What is call transcription and how does it work?
Call transcription, professionally known as transcription (from the English speech-to-text, i.e., converting speech to text), is the process of automatically converting spoken words from a telephone recording into written form. The system analyses the audio file, recognises individual words and creates a text transcript, ideally with differentiation of which speaker said what.
The quality of the transcription depends on the clarity of the recording, the language model used and the speaking rate. Modern systems can handle Czech transcriptions, although accuracy is lower than for English. The result can be exported to a text file or directly linked to a CRM system (customer management tool).
Where will call transcription help the company?
Text transcription enables quick searching of call content without playing the recording. The sales team manager can find out in a few seconds whether the salesperson mentioned the price or delivery date without listening to the entire recording.
- Quality Control - The supervisor searches transcripts using keywords instead of listening to dozens of calls.
- Customer support - a call summary is automatically attached to the ticket in the CRM system
- Dispute resolution - a written record serves as evidence of the agreed terms
- Training - specific excerpts from transcripts facilitate feedback for new employees
GDPR and call recording in the Virtual Call Centre
A call transcript is personal data within the meaning of the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). Before processing it, you must have a legal basis: usually the caller's informed consent or a legitimate interest. Merely notifying about recording is insufficient; the caller must also be aware that the call will be transcribed into text and that the text transcript will be stored.
Keep transcripts only for as long as strictly necessary and secure access to them with the same strictness as to the recordings themselves. We recommend consulting your DPO (Data Protection Officer) regarding the legal basis. On virtualni-ustredna.cz, transcription can be activated or deactivated for specific lines without requiring a technician's intervention.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does call transcription also work in Czech?
Yes, modern speech recognition systems support Czech. Accuracy depends on recording quality and the speaker's rate of speech: under standard conditions, current systems achieve good usability even for Czech.
Do I need to inform the caller that the call is being recorded?
Yes. Merely announcing that the call is being recorded is insufficient; the caller must be explicitly informed that the conversation will also be transcribed and a text record stored. We recommend consulting a lawyer or the Data Protection Officer regarding the precise wording of this information obligation.