Software to conduct and transcribe online focus groups

December 1, 2016 10:33 AM

I have been asked to organize a series of online focus groups using videoconferencing. I am looking for a platform to use to conduct them, and a cheap transcription service to convert the recordings into text.

I'm looking for the best program (or combination of programs) with the following capabilities:

- Allow at least nine people with video on a single call
- Ability to record the call
- User-friendly for the participants, who may not be particularly tech-savvy. Must work on PC and Mac; working on iOS and Android (even via a browser) would be great.
- Text chat in addition to video would be a bonus but not required
- Cheap - we're a non-profit, and could probably throw $100 or so at this, but no more. Must be free for participants.

There's a bunch of software out there that claims to be purpose-built for this, but I have no way of telling how user-friendly it is (and most of them seem to run on text, not video). Can anyone recommend something they've used?

I've also looked at general web conferencing platforms but so far I've found that Google Hangouts doesn't allow recording; Skype for Business looks expensive; GoToMeeting only allows 6 cameras. What have I missed?

I'm also seeking a transcription service that we can use to convert the recordings into text. Cheap is more important than perfect quality - these will be just for internal use so don't need to be completely error-free, just give us enough text to search and find key points. All my searches are giving me software to do the transcription myself, which is not what I want.

posted by anonymous to Computers & Internet (4 answers total)

I use WebEx for this. You could do their $49/month plan for just the time of your study, it would cover these features and includes recording. Works on mobile but requires an app. I like it because you can have participants share their screens if they want to show you something.

You could also use a tool like Hangouts that doesn't include recording, but try a screen recording tool like Camtasia to record from a second computer participating in the same chat (could even do it from your computer, but I'd be worried about crashes / slowness). Not sure how stable / reliable this will be, but would save even more money.

A free suggestion for transcription - Microsoft Word and Google Docs both support voice typing. You could just play it while having the software listen and see how that works.
posted by beyond_pink at 10:40 AM on December 1, 2016

I think that Google Hangouts and some kind of screen recording software is your best bet. The only screen recording software I've used myself is Camtasia, but it's $200 and is probably overkill if you're not planning on doing a ton of editing. A quick search shows there a bunch of free screen recording programs...not sure about their quality/resolution, but if this is just for internal then I think they'd be fine.
posted by radioamy at 11:14 AM on December 1, 2016

When I tried to record a webinar with free screen recording software it was a disaster because it recorded the screen alright, but not the audio. I don't have a free solution, OP, just a warning to be sure and test in advance any solution you plan to use.
posted by Bella Donna at 11:53 AM on December 1, 2016

Cast (tryca.st) is good for recording audio, not sure if it will do exactly what you want though.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 2:35 PM on December 1, 2016