Can audio transcription replace the need for proofreading?

Professional proofreaders are the secret to making business content really sparkle. Here are the top tips for efficient & affordable proofreading.
May 3, 2019

Write it, check it, check it again. Anyone who's worked with content in any form knows the importance of proofreading; submitting a piece of writing that's riddled with mistakes and misspellings is far from professional, and modern proofreading software doesn't catch enough mistakes to make it reliable.

The explosion of content has also introduced an increased pressure on small content teams across a variety of industries to churn out lots of top-quality content that pleases both search engines and readers. That means there's more pressure placed on proofreaders, making them essential for lots of businesses. Content is king, after all.

There are lots of industries that need to pay close attention to their content - accuracy is key. For academic researchers, submitting a thesis that has the wrong 'your' isn't an option. Similarly, if journalists want to be taken seriously they can't afford to be littering their articles with misspellings. Media companies need to nail their voice and stick to it throughout, which is really hard to do when you have a lot of writers on staff. For your business or project to be taken seriously, your proofreaders need to be on the ball. And not only that, they need to be as efficient as possible.

 

Misspelled words can make businesses look bad

 

No matter whether you opt for proofreading online or an in-office proofreader, you should always look for ways to optimize proofreading. Using automated transcription is one of the best ways to reduce the proofreading workload significantly. If you're looking for a proofreader, consider these key points and how to use an online transcription service to make your proofreader.

Prove yourself unique

Content accuracy goes further than making sure apostrophes are in the right place. As businesses are recognizing the importance of tone of voice, written content is often a lot more conversational, which makes finding a proofreader a challenge. You'll need to create a unique tone of voice that's consistent across all business comms and find a proofreader who can master this.

Keeping your staff writers in line with this can be a big job, too. Proofreading rates can be high, depending on the skill level, and most businesses can't afford to have several proofreaders on their payroll. That's why it's good business sense to find one really strong proofreader or a good alternative - free proofreading doesn't exist at the level most businesses need it.

How do you find a strong proofreader?

Keeping content accurate, professional and in line with your tone of voice is an essential part of running your website and general communications across the business. But what do you look for in a proofreader? If your business is going to take on a professional proofreader, be sure they hit the following points - and hit them hard.

They're a spelling bee champ.

Your proofreader needs to spot spelling mistakes from a mile away, even when skim reading. A proofreader that can't pick out misplaced Cs and extra Ts is not worth their paycheck.

They're a sucker for the minor details.

Your proofreader needs to get up close and personal with every piece of content that comes across their desk, so make sure they're going to go through it with a fine-toothed comb before it goes live.

Punctuation is their first language

You'll need a proofreader that knows where a semicolon goes, and when a comma is a better choice.

They know your brand.

It's 100% necessary that your proofreader knows your brand - and most importantly, your brand voice - inside out. This will help them sculpt all content into the most accurate representation of your business.

Their work ethic is second-to-none.

Proofreading is a tough job at any level. With so many businesses creating huge amounts of content - all of which needs to be checked over and aligned with the brand voice - you'll need a real worker bee to take on the role. You can't risk any roadblocks in getting content out to the world. Whether it's proofreading online or at home, work needs to be completed at pace.

 

Diligence will be rewarded more than proofreading software

 

The day-to-day life of a proofreader is hectic, and brands that create a lot of content may even find themselves needing more than one head to take everything on. But free proofreading doesn't exist, so it's important to keep the process ultra efficient. Is there proofreading software that can replace a human proofreader and get your content live on site with less hassle?

The automation effect

Within industries that use automated transcription services in their content creation - such as the journalism and media world, or market research - proofreading isn't so labor-intensive. Automated platforms like Trint, which use powerful and intelligent artificial intelligence to transcribe the spoken word for written records, are less likely to slip up than manual transcribers. Less mistakes means less work for a proofreader - transcript proofreading streamlines the process further.

While automated platforms have a way to go before they're perfect, Trint learns along with you thanks to its Vocab Builder. It'll get to know exactly how your brand speaks, making for much more accurate transcriptions down the line.

 

Ready to cut down your proofreader workload? Take Trint for a test drive today

 

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