Podcasts have appeared relatively recently (in 2004). But they are gaining more and more listeners, who use them for various purposes, including education. Podcasts are used in blogs by people from different countries to communicate and exchange information. As a rule, they have a certain thematic and frequency of publication. New generation Internet technologies enable users of the World Wide Web to listen to, view, create and distribute audio and video programs.
Podcast owners often use the human transcription service today because it allows them to get a larger audience and increase their own rating. In this article, we will consider in detail what a podcast is, what its varieties are, and how to get a transcript of a podcast. If you are interested in this information, study the material carefully.
Characteristics of the Podcast and Its Main Varieties
The word ‘podcast’ comes from the words ‘iPod’ (MP3 player) and ‘broadcast’ (radio broadcasting). Unlike regular TV or radio, the podcast allows listening to audio files and watching video programs not live but at any time convenient for the user. The social podcast service allows Internet users to listen to or view previously posted podcasts and to create their own podcasts on any topic. They can last from a few minutes to several hours.
There are three main types of podcasts:
- Audio podcast;
- Video podcast;
- Screencast is a new phenomenon that has simplified online learning. The essence of the screencast is that a special program records actions on a computer screen along with audio comments, which is ideal for explanations in computer programs.
There are the following main genres of podcasts:
- Audio blogs (analog of the online diary);
- Music;
- Technique;
- Comedy podcast;
- Audiobooks;
- Educational podcasts;
- Interview;
- News;
- Policy;
- Radio performances and radio shows;
- Sport;
- Games, etc.
Why Is a Podcast Transcription So Important?
If you are serious about growing your business and engaging your audience, then you should definitely consider getting a transcription for your podcasts. By transcribing a podcast, you get several unique benefits, including the following:
- Create content that is service efficient. Practice shows that text content is more efficient to serve in comparison with audio or video content. It is easy to refer to it. It is easy to process and make edits, as well as take the necessary notes;
- Automatically increase your rating. By transcribing audio and video to text, your platform becomes more authoritative. Your SEO is boosted, making it easy for interested users to discover your content online;
- Allow your content to be easily repurposed. For example, your podcast can be distributed on the Internet in PDF form, which will spread the information about your brand and attract the attention of a target audience.
So, podcast transcription is very important. But how can you get it? Read the guide in the next section.
3 Effective Ways to Get a Good Transcription
If you want to get a high-quality transcription of audio or video to text, you can use one of the methods described below.
Using the Services of Specialized Resources
Today, you can easily find transcription services on the network that offer their services in the implementation of podcast transcription. But not all of them carry out the high-quality conversion. Therefore, you should be responsible when choosing a platform. You should give preference to an online service that efficiently converts podcasts into text, does it quickly and without any technical difficulties.
Here is a list of criteria you should take into account when choosing a specialized service:
- Speed. It is great if the services are provided in the specified timeframe or even earlier;
- Quality. Make sure that the service specialists really create high-quality texts that are easy to read and understand;
- Editing. It will probably be helpful if editing the completed transcript is available;
- Formats. Choose those services that offer the ability to save the transcribed podcast in different formats.
Transcriberry.com is a transcription service that meets all of the above criteria. There you can get high-quality services in converting audio and video podcasts to text. It is very easy to upload the source file to the site since the platform interface is very simple and understandable, even for a novice PC user. The speed of translation delights customers.
Using the Podcast Transcript Software
To transcribe an audio or video podcast into text, you do not need to use paper and pen at all. This is an old-fashioned way that takes a lot of time and effort. Thanks to the active development of Internet technologies, today, it is easy to find good software that will significantly reduce the cost of time and effort and complete the task successfully.
Here is a list of programs that are recommended use to obtain good transcription:
- RSplayer V1.4. It is one of the most efficient audio-to-text programs. For the convenience of decrypting audio files, this software has a built-in simple text editor. The audio player is located at the top of the text editor window. The program is very easy to use. You just need to download the source file and start transcribing. The use of the program is free, which makes it even more popular among users;
- Express Scribe. This program is also often used to transcribe audio text. It’s easy to use and available for free. A large number of recording formats are supported. There is integration with Microsoft Word, which is very convenient for users;
- Dragon Dictate. This is a unique program from a well-known American manufacturer. It is used to transmit voice commands to the computer, as well as to convert speech to text online. The program is available for free and helps many users efficiently translate podcasts into text.
Learning Sample Transcripts from Experienced Podcasters
If you want to learn how to create quality podcast transcriptions, you should definitely learn from the experience of leading podcasters such as Rainmaker.TV and Freakonomics Radio. This will help you see the positive aspects of their work, gain new experience, and even identify some shortcomings.
So, anyone can get a transcription of a podcast today. The main thing is to choose the most suitable method that will help you convert audio or video to text quickly, efficiently, and reliably!
