Skip to main content

Other Types of Work a Transcriptionist Can Do

Transcriptionists are best known for having fast fingers. But they have a keen eye as well. Therefore, there are other types of work a transcriptionist can do, such as proofreading and data entry. Read on to find out more about these skill sets.

Proofreading

As I mention in my book, Transcribe Like a Pro: Making Money from Home, a transcriptionist needs to have good proofreading skills. She makes sure words are spelled correctly and punctuation is correctly placed. Sometimes she has to improve the speaker’s grammar, especially if the language being spoken is not native to the speaker.

To make sure words are spelled correctly, she may need to do some research or have her favorite online dictionary readily available for those unfamiliar words that she is transcribing. The same is true when proofreading a written document, such as for a book or magazine article. People often misuse or misspell words. And they often use punctuation incorrectly. Commas tend to be the most incorrectly used punctuation that I find. So, I encourage you to become familiar with the best use of commas. For example, you should know when to use them to divide a series of words or phrases. At other times, a period, question mark, or semicolon may make better sense. Grammarly.com has helpful tips on all types of punctuation as well as grammar solutions.

You already have the skills of a proofreader as a transcriptionist. Yet, this is only one of the other types of work a transcriptionist can do. So, if proofreading isn’t your preference, perhaps data entry will be.

Data Entry

Data entry can be great work to do in between your transcribing jobs. Many, if not most, data entry jobs involve research skills. As I have already mentioned, research is something a transcriptionist is very familiar with. Sometimes clients will provide a few documents for you to retreive information from and incorporate into a spreadsheet or a database. The latter, of course, is the easiest.

Spreadsheets and databases, however, aren’t the only forms of data entry. Sometimes people want you to address digital envelopes or copy names to be used in the salutations of letters. You may also be asked to research information to copy and paste into a Word document. Be sure to cite this information with the web link, author’s name, and date of publication. And if you are entering any information by hand instead of using the copy/paste method, be sure to proofread your work for accuracy as you go. Because a data entry error can be costly for both you and your client.

Proofreading and Data Entry Summary

The data entry examples listed in this post are just the tip of the iceberg. And proofreading jobs may also require you to fix syntax errors, paragraph placements, and more. So, be sure you’re comfortable with many types of editing if you’re interested in proofreading. Download my free 7 Freelance Websites ebook to find remote proofreading and data entry jobs.

Data entry and proofreading
Image courtesy of Aleks Dorohovich via Unsplash

I still owe you one more free eBook that goes with this work-from-home series, so watch for that to come within the next couple of weeks. Other than announcing the book, this is the final post for this series. I hope you have found these to be helpful. Feel free to reach out with any questions via the contact form on the right or by using the comment form below. A new series will start soon! 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for taking time to leave a comment. Your comment will be published after it has been moderated. All SPAM is deleted by Blogger.

Other Posts You Might Like

Image Pixels to Inches, Flip Image, and Increasing DPI

Image Pixels to Inches, Flip Image, and Increasing DPI These are simple tips I want to share with those of you who are like me and do not have fancy programs to help when needing to convert pixels to inches, find out how many pixels an image has, and increase DPIs for better print quality. My tips are based on a Windows 11 OS and may not work on other systems. However, you may be able to do an internet search to explore your OS options based on the information I have provided below. I do not receive any compensation from these two sites listed. I use them because they are easy, free, and safe to use. These tips are helpful if you need to quickly figure how many pixels you need for a certain number of inches so you can print the right size every time without guessing and wasting printer ink until you do get it right. Also, sometimes, a print needs to be flipped (mirrored, reversed) for transfers. And last but not least, if you’re selling printable items, a higher DPI is needed for ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Charcoal Grilling Recipe for Beef Kebabs

Grilled Beef Kebabs AKA Kababs or Kabobs As I've already mentioned, grilling is my newest hobby . I call it a hobby; otherwise, I wouldn't do it because a lot of time is required to prep. Grilling is meant to get me outdoors more, so yes, it is a hobby. Some people recently told me that they enjoy grilling because it's so much easier and there is less cleanup. I'm not sure how that can be unless they simply add something onto the grill without prepping it with flavor. Gas grilling may be slightly easier since no prepping is needed to heat it up as with a charcoal grill. However, I'm not 100% sure about that. And honestly, I use more dishes for grilling than I normally would for cooking on my kitchen stove. But the flavors and connecting with nature are so worth it. Directions for these beef kebabs are for the charcoal grill.   But they can also be made in the oven or on a gas grill as well, using your own judgment for cooking times. This cook involves open-fire cook...
Post a Comment
Read more

This Rule is Golden

 In Matthew 7:12 NLT, Jesus tells us , "Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets." image courtesy of Randalyn Hill via Unsplash My goodness, how often does the world turn the Golden Rule around? Jesus meant it for us to be kind and merciful. Many in the world use it to get even, to seek vindication for a wrong done to them - or what they think has been done to them, which is NOT at all what Jesus said in this verse. Yet, how many times do we hear, "Well, they did this to me. I'm going to do the same to them." Or, "That person was mean to me; I'm going to teach that person a lesson they will never forget." Or, "I never get a break. Why should I give anyone else a break?" Jesus said to treat people the way we want to be treated. That means to be cordial in all encounters. Show mercy to those who aren't showing us mercy. Let's be nice to people who...
Post a Comment
Read more