Carolyn Bodley - Legal Verbatim Transcriptionist of Audio, Video & Digital Files

Services and BLOG

Home | About Me | Services and BLOG | Newsletters | Confidentiality | Value-Added Transcription Services | Contact Me | Fees | FAQs-Transcription | Links | Etc. and More
blog entries are strictly the opinion of Carolyn Bodley and may not reflect the opinion of others

(to see archived blog entries, click on the links to the right of the top blog)
blog.jpg

Some photos are compressed or removed in archived blog postings, leaving only a description of the photo. The blog postings remain complete and unchanged.

Archive Newer | Older

Friday, March 28, 2008

BLOG-I'm all for customer service--however, ...
I'm a stickler for treating people -- my clients, fairly and without gouging or nickle and diming them. I also bend over backwards to meet my commitments.

With that said, I am not, however, idly sitting by (like the Maytag repairman) waiting to pounce on your call. You can't just walk into your doctor's office or even your corner mechanic without an appointment and say "hop to it." I was scheduled to have a follow-up signing this past Monday. Unfortunately, the lady had a medical emergency and was forced to leave town. The company just called me to advise that the lady was back in town -- without asking my schedule or availability, I was told to meet with her and finish up the signing today. Replying that I had no availability today, the cordialness quickly turned to a cold shoulder and the call was cut short.

This lady has been waiting on her structured settlement since earlier this month and does not have a problem waiting one more day for me. However, for the person receiving the commission this month or next month does have a problem.
[end of blog]
10:43 am mdt 

Thursday, March 27, 2008

BLOG-The nitty gritty of profits
With gasoline over $3.00 a gallon and continuing to rise and milk, eggs, and every other consumable in our lives costing more than a few months ago -- running a profitable business takes a lot more number crunching than ever.

You better know at any given moment the exact cost of running a business -- your business. I just quoted a price for a mountain signing off the top of my head -- which is a big no-no. The company countered for $25 less and when I said no, they asked "can't you work with me?"

After getting off the phone, I crunched the numbers time-wise and mileage-wise. The two end results were pretty close, however, roughly $100 more than my initial quote -- which is why you should never just throw any ol' number out there.

Had this company not bickered over $25, any profit on this signing could be compared to a drug dealer putting the profit up his nose, only I would have been putting it in the gas tank.
[end of blog]
10:31 am mdt 

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

BLOG-Some people would -- and do call me anal ...
Anyone that knows me either personally or through my writings, knows that I'm a stickler for customer service and I don't tolerate incompetence.

I've been arguing with one of the big show insurance companies for a year -- an insurance company that, by the way, we have paid our money to for more than 25 years -- a company that has insured all our vehicles and residences. A company that we have only filed one roof damage claim due to hail -- a company that it would actually be quite an eye opener if I actually sat down and figured how many dollars we have actually paid in premiums -- which is why I'm not going to do it because it would just make me angrier. 

At any rate, I finally had my fill with being just a $ sign to them, so in the middle of February I gathered up all our policies and made an appointment with an independent agent. As a small business owner, I try to support the small guy. All of our different policies come due at a different time throughout the year and she wanted to have them all come due at the same time. I wasn't too keen on the idea of dishing out the money all at once, but what the heck.

I was with the independent agent for over an hour as she reviewed all the info I brought in and in asking additional questions. This was a Wednesday. She assured me that she would shop around for the best deals all that day and the next, and get back with me on Friday. My mistake was not pinning her down as to WHICH Friday she would get back with me. I let that Friday as well as the next Friday go by and no phone call, no email, nadda. Finally, I contacted her the next Monday, nearly two weeks since our meeting. She apologized and assured me that she was working on it. Another week-and-one-half passes and I call again. She assured me that we still had some time, as the residence policy didn't expire until March 30. It was at that moment that I decided I wasn't calling her again to check on the status of her insurance shopping.

I looked at the calendar today, Wednesday, March 26 and realized that the insurance policy on the house was set to expire on Sunday - FOUR days away, or three days depending on how you calculate today and Sunday.   I decided to take matters in my own hand and made one call to the organization that represents old people -- turning 50 does has its benefits! In a matter of TEN MINUTES on the telephone, we have a new insurance company and new policies all away around -- and even saved close to $1,000 in yearly premiums.

Whether the independent agent calls me back is still up in the air. Her lack of initiative and concern boils down to losing some really good insurance money -- her loss and our gain!

Just goes to show - keep the client in the loop and don't leave them dangling because you aren't the only show in town.
[end of blog]

2:33 pm mdt 

Friday, March 14, 2008

BLOG-Following up on the frivolous lawsuit of John Ritter's death
A month or so ago I wrote about John Ritter's wife suing two of her husband's doctors for their negligence as being the cause of Ritter's death.

The verdict of the trial just came down. The jury cleared both the cardiologist and radiologist of negligence in the diagnosis and treatment of John Ritter, who died of a torn aorta in 2003.

"Jurors found that the radiologist advised Ritter to follow up with treatment by a physician after a body scan two years before his death. Ritter didn't follow the order. ... Ritter had calcification in three coronary arteries."

As I originally said, money can't bring back a life!
[end of blog]
2:06 pm mdt 

Monday, March 10, 2008

BLOG - Cell phone telemarketing spam
From what I hear, I've been pretty lucky in that I've only received four junk text messages on my cell phone. Last Saturday, however, I was spammed twice in just a couple of hours. Actually, the text messages weren't from telemarketers but rather from web pages stating that "I was crushed on ..."

From what I've read about the spamming problem, telemarketers are now using text messaging to get around the National Do Not Call Registry. From their own web page or e-mail address, within seconds they can broadcast one text message to hundreds of random cell numbers.

I don't know about the other carriers, but Verizon has the option of keeping unwanted messages from being sent from specific e-mail addresses, domain names and websites. You have to create an online account, if you don't already have one, go into text messaging, text blocking and you can block all messages sent from e-mails and the web. You can also enter/block 15 individual e-mail addresses, web sites, domain names or wireless nicknames.

Text messages sent from cell phone to cell phone are not affected. However, if you have a Blackberry or receive text messages from other Blackberry phones, you probably want to check how this block affects the phone(s).
[end of blog]
8:44 am mdt 


Archive Newer | Older
Servicesgummy.jpg

With a typing speed of 120 wpm, Carolyn Bodley began offering independent contractor/secretarial and transcription services to the Denver metro legal community in 1992.

I am not a court reporter or medical transcriptionist and I don't videotape depositions -- I'm strictly a legal transcriptionist which means putting spoken words on paper. All my transcripts contain a certification stating that to the best of my knowledge, belief and ability, the audio/video I received has not been altered in any way, and the transcript is true, accurate and complete. I have never been advised that a court rejected one of my audio or video transcripts. If my transcript is rejected by the court, you will be reimbursed in full for my services. Because I certify that the transcript is true and complete, the entire audio/video must be transcribed--I am unable to transcribe "just a portion" that you need. 

I guarantee that your transcripts will be typed confidentially, accurately and with attention to detail at a fair price.
 

  • Discovery is often turned over in a format other than hard copy. This discovery includes, but is not limited to, recorded telephone conversations, police interviews, depositions, investigations, witness statements, and more. The audio and video "words" need to be put to paper, and your already overworked legal staff often don't have the skills, equipment, the inclination or the time.
  • Discovery is often the deciding factor of whether a case goes to trial. Most of us hear, but do we listen? Recently I transcribed a video that had been viewed and listened to several times and by several people before I transcribed it. There was a one sentence statement that not one person caught -- this one sentence was not the only reason the case was dismissed one day before trial--however, it carried quite a bit of weight -- and I'm the only one that "heard" it. Had the video never been transcribed, how many other words would never have been heard?

Add-On Services:

  • laser color printing
  • laminating
  • spiral binding
  • proofreading/editing your work product

Your Documents are Your Reputation ...
Making Them Look Good is Mine!©1992-2016 Carolyn Bodley


Copyright ©2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 by Carolyn Bodley. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this website, or any portion of it, without first obtaining the express WRITTEN permission of CAROLYN BODLEY, may result in severe civil and criminal penalties, and will be prosecuted to the maximum extent under the law.

Copyright Infringement of a Website

Protected by Copyscape
                  plagiarism checker - duplicate content and unique article detection software.

This site  The Web

Hosting by Web.com