Who's The Boss? Business Owner's Guide To Mastering Administrative Basics

If you are a YouTuber or if you make videos to market your business or for any other reason, you may want to consider posting a transcription of your videos. A transcription makes it possible for fans to read the information instead of watching the video, which is often faster for many people. However, a transcription also makes your information more likely to be found by the search engines.

You can hire a transcription service. In fact, there are a number of online companies that will do the transcription work for you, but if you want to do the work on your own, you just need the right supplies. Here's what it takes:

1. Headphones

To block out other sound when you are recording, consider investing in a pair of headphones. Although they are more expensive than most earbuds, they are also more effective at filtering out other noises. That helps you get a more clear message and ultimately makes your transcription efforts more effective. However, if you can't afford headphones, you can use speakers — you just have to deal with outside distractions.

2. Foot Pedal

Most video playing software allows you to pause the video with a tap of a button. For example, you can pause many videos with the space bar. Unfortunately, while you are typing, that can be distracting.

However, as a transcriptionist, you need the ability to start and stop the recordings. That allows your quickly typing fingers to catch up with the rest of the message. To make that task easier on yourself, consider investing in a foot pedal. Designed for transcription, these pedals are similar to the pedals you see with sewing machines.

A transcription foot pedal plugs into your CPU or even into a laptop through the USB port, and it sits on the floor conveniently waiting for you to depress it.

3. Word Processing Program

You also need a word processing program to type your transcript into. In a pinch, you can use a simple program such as Notepad. However, if you want speed and accuracy, you may want to utilize a program that has automatic spell check and that instantly saves your progress as you type. If you have internet access, an internet word processing platform like Google Docs can be convenient and cost-effective. Some internet programs also save everything as you go along. As a result, if you need to revert back to a previous transcription, you easily can.

4. Phrase expander Program

If you transcribe a lot of videos, you may want to look into a phrase expander program, this software makes typing faster. Basically, it allows you to create shortcuts for commonly used phrases or long words so you don't have to type them out. To explain, imagine you are a carpenter and you make videos about woodworking. When talking about wood, you often use the phrases "annual growth rings" and "equilibrium moisture content." To save time, you set up your phrase expander to enter those words every time you type a short code such as "123" or "112." There are a range of programs at a range of price points that can help.

5. Video to MP3 Converter

Finally, you may also want to consider a program that converts videos to MP3 files. This is not that important for your own transcription efforts. However, if you ever decide that you need a break and want help transcribing a video, you may need this tool. It strips the sound from the video and puts it into a format that you can easily send to a transcription service.

If you are ready to reap the benefits of posting a transcription next to your videos, it's time to invest in the right equipment and start the process. You can also look into hiring transcription help or services if you feel you cannot take this task on yourself.