Before we talk about TranscribeMe, let's describe how we rate these types of services.
Our series on transcription service apps will evaluate the features, pricing options, competition, and overall value of using each service.
However, these are not practical reviews, as evaluating a service based solely on performance would not be objective. As it is a human-based solution, the quality of any transcription depends entirely on the performance of one or more people and their skills on a given day.
All of these companies aim to provide a level of service, but it is up to their clients to assess whether transcription is right for their exact needs.
What we also consider is how the company is perceived not only by its customers but also by its employees, who will be the critical service providers. Happy employees often do a better job or go the extra mile, and unhappy ones don't.
The company touts the service as easy to use, accurate, and excellent value for money.
Is this an accurate preview of TranscribeMe or is the user experience slightly different?
Costs
At the lowest level, TranscribeMe offers one of the cheapest human transcription services on the market, at just €0,79 per minute for its "First Draft" tier. For that money, you should get a transcript that is 98% accurate on average, and can be delivered within one to three business days, ideally.
For those who want better service, TranscribeMe's standard service costs €1.25 per minute.
The extra cost guarantees 99% accuracy and delivery in 1-3 business days.
First Draft and Standard may have speaker IDs and timestamps added for an additional fee.
As the term "Verbatim" suggests, the top-tier service transcribes everything said, speaker ID and timestamps are included, and the job is completed in 2-5 business days for €2 per minute.
In addition to the general transcription service, HIPAA, medical, and legally accurate transcription options are available for those who wish to receive a quote, and special offers may be made for Enterprise customers.
In addition to transcription, TranscribeMe also offers AI-powered translation in a wide range of commonly used languages.
The value of this offer to a client will depend on the acceptable level of service and the actual accuracy of the transcriptionist.
How does it work
Where it's hard to fault TranscribeMe is that this service is easy to use. It's a simple web interface where you can upload audio files for processing, provide a URL of your web location, or direct the service to Dropbox.
Supported formats include wav, mp3, mp4, ogg, aiff, aif, m4a, mov, wma, avi, flv, 3gp, 3gpp, 3ga, amr, caf, m4v, and mxf. They do not accept physical media of any kind.
For people on the go, a mobile app for Apple and Android can directly capture audio and then send it directly for transcription.
TranscribeMe also offers API access, for those who want to automate recording processing from an existing software infrastructure.
Once the transcription is complete, the client is notified and can then download the completed work through the TranscribeMe portal in Word, PDF, NVivo, or HTML file formats.
An interesting aspect of this service is that payment is made exclusively by credit card, which could impact those who wish to use the service from outside the United States. Or, you will not allow lower level employees to access a corporate card.
High-usage customers can request that bill payment be arranged as an alternative to cards.
final verdict
What TranscribeMe customers will love is the cost of the service. If you can work with transcription at the First Draft level, it's remarkably cheap. If this level proves insufficiently accurate, even the Standard level service is not that expensive.
Where this solution is less than acceptable is the same problem we encountered with Rev (opens in a new tab), specifically how it treats and pays those who do the work.
According to the TranscribeMe website, you pay between €15 and €22 per hour of transcribed audio. It sounds wonderful until you realize that transcribing an hour of audio in an hour is not possible, no matter how skilled you are.
A very experienced transcriptionist could do this in two hours, and those with less experience will take much longer, perhaps four to six hours. Suddenly being paid an average of €5 an hour, or much less, seems like a much less attractive proposition. And these numbers assume the audio is of good quality, because bad audio can take longer to decipher.
The highest monthly earnings of €2200 seem to assume that 100 hours of transcription were done at the highest pay bracket or just five hours per working day.
In short, no one has a chance to get rich being a transcriptionist, and negative feedback from former employees matters on Trust Pilot and elsewhere.
Another concern is that, according to former transcriptionists, the job often sells out entirely, adding inconsistency to low-wage problems.
As transcription services go, the client gets a good deal with TranscribeMe, maybe better than they deserve.