VideoText workflow guide
The comprehensive TranscribeMe style guide in one place. Every rule you need for intelligent verbatim, speaker labeling, punctuation, numbers, and special notations — with before/after examples throughout.
Choose Rev, GoTranscript, TranscribeMe, Scribie, or a custom client specification. Each guideline has distinct rules for verbatim level, speaker label format, timestamp intervals, inaudible notation, and maximum paragraph length.
Clean verbatim removes fillers, false starts, and repetitions for readability. Full verbatim preserves all spoken content. Applying the wrong level is the most common single reason transcripts fail marketplace QA — it cannot be fixed without re-reading the source audio.
A single speaker must have exactly one label format from the first occurrence to the last. Mixed formats (JOHN SMITH / John / J. Smith) require a find-and-replace pass across the full document before any other formatting work.
Rev-style: timestamps every 2 minutes or at each speaker change. GoTranscript: no timestamp requirement by default. TranscribeMe: per-speaker-turn timestamps. Paragraph length limits range from 8 lines (Rev) to no limit (some custom clients).
Verify inaudible notation consistency (all [inaudible] or all [INAUDIBLE], never mixed), check bracket format for crosstalk sections, confirm verbatim level is consistent throughout, and validate that paragraph length does not exceed the client's maximum.
Clean verbatim text. Speaker names in CAPITAL LETTERS followed by a colon. Timestamps in [HH:MM:SS] format at 2-minute intervals and at speaker changes. No paragraph longer than 8 lines. Inaudible sections marked [inaudible]. False starts and fillers removed.
Optional full or clean verbatim per client request. Speaker labels in "Speaker Name:" format with consistent capitalization. [inaudible] notation for unclear audio. No timestamp requirement unless client specifies. Paragraph breaks at topic shifts rather than fixed intervals.
Structured document with consistent heading-style speaker labels, paragraph breaks, correctly formatted timestamps, and clean or full verbatim as specified. Formatted for direct delivery — no manual cleanup required before attaching to the client email.
Reduce revision risk before submitting marketplace jobs. A pre-delivery formatting check catches the label inconsistency, timestamp format error, or verbatim level mismatch that triggers a QA rejection and unpaid revision.
Create a consistent formatting baseline across a team of transcriptionists working on the same client account — so reviewers spend time on content accuracy, not fixing label formats.
Turn raw AI-generated transcripts into readable interview documents: speaker structure, consistent punctuation, accurate paragraph breaks, and timestamps that let readers verify context in the source recording.
Page 1: "JOHN SMITH: Thanks for joining us." Page 3: "John: So as I was saying..." Page 7: "Speaker 1: Right, exactly." — All three refer to the same speaker. Label drift of this kind fails QA at every major transcript marketplace.
[00:05:12] on page 2, (00:05:12) on page 4, [5:12] on page 6, and 00:05:12 on page 8 — all in the same document. Most style guides require a single format, and inconsistency triggers automatic rejection on automated QA systems.
"[inaudible]", "[INAUDIBLE]", "[unclear]", and "[crosstalk]" appearing in the same file for the same type of audio problem. Rev requires "[inaudible]" in lowercase brackets. GoTranscript uses a different notation. Neither accepts a mix of styles.
Pages 1–4 are clean verbatim (fillers removed). Pages 5–8 switch to full verbatim (fillers preserved). This happens when an ASR tool applies different post-processing across transcript segments — and it fails QA because the verbatim level is supposed to be consistent throughout.
Clean verbatim by default. Speaker names in ALL CAPS followed by a colon. Timestamp format [HH:MM:SS] every 2 minutes and at speaker changes. Maximum paragraph: 8 lines. Inaudible: [inaudible]. Crosstalk: [crosstalk]. False starts and filler words removed.
Clean or full verbatim per client request. Speaker format "Speaker Name:" with title case. [inaudible] for unclear audio. No timestamp requirement by default (client can request). No strict paragraph length limit. Crosstalk marked with [crosstalk].
Strict verbatim — all fillers and false starts preserved. Timestamps required at each speaker turn. Speaker format "SPEAKER NAME:" in caps. Specific bracket format for technical notation. Paragraph breaks only at speaker changes.
Many agencies specify hybrid rules that don't map cleanly to any standard guide — for example, Rev-style speaker labels but GoTranscript-style verbatim and no timestamps. These combinations must be documented explicitly because the formatter cannot infer them.
TranscribeMe uses standard American English punctuation. Oxford comma in lists. Em dash for interruptions and abrupt stops. Ellipsis for trailing off. Question marks for direct questions. Exclamation points sparingly — only for genuinely exclamatory speech.
No. Speaker label lines end with a colon, not a period. The colon is part of the label format: [Speaker 1]: The meeting will begin shortly. The period comes at the end of the speaker's sentence, not after the label.
Non-verbal sounds are transcribed in square brackets: [laughs], [sighs], [coughs]. Include sounds when they are relevant to the conversation or emotional context. Minor background sounds are not transcribed unless they interfere with the audio or are relevant.
Transcribe profanity exactly as spoken — do not bleep, censor, or replace with asterisks unless the client specifically requests censoring in job instructions. Standard policy is verbatim profanity if clearly spoken.
TranscribeMe uses a grading system where each transcript is reviewed against the original audio. Grades factor in: word accuracy, verbatim compliance (intelligent verbatim judgments), formatting (speaker labels, paragraph structure, punctuation), and special notation accuracy. High graders access premium audio projects.
