Transcribe your way to extra $$$!
If you’ve got typing skills, now is the time to turn them into cash by doing transcription—in fact, a recent Freelancer.com survey ranks it among the top fastest-growing jobs! You’ll rake in $10 to $30 an hour to type what you hear on an audio or video file—anything from medical reports and court proceedings to podcasts and online videos, even footage for reality TV shows! Here’s how you can cash in: ✔ GET TYPING!
Take pride in your ace spelling and grammar? Type at least 60 words per minute? You’ve got what it takes to transcribe! One of the best ways to hone your skills? “Open up a Word document, go to Youtube or some other site with audio, and type what you hear,” says Lisa Mills, author of Jump-start Your Work at Home General Transcription Career. You can also check out Typingtest.com to find out your current speed and train for free! For gear, you’ll need a computer, of course, and it’s wise to invest in a foot pedal, which lets you control the audio playback, and quality headphones, which will make it easier for you to hear everything being said.
✔ SNAG ASSIGNMENTS!
To find jobs, log on to Speakwrite. com, iscribed.com, Tigerfish.com, Ubiqus.com, Nettranscripts.com, Waywithwordsjobs.com and 3Playmedia.com and submit your online application. You’ll also be required to take a typing test. You’ll have a leg up on other applicants if you can speak and write Spanish, provide same-day turnaround and type 75 words per minute or more, so be sure to list those capabilities on your application.
✔ MASTER THE PRO SHORTCUTS!
The faster you are, the more money you’ll make! Mills recommends setting up shortcuts in Microsoft Word through the Autotext feature, found under the Insert tab. (Check out Word’s Help feature for more info.) “They enable you to type two or three letters and produce a whole word or a whole sentence!” she says. Also smart: Save time by avoiding taking your hands off the keyboard to reach for the mouse— that means learning how to navigate the screen using the arrow pad and other shortcut keys.
✔ DON’T SKIMP ON THIS DETAIL!
Proofreading is important! “Companies are seeking transcriptionists who are detail-oriented,” says Mills. So whether you proof as you go, then read the transcript when you’re done, or check your completed transcript while listening to the entire audio file again, finding the method that works for you ensures you turn in quality work—and get offered top-quality assignments!