The need for transcription from the mass media, schools, and other organizations, is a source of demand for general transcription services.
The good news is that this is a type of work that can now be done from anywhere in the country, providing rewarding jobs to thousands of work at home professionals.
If you are one of those who are fortunate to be already in the business of transcribing and if you are already earning, whether you are just starting out or a seasoned veteran, it may be good for you to try to boost your productivity and earn even more with the use of a transcription foot pedal.
A transcription pedal will allow you to control the audio or video that you are transcribing using your foot.
This will free up both of your hands in order for you to type at your fastest without sacrificing the quality of your work.
With increased speed and productivity, you will be able to take on more transcribing tasks and also improve your current and potential income.
Most of the foot pedals are easy to use and at hot plugable USB devices that are bundled with a transcription software.
With a press of your foot, a transcription pedal will allow you to control the play of audio from pausing, playing, forwarding, and rewinding.
Because of the advantages of the use of general transcription foot pedal, more and more transcribers and even personal secretaries or personal assistants are getting a transcription foot pedal for themselves.
Some of the more popular brands of foot pedals are StartStop, ExpressScribe, WAVPedal, Olympus, and INUSB2.
These pedals can be bought online and delivered right away to your house.
The price of a transcription pedal varies from about $100 - $200 including shipping.
Although it may seem pricey at first, the investment would easily be made up with the increase in speed and productivity.
If you are doing transcription work for an average of 2 or more hours everyday, it is highly recommended that you get yourself a transcription pedal.
Aside from the USB foot pedal, there are also some manufacturers who bundle the foot pedal with headsets.
The number of types of file format that the transcription foot pedal can play also affect the price, a pedal who supports only the most common file type would be priced lower compared to a pedal that can support more file formats.
Compatibility with the different types of transcription software has the same impact on price - the more transcription software the pedal can work with, the higher the price.
If you are getting work from only one transcription company and the company requires only certain file formats for their customers to use, then you might not need an expensive pedal that can play back different file types.
If you will be freelancing and expect a variety of customers and different file formats, then you may opt for the pedals that support the most number of formats.