As I expounded in a previous blog, I like the efficiencies and convenience of voicemail to email. I accomplish this with my trixbox telephony server. The voicemails are sent to email which I can retrieve via my iPhone. Recently, I began contemplating what could make this service better. My thoughts moved to voicemail transcription services.
Some of the more notables I found are Gotvoice, Voicecloud, Callwave and PhoneTag. I was particularly looking for two specific features. First, I needed the ability for my current voicemail files to be emailed directly to the service. Second, I needed an unlimited pricing plan.
I first tested Gotvoice and was pleased with the setup and capabilities; however, it had one limiting flaw. The messages I received did not retain the caller id information. The other two services I reviewed, Callwave and Voicecloud, either did not have the ability to receive my voicemail files or was priced too high.
I was about to give up finding a solution when I came across PhoneTag . PhoneTag is advertised for cell phone voicemails, but as I dug deeper found it would also transcribe voicemail emails that had already been created. I immediately signed up for the free trial and all I can say is, WOW! After just one week of service, I don't know how I managed without it. The transcription is very accurate (only having trouble with some proper nouns). It is also fast, receiving my transcribed voicemails usually within 1 to 2 minutes. The transcribed emails also retain the original voicemail file.
So why do you need this type of service. I will give you my top three:
- Saves time. It is much more efficient to read an email than to listen to a voicemail.
- Text is a more flexible format. The transcribed email can be easily forwarded, as I did the other day to my staff from my sick bed when I was suffering from a stomach virus.
- Paperless. The transcription can be saved in a paperless format for your record keeping.
I have included an iPhone screenshot of an actual PhoneTag transcription I received. As you can see the transcription is superb, especially in regards to email addresses and phone numbers. After receiving this message I can easily reply by selecting either the email address or the phone number. The cost for the unlimited service is $29.99 per month.
