How to Improve Market Research Efficiency with Transcription

Market research and focus groups are an important part of doing business. The results can show you where there’s money to be made. They spell out what customers expect from you and can help you pinpoint opportunities to improve. But, despite its benefits, market research—and, in particular, focus groups with interviews and conversations—can be tedious. There are a lot of pain points: you have to sift through notes, listen to or watch hours of playbacks, and rely on multiple tools and software to get it done.

The good news is if you simply record the interviews from your research, the process can be made efficient with a transcription service.

Simplify note-taking and reporting

Market research requires some form of note-taking. You can’t expect to remember all key takeaways. But manual note-taking and reporting are time-consuming and leave room for error. First, you have to review notes from group interviews and your initial reports. Then, to ensure there aren’t any errors, you have to spend time on quality control. If there are errors, you have to double-check for inconsistencies. That all takes a lot of time. And what is time? Money. And if you’re manually taking notes, you’re spending it fast.

Another, less time-consuming approach is to audio record your sessions. Then you can upload your recordings to Rev and receive an accurate transcription in 12 hours. With an accurate transcription, you’re able to review the data sooner and more thoroughly than without one. You can take your time with the conversation. Make notes. Highlight. Find the roots of the feedback.

You can even request timestamps and annotate finished transcripts. For example, if the focus group broke out into an inspiring conversation halfway through the session, timestamps and annotation help you find this section. From there, your team can add their thoughts and pull quotes. (And you can do all of it within Rev’s transcript editor.)

Hear everything

Recording focus group sessions saves time down the road, but sometimes the audio isn’t perfect. You’ll capture more than one person speaking at a time, speakers will have accents, and some comments will be garbled. If you can’t hear what’s being said during audio playbacks, some of your insights will be lost. With transcription, your team doesn’t have to spend hours listening to playbacks. They can find insights from within the transcript and focus on creating reports.

Rev transcripts come with a 99% accuracy guarantee. Your transcripts will capture everything, from the nuances of speech to hushed side comments. You’ll be able to focus on interviews—for example, asking follow-up questions or making sure everyone gets a chance to speak—instead of asking people to repeat themselves or speak slower. If you’ve ever had to repeat yourself, then you know your phrasing changes the second or third time. As a researcher, you want every detail to make sure nothing’s lost.

Verbatim transcription is also available for an additional $0.25/audio minute. With this feature, you can capture everything participants say. Your transcript will include filler words, like ums and uhs, as well as false starts and grammatical errors. Verbatim transcripts are helpful because they highlight vocal cues and give you context. You’re able to understand the intention and meaning behind participants’ comments and answers.

Speed up workflow with integrations

Your audio workflow is stymied even if you use digital tools to help. You have to manually adjust audio files each step of the way. For example, when you film or record focus group interviews, you might have to compress and convert files before sending them to outsourced transcribers. Then you have to convert the new file to a usable format before uploading the file to a video player.

Using non-API integrated transcription tools means you risk losing information along the way. You might accidentally delete a file during conversion or end up with transcription files that can’t be converted easily.

By adding Rev’s API integration into your workflow, transcription is smoother. After you film or record your focus group sessions, upload the file or share a URL with Rev. Multiple file types are accepted, and transcription is completed and sent back to you within hours—saving you time and effort. You also minimize the risk of accidentally deleting something.

For focus group participants who aren’t all in the same room—they’re on a phone line—use Rev’s free Call Recorder App. Using just an iPhone, you can record sessions with group participants or conduct interviews. You have access to unlimited recording and can submit the audio for transcription—right in the app. The app also integrates with Dropbox, so you can share transcripts with your team.

A lack of API integrated tools isn’t just time-consuming; it’s also inconvenient. You spend more time manipulating recordings instead of learning from them.

LitBrains, a market research consultancy, knows just how important speed is. They help companies make smarter business decisions, and to meet the demands of their customers, LitBrains has tight deadlines. Since they turned to Rev for help speeding up their workflows, they’re consistently able to meet those deadlines.

Pam Goldfarb Liss, owner of LitBrains, explains her experience, “The speed is a really big deal for us. Without the Rev transcripts, it would add a ton of time to our work.” She also uses it for the convenience. She frequently travels to conduct focus groups, so Rev’s simple user interface means recordings are uploaded fast. She just plugs in her audio recorder to her laptop and uploads to Rev. She’s able to spend more time with her clients or focusing on the data instead of personally moving her audio through multiple tools.

If you’re really pressed for time, consider submitting a request for Automated Transcription. You’ll have a transcript you can highlight, share, search, and more in just five minutes. This is a great option for small groups where people speaking at the same time is minimal. Automated Transcription uses speech recognition algorithms, so the clearer the audio, the better. Automated Transcription comes with an 80%+ guarantee.

Get rid of inefficiencies with transcription

As part of the market research team, you play a huge role in your business’s decision-making process. Your ability to communicate what customers want and how to stand out from competitors hinges on learning quickly. Transcription helps you do this. There are going to be inefficiencies in some of the processes you use. But with the right tools, you can minimize the disruption to your workflow.

Workflows are adaptable. Introduce transcription at different spots along your workflow. Start by uploading focus group sessions to Rev. Decide who will upload audio and where transcripts will be stored — like Dropbox or Google Drive. Then gradually add in some of Rev’s additional transcription features, for example, verbatim transcripts and the call recorder. As you remove inefficiencies, you’ll enjoy a faster workflow.

Don’t spend more time than you have to with annoying tasks. Contact us to learn more about how Rev can help improve your workflow.

Talk to a market research transcription expert.