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Transcription Guidelines: Best Practices & Standards

Did you know we speak about seven times faster than we write? A professional transcriptionist types between 80-100 words per minute, but turning spoken words into text isn’t just about speed—it’s about getting every detail right, including every sigh, sneeze, and stutter. We’ve built Northern Primrose’s Transcription Guidelines based on that standard; here’s a glimpse at how we deliver accurate, verbatim transcription to our clients.

What is Transcribing?

If you google: “What is transcribing?” you’ll learn that transcription is the art of turning audio or video into text.

It’s something we’ve been perfecting for the past four years, but it wasn’t originally part of Northern Primrose’s services. We saw an opportunity to offer court-ready transcripts with a quick turnaround and a personal touch when one of our main VA clients was unhappy with the transcriptions they were receiving externally.

Our process? We listen, re-listen, and listen some more. When we’re dealing with legal transcriptions, there’s no room for error. Detail and accuracy are priorities in our transcription guidelines, and thats how we’re able to deliver court-ready transcripts.

Understanding Transcription Formats

There are different ways for transcriptions to be organized and layed out, we call these formats. Our executive assistant company in Canada has created processes to maintain consistency across all of our documents. That way, regardless of the person that is completing the transcript, it will look exactly the same. Our transcription guidelines will help you understand how our transcriptions are formatted. Keep in mind we’re happy to customize these formats to meet our clients needs and preferences.

  1. Sentence and Paragraph Structure

  • We use Arial typeface or font in 11 points, fully justified (meaning the edges of each line are aligned with the page margins.)
  • We number lines are numbered from where the first speaker starts to talk.
  • We use the written form for numbers from one to ten and the numerical form for numbers beyond 11.
  • We use commas for numbers larger than 1,000.
  • We write dates in numerical forms (March 1st, instead of March first.)
  • When a speaker repeats a word, stutters a word, or changes direction, we use ellipses (three periods) instead of a comma.
  • If the recorder is turned off and back on again during the interview, we note it with a time stamp. [Recording Pauses 01:20:27].

  1. Conjunctions

Conjunctions are words that connect other words (for example: and, but, if.) At Northern Primrose, we avoid starting sentences with conjunctions whenever possible. We only use them at the beginning of a sentence if leaving them out would change what we’re trying to convey. This keeps our writing cleaner and more direct.

  1. Speaker Labels

In transcription, speaker labels identify who is speaking in the audio or video being transcribed; they help us differentiate between multiple voices in interviews. These are Northern Primrose’s guidelines for using Speaker Labels.

  • We use all uppercase (caps) and bolded text followed by a colon (:) to identify speakers (for example: ASPEN PEGGS:  hello everyone.)
  • We use two spaces between the Speaker Label and the text.
  • We use the label UNKNOWN SPEAKER: If someone unidentified says something in the recording.

Types of Transcription Services

When small businesses ask us for advice, we always recommend leaning on experts to help fill knowledge gaps. Legal transcriptions are a gap you won’t want to overlook.

Since we’re already supporting our clients as their Virtual Assistants in Canada, it’s natural for us to anticipate our clients’ needs and adapt our services to help them. For example, because we work closely with our clients, we know the names of people they interact with, locations they frequent, and specific terms they use. With that information, our transcriptionists make a specific language list for each client. The list gets shared with the whole transcription team, so we get the exact spelling right every time, no matter who is doing the transcription.

If you want the highest quality transcriptions in Canada, take a look at Northern Primrose’s services. We offer verbatim court-ready transcripts in English and French, but you may not need verbatim transcriptions. Here’s the difference:

Verbatim

Verbatim transcription is a word-for-word transcription of a recording. It includes include every um or ah. If someone cries, coughs or laughs, it is captured in the document. In terms of legal proceedings or court proceedings, verbatim is the standard for the highest level of accurate speech transcription. By recording the conversation and getting a verbatim transcript, our clients can pull exact quotes without the risk of misinterpretation. It’s also much easier to navigate through a text than hours of audio. With our verbatim transcripts, you can quickly search for any key word instead of fast-forwarding and listening through audio tapes.

Non-verbatim

Sometimes, you don’t need every word, just the key points. Non-verbatim transcription, or a “clean copy,” removes filler words and unnecessary speech to make the transcript clearer without changing the meaning. If it’s for marketing materials or quick reference, a shorter, non-verbatim transcript—or even note-taking—will do the trick.

When accuracy matters most, we don’t settle for less, and neither should you. Thats why our executive assistant company Canada has built solid transcription guidelines.

Ready to elevate your transcription game? Contact Northern Primrose today to learn more about our premium legal transcription services and book a consultation.

 

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