It may surprise you to learn that most transcriptions are not designed to capture every piece of audio. Most professional non-verbatim transcriptions have been edited to remove grammatical errors, unwanted words, and false starts.
Someone who requests a verbatim transcript is looking for something different. So, let’s discuss what a verbatim dialogue is and why someone would want one.
What is Verbatim Transcription? 
Understanding what a verbatim transcription is fairly straightforward. These transcriptions contain every piece of audio from a podcast, stream, speech, or interview. Nothing is left out, and no efforts are made to clean up anything.
One verbatim transcription example could include false starts and stutters. Your transcriptionist will not conduct any editing on a verbatim transcript.
Verbatim vs. Non-Verbatim 
Verbatim transcriptions generally requires much more attention to detail because the transcriptionist needs to catch everything. If the client opts for a transcription that is not verbatim, it’s more a matter of capturing the essential parts and leaving out everything else.
Traditionally, asking someone to read verbatim would require a higher cost because the job requires much more time to catch everything. Today, tools like Sonix use artificial intelligence to detect everything, which can happen in minutes.
Since there’s no manual editing required, the cost of each is much more reasonable. The non-verbatim meaning means you are getting something that is polished and ready for immediate publication.
Let’s look at a verbatim transcript example side by side to see the difference.
Verbatim Transcription Example
Let’s start with a simple example with the non-verbatim option:
Non-Verbatim: We should go to the movies tonight because they’re offering a discount.
Verbatim: Um, I guess we should go to the movies tonight. They’ve got a ... bit of a discount going.
As you can see, nothing is missed within the verbatim transcription. This transcription shows the reality of everything that was said and every sound made.
What are Detailed Transcriptions? 
Detailed transcriptions are another close relation between verbatim and non-verbatim transcriptions. These transcriptions cut out the general chit-chat and aim purely to display the points that matter.
Even detailed transcriptions can be converted into verbatim if it’s considered necessary. The advantage of turning a conventional transcript into a detailed transcript is that you can make the content more digestible.
They are also faster to record because only specific points need to be included. The downside is you risk losing context. However, combining verbatim with a detailed transcription can effectively counter this problem.
When is Verbatim Transcription Necessary? 
The differences between each type of transcription are substantial. Most transcriptions are done non-verbatim because they look more professional and clean up any hesitations or false starts from the speaker.
Occasionally, you may actively want a transcription that follows everything a person says. One of the biggest reasons for this is to avoid losing the context of the situation. True verbatim will include every non-speech sound, such as “mm-hmm” or “mm-mm.” Verbatim can capture the speaker's feelings and the emotion within the situation.
The legal industry is the most obvious example of when verbatim may be required. Police interviews and legal documents will always include these helpful verbal cues.
With verbatim, you can gain insights into a person’s current demeanor, which would be eliminated if non-verbatim were used.
So, when should you be using a verbatim transcription?
- If you are directly quoting a source
- Leading a focus group
- Preparing legal documents
- Delivering a form of legal statement
- Interpreting an interview, particularly those from research studies
These are just some examples of when someone may want to have a permanent record of every sound a person made.
Benefits of Verbatim Transcription 
Creating a transcription verbatim has never been easier. With software options like Sonix, these transcriptions are easier to build because they require no editing.
In some situations, verbatim is a legal requirement, but there are other benefits to incorporating this type of subscription into your organization.
More Affordable
It has always been true that if you wanted a transcription verbatim, you could expect to pay more for the privilege. Since every sound had to be diligently recorded, transcriptionists would spend considerably longer on these documents.
Today, artificial intelligence has meant that verbatim is now the more affordable option. It takes longer to create a document that is not verbatim because your software will likely record everything, which will need to be edited.
If you’re looking for a more cost-effective option, verbatim is the most suitable solution.
Avoid Misquoting People
Misquoting someone can have devastating consequences for any business. Remember, the person creating your transcription was likely absent during the interview. If they are asked to sum everything up and perform editing on the transcript, there is a good chance that vital pieces of data could be lost.
Recalling information poorly or altering the context can give an opposite impression of what was intended. These problems happen when a transcriptionist editing a verbatim document is not there.
Opting for transcription in verbatim helps to recall conversations accurately without losing any of the original meaning.
Make Your Content Immediately Actionable
Conducting interviews to gather qualitative data is valuable in academic and business contexts.
The faster you can make your content actionable, the quicker you can begin reaping the rewards. Quantitative data is easy to act on because you are looking at a set of easily digestible figures. Qualitative data requires much more effort to extract conclusions.
Creating a verbatim transcription is a quicker method of recording the results of an interview or focus group. Decisionmakers can jump into these transcriptions and begin drawing accurate conclusions more rapidly than if they were working without a verbatim document.
Display Emotion
Emotion is present in every human interaction. Think about a formal focus group where you are getting someone’s first impressions of your latest product. Social etiquette often prevents people from coming out and telling you precisely what they think, mainly if their reactions are overwhelmingly negative.
Cleaning up your transcriptions to make them non-verbatim is a problem because you lose those cues that reveal someone’s true feelings. It could lead to a business mistakenly labeling a new product as a winner when their focus group thought the opposite.
Verbatim means every little hesitation, every laugh, and every curse is captured in black and white. These pieces of information are excellent indicators to others as to what someone thought of a particular topic—the minor specifics matter, and not just in areas like the legal industry.
Discover the Sonix Difference 
Choosing a verbatim transcription gives you a valuable tool to decode someone’s true thoughts and feelings on a subject. Some contexts may require you to use verbatim for legal reasons, such as if conducting a police interrogation. However, even if not needed, there are advantages to using verbatim.
In a time when transcriptions were still done by hand, asking for a transcription to be done verbatim was expensive. The process took considerably longer and required the skill and expertise of a human transcriptionist. Today, Sonix is the industry’s leading automated transcription software.
If you need to ensure that nothing is clipped, edited, or missed, trust Sonix. Upload your file, click, and get your laser accurate transcription fast. To learn more about the value of Sonix, try it for free now.
