal directly with the client, which means that another company does not share your earnings. As a result, they tend to pay better than other transcription companies.
The downside is that; unlike other transcription companies where work is freely available for you to pick the one you like and do as many as you can, with Upwork, you must bid for a job. The competition is exceptionally stiff for transcription work, and each position may have more than 50 proposals, which means that the chances of getting hired are slim.
So, you should always be alert and apply for these jobs as quickly as possible.
3. Rev Transcript
Rev Transcript pays very well, and they are much better than other transcription sites. They also allow you to choose the jobs you want to do. They will again go a step further, offer training to newbies, and provide them with regular feedback to make them the best possible.
Now, for you to work with Rev.com, you will be required to do a skills test and a simple transcription test that is practically impossible to pass.
Once you are in, you can make up to $39 per audio hour. Payments are always on time, and once the work is approved, you can withdraw the money via PayPal.
4. Scribie
Scribie is great, but it pays very little, making it the perfect starting point for beginners. You can familiarize yourself with Transcription work on their website, and the beauty of it is that you get paid as well, albeit very little.
They pay around $10 per audio hour, and this is incomparable to other websites. But, there is plenty of work, and you can’t fine-tune your skills before moving on to the other better-paying sites.
5. Transcribe Me
This is a trusted site and offers plenty of work for transcribers. It is excellent for beginners as well, but the process of application is arduous.
You will be required to take a test, and you must score 100%, and each time you do not achieve this, you will have to wait for a while before retaking the test.
It requires people who can follow instructions carefully and are perfect in English and Grammar.
6. Quicktate
This company deals with conference calls, letters, messages, legal files, and all types of medical-related audio. Each file usually contains special instructions that the transcriber must follow and ensure an extremely high accuracy due to the sensitive nature of the information.
To work for this company, you must first pass an assessment test that tests your typing speed and skill. It will determine whether you can understand and follow all the rules the company requires you to follow.
You need to be very good at grammar, especially sentence structure, and be able to understand legal terminologies.
7. GoTranscript
This company is the mother of all transcription work, and almost all transcribers desire to work for them. This is because their pay is fair, and they have lots and lots of work available if you have the time.
However, you must complete a test job, and once you pass, they require you to wait around 45 days before you can access their job board, but once you are in, you gain access to thousands of jobs.
Again, they have their own rules and guidelines that you must follow to get paid.
8. TigerFish
This company provides an excellent environment for transcribers to make very good money. All you need is excellent English skills and a high typing speed. You must ensure that you are keen on your grammar and do not make any spelling or punctuation mistakes.
They have a rigorous style guide that must be followed at all times. You can make around $8-16 per audio hour.
9. CastingWords
Casting words have very strict rules for transcribers, but they do have plenty of jobs. As a newbie, you may have trouble finding work to suit your skills, but with time, you get better and better and find transcription jobs worthy of your time.
You can make around $0.08-1.00 per audio minute.
10. Ubiqus
Ubiqus may not be very popular, but it is a good platform for both beginners and established transcriptionists. You get to work on their medical transcripts using verbatim. They, however, have a wide variety of other types of jobs that you can choose from
Unfortunately, Ubiqus only hires natives from the US and Canada.
Payments are always on time after every two weeks, and they usually allow their transcribers to set their own schedules and times.
11. Athreon
This company deals with all sorts of transcripts and requires their transcribers to be highly trained and professional. You can choose to work on any of their jobs in the medical, business, police, and legal fields.
This is steady work, and the pay is based on how many lines you can transcribe at a time.
You will receive plenty of help from their staff, and they will only hire transcribers who are diligent and can deliver work on time that is error-free. The working environment is excellent for beginners to learn the work effectively.
You will receive assignments from their staff as per your expertise, which means that you do not have to compete for work with other transcribers.
Their payments are made each week for completed and edited work.
12. SyncScript
This company offers impressive rates that are higher than other transcribing companies. They pay around 53 -63 cents per audio minute of work. You can learn the tools of the trade very well when you start working for them.
They are always running ads for hiring new transcriptionists, and usually, they require around 70 words per minute of typing speed with 98% accuracy. Of course, this is very high, but their standards are high, and their rules must be followed.
You will be given a seven-minute audio test, which you must pass to work for them. Once you are part of the team, you will be required to work on three hours of transcription per week.
13. Focus Forward
This is a popular company, and many transcribers have used it at one time or another. They offer you the freedom to work as much as you want, depending on your skills and time availability.
Their needs are diverse, and they provide all sorts of transcription work, including focus groups, TV work, and meetings. You will be paid 40 – 65 cents per audio minute, and this payment is made weekly via PayPal.
Of course, you are required to pass a transcription test that will seek to check on the quality of your work, your use of grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
14. Daily Transcription
They frequently advertise for transcriptionists who can join their team. They pay well compared to other companies, and you can make around 75-85 cents per audio minute.
They will also provide you with training to learn how to follow their guidelines, and the payments are made weekly through a check. They focus mostly on television, video transcription, and some legal transcription work.
You are required to pass a test job and have a typing skill of around 50 wpm.
15. Audio Transcription Center
If you are employed by the Audio Transcription Center Company, you will be paid at least $1 per audio minute.
Their work could be challenging and requires a lot of experience in order to hack it. They deal mostly with multiple speakers and focus groups and must be done correctly to receive your payments.
Most of their work is also on historical interviews and their online application requires you to submit a cover letter and resume for you to be considered. You must submit a screenshot of your typing test that shows you can type at 75wpm, which is a very high requirement, and the accuracy must be 98%.
Conclusion
All of these companies offer transcribers plenty of work, which means that you will rarely be without work. But it is important to know some tricks of the trade, such as finding your own private clients.
It is a challenging task but doable. The beauty of private clients is that you do not share your earnings with anyone. You could approach law offices, pastors, and public speakers and request them to give you work so you can transcribe their audio files.
Marketing yourself is the best thing you can do if you are looking for success in this career. It is a long and time-consuming process, but it is gratifying if you successfully find that one client that can offer you consistent work.
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