The example is Lena at Fairbank HR Consulting, a made-up firm, working from a recorded 30-minute call with her client, Marcus.
What are the most common speech-to-text mistakes?
| # | Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recording on a laptop mic across a room | Use a headset or a mic close to each speaker |
| 2 | Not checking names, numbers, dates and jargon | Search the transcript for them and fix errors |
| 3 | Leaving speakers as "Speaker 1" and "Speaker 2" | Name the speakers first |
| 4 | Trusting speaker labels during crosstalk | Check the line against the audio before quoting |
| 5 | Copying action items without checking owner and date | Check both against the transcript |
| 6 | Putting a theme in a report unchecked | Listen to two of its quotes first |
| 7 | Recording without asking | Tell everyone and get their OK, every time |
Why does audio quality matter so much?
1. A laptop mic across the room. Clean audio is the biggest factor in accuracy: one voice at a time, close to the mic, no echo and no music. The lesson's rule of thumb is that a headset on a quiet call beats a laptop mic across a meeting room every time.
Which words go wrong most?
2. Names, numbers, dates and jargon. In the lesson's transcript, "the Q4 renewal" came out as "the queue for renewal". The word error rate for the call can look low and still hide that kind of error, because the mistakes land on the words that matter. When a transcript opens, search it for names, numbers and dates and fix them. Many tools let you add custom words, such as client and product names, so the next transcript gets them right.
Try it free, step by step
How AI Transcription Works: Speech-to-Text, Speaker Diarization and Themes. Follow one recorded client call from sound to transcript, catch the kind of error speech-to-text makes, name the speakers, and pull out action items and themes you can trust. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of Stepthrough, it checks your work as you go, and “Do it for me” finishes any step you get stuck on. Free, and nothing touches your real accounts.
Start the free lessonWhat goes wrong with speakers?
3. Unnamed speakers. Speaker diarization groups stretches of speech that sound alike, so it knows there are two voices but not whose they are. Rename Speaker 1 and Speaker 2 once and every line updates. Some meeting tools fill names in from the calendar invite: check them.
4. Crosstalk and similar voices. Two people talking at once, or two similar voices on one laptop mic, get merged or swapped. If the transcript says the client agreed to something, check that line against the audio before you quote it.
What goes wrong after the transcript?
5. Unchecked action items. "Lena: send the handbook draft (PTO and remote work) to Marcus and Dana by Oct 14." The owner comes from diarization and the date from the words, so a swapped speaker or a misheard date gives you a wrong task. Check both. Meeting transcript to action items shows a full recap flow.
6. Unchecked themes. Across many calls, thematic analysis groups what people said into themes with quotes as evidence. A theme is a claim about your customers. Before it goes in a report, click two of its quotes and listen to them. Quotes are where a transcription error turns into a wrong conclusion.
What is the mistake before you even press record?
7. Recording without asking. Tell everyone the call is recorded and get their OK. The lesson notes that some US states require everyone on the call to agree, and that client contracts may say more. Practice with made-up recordings. If you're unsure of the rules where you work, ask whoever handles legal questions for your firm.
Key takeaways
- Fix the audio first: a headset or close mic, one voice at a time.
- Search every transcript for names, numbers and dates.
- Name the speakers, and check quotes against the audio during crosstalk.
- Check the owner and date on every action item.
- Listen to two quotes before a theme goes in a report, and always ask before recording.
More answers are in the speech-to-text FAQ.