Other stuff

Since we released Studio Sound we’ve seen creators doing some really cool stuff with it. We want to see more. We want it so bad we’re willing to offer prizes. So we’re holding a contest, to see who can show us the most interesting, creative, impressive applications of Studio Sound.

Descript’s magic lies in its simplicity: It transcribes audio and video and allows you to edit the underlying media by editing the transcript. Harnessing that simplicity in creative ways enables editing workflows in Descript that would be overwhelmingly laborious and time-intensive in other traditional media editors. In a nutshell, that’s the story of how political coalition Republican Voters Against Trump (RVAT) used Descript to edit down hours of footage of Senator Lindsey Graham’s own words into a razor-sharp ad that went viral on Twitter and made waves in American news media.

What are filler words? “Ums,” “ahs,” “you knows,” “likes,” and “kind ofs,” to name a few. They’re completely natural, and for most people, unconscious and unavoidable. We use them when we’re thinking about what to say, trying to find the right word, or simply to add flavor to casual conversations.

Earlier this week, Zoom released update 5.2.2, which includes a new feature they’re calling “High Fidelity Audio” mode. Peter Kirn over at Create Digital Music covered the update, writing that it would be excellent for musicians. Zoom has always been the easiest way to record remote interviews, but it came with a cost: the audio quality wasn’t as high as a local recording. We wondered how High Fidelity Audio mode would sound for podcasts and remote interviews, so we tested it ourselves — and the results are incredible. Listen for yourself.

For Tristan Pelligrino, co-founder of B2B content agency Motion, podcasts are the solution to his clients’ content marketing problems. He and his team at Motion produce content on behalf of their clients, primarily large B2B service providers and consultancies like Qu, Tyfone, and COTA Healthcare.

It sounds simple: If you want to make sure that your product or service meets your users’ needs, talk to them. When your team is small, lean, and nimble, that’s easy enough. But once your business begins to scale — with the complexity of your product or service alongside it — the more important it becomes to be systematic and intentional about user research.