Clients and agents alike have come to depend heavily on virtual forms of communication in order to streamline real estate transactions. Roughly 90% of real estate agents say that their preferred method for communicating with clients is via phone. Many brokerages also rely on both phone and video calls. With so much important information being exchanged remotely and digitally, many offices are turning to real estate transcription. Transcripts are providing them with accurate records they can reference of interactions with clients, employees and more.
Table of Contents:
- What is Real Estate Transcription?
- The Use Cases for Real Estate Transcription
- Can Real Estate Transcription Support Fair Housing Laws?
What is Real Estate Transcription?
In general, transcription refers to the process of converting audio or video recordings into written text. When you think about the endless communication and conversations that fuel the real estate process, the opportunities for transcribing are seemingly endless.
To produce transcripts, some companies ask in-house employees to review audio or video recordings and type out what was said or discussed manually. As you can imagine, this process can be laborious, particularly when transcribing lengthy recordings of things like business meetings or closings. In-house employees are also prone to making significant transcription errors, which can make for costly mistakes in big transactions.
Therefore, more real estate professionals are now seeing the benefit of transcribing and doing so with professionally trained transcribers instead. However, while these individuals tend to make fewer mistakes, they can be very expensive to hire and frequently encounter bandwidth issues.
An alternative option for those brokerages interested in real estate transcription is to partner with a professional transcription service. Verbit, for example, can provide these agencies with transcripts quickly and easily, using both Artificial Intelligence (AI) and editing by professional human transcribers. This dual system helps to generate highly accurate transcripts in a fraction of the time it would take to do so manually.
Real estate agencies are benefiting from access to Verbit’s transcripts for record keeping and referencing as well, since they are fully searchable. This searchability allows them to work efficiently to go back to whatever was said that they want to reference by inputting a simple keyword.
The Use Cases for Real Estate Transcription
The entire life cycle of a deal involves a great deal of communication that brokerages may want to consider transcribing. For example, if an inspector provides an audio or video recording of a home inspection, transcription could convert the results of the inspection to a readable format. Transcripts can make it easier to discuss and refer back to specific points made throughout the inspection, and it also provides a written account of the results of the inspection that can be maintained for record-keeping purposes.
It’s critical that the findings of any home inspection are properly documented for both the agents and the clients, so it would be wise to transcribe a home inspection report early on in the negotiation process. It would be similarly wise to offer property report transcription for any conversations had pertaining to the findings of the real estate surveyor. Recording and transcribing these discussions can help to ensure all parties receive the same information, and make it easier to clear up any miscommunications that may arise down the line.
Internal communications can also benefit greatly from real estate transcription services. Real estate agents often work from home or on a hybrid model. Subsequently, it’s not uncommon for brokerages to rely upon conference calls or video chats when communicating with their teams. Offering transcripts of important business communications can help to ensure all employees are on the same page, regardless of whether they’re in the office or in the field. Events like team meetings and video conferencing calls benefit significantly when tools like captioning and transcription are also offered during them – especially as some may not be able to join and will want to reference what was said later.
Transcripts can also be a valuable marketing tool and help you to grow your brand reach and clientele base. Real estate brokerages that produce audio or video content can improve engagement by offering transcripts. Promotional content that is posted on YouTube, for example, will see increased viewership if it includes accurate captions and transcripts. This is largely due to the fact that a staggering 92% of mobile users watch video with the sound off.
Additionally, transcripts can be made available in a video description or on a brokerage’s website, thus making the content discoverable and boosting the brand’s SEO rankings. The same can be said for promotional content like podcasts. A transcription partner like Verbit makes it fast and easy to transcribe audio to text that can then be utilized in a wide range of marketing efforts.
Can Real Estate Transcription Support Fair Housing Laws?
Apart from streamlining the record-keeping process and supporting digital marketing efforts, one of the major benefits of offering transcription is inclusion. Individuals of all backgrounds and abilities deserve an equitable experience when looking to buy or sell a home.
The Fair Housing Act deems it illegal to harass individuals due to their race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin.
With disabilities in mind, offering accurate transcripts of important transaction-related conversations can be incredibly helpful. Brokerages can ensure their communication and marketing processes are more inclusive of clients and agents who may be Deaf or hard of hearing, for example. Transcripts also serve as a valuable tool to individuals who prefer to engage with information in a readable format, such as those with ADHD or auditory processing disorders. Transcribing important information can also support clients whose first language may not be English.
For a real estate agent, transcription can help support key accessibility guidelines like the ADA, as well as fair housing laws and policies implemented by the National Association of Realtors. Offering these tools proactively can also help to ensure a positive brand experience for all who utilize your services or work at your company.
Modern Solutions for a Changing Market
There are many ways both agents and clients can benefit from real estate transcription services. To start, meeting transcription is an easy way to begin making your Zoom calls or webinars more inclusive of your entire workforce. Providing transcripts of events like home inspections or negotiations can make the experience of buying or selling a home more accessible for clients who may be going through the process for the first time.
Working with experienced real estate transcription services like Verbit can support brokerages in their efforts by providing not just highly accurate transcripts, but seamless integrations and automated workflows that help companies save both time and money.
Verbit offers services like real estate transcription, insurance transcription, Zoom transcription and more to help modern businesses improve their accessibility and boost productivity. Reach out to learn more about how tools like closed captioning, transcription, translation, as well as audio description can keep your brokerage ahead of the curve and inclusive in today’s market.