Typing on a phone with dusty hands, in a cold van, at the end of a long day is nobody's idea of fun. It's slow, it's fiddly and autocorrect turns "skirting" into something unrepeatable. Yet most tradespeople still type their site notes and quotes, or leave them for later and forget half the detail.
Speech to text fixes this. You talk, the software writes. This guide explains where it saves the most time, how to get good results, and what to look for in an app.
Where speech to text saves the most time
Site notes. Straight after a visit, stand by the van and talk through what you saw: measurements, access, condition of the existing work, what the client wants, anything that could cause problems. Two minutes of talking replaces ten minutes of typing, and you capture detail you'd otherwise lose.
Quote descriptions. Clients want to understand what they're paying for. Describe the job the way you'd explain it face to face ("strip out existing bathroom suite and tiles, make good walls, first fix plumbing for new layout") and you'll write a clearer quote than you would typing.
Client messages. Quick updates ("we'll be there at 8 tomorrow, skip arriving Tuesday") take seconds to say.
Variations. When a client asks for extra work on site, dictate it into the job there and then. A recorded variation is far easier to charge for than one you try to remember a fortnight later. Our guide to construction variations covers this in more detail.
Daily site diary. A 60-second spoken summary each day gives you a record of progress, deliveries and delays. See what to record in a site diary.
Why it matters more than it sounds
The real benefit isn't just speed. It's that the admin actually gets done.
- Notes taken on site are more accurate than notes written up in the evening.
- Quotes go out the same day instead of next week, when the client has already accepted someone else's.
- For dyslexic tradespeople, talking removes the spelling and typing barrier entirely.
- For anyone with ADHD, doing it immediately beats a to-do list that never gets done.
How to get good results
Modern speech recognition is very accurate, but a few habits help:
- Speak in full sentences. Good tools add punctuation automatically when you talk naturally.
- Get out of the wind. Step into the van or turn your back to the road. Background noise is the biggest cause of errors.
- Say numbers clearly. "Two point four metres" rather than "two-four". Check measurements and prices after dictating; they're the bits that matter most.
- Read it back once. A quick scan catches the odd wrong word before it reaches a client.
- Keep trade terms consistent. If the software stumbles over a term like "noggins" or "soffit", say it the same way each time and correct it once.
Phone dictation versus built-in dictation
Your phone's keyboard has a microphone button already. It works, but there's a catch: the text goes wherever your cursor is, and in most business apps that means copying and pasting between notes, messages and forms.
Dictation built into your job management software is better because:
- It goes straight into the right place (the job notes, the quote line, the client message) with no copying.
- It works on desktop too, with a keyboard shortcut, so you can dictate a long quote at your desk.
- It tidies the result, adding grammar and punctuation suited to a professional document.
- It works the same way in the fields you write in, so you're not learning different tools for different tasks.
What to look for in an app
- Dictation in the text fields you actually write in: notes, quote lines, messages and search
- Punctuation included in the transcript, so you are not adding every full stop by hand
- Works on phone, tablet and desktop
- A shortcut on desktop that you can change
- A monthly allowance you can live with for site notes (on Tradeways Tier 1 and Tier 2 that is about 100 minutes)
- Search that also accepts voice, so you can say a client's name to find their job
A two-minute site note template
Talk through these six points after every visit:
- Client and address
- What they want in their own words
- Measurements and quantities
- Existing condition and risks (asbestos suspicion, poor access, parking, structural concerns)
- Materials and specs the client has mentioned
- Next step and timing (quote by Friday, needs structural engineer first)
Turn that note into a quote the same day while it's fresh. Our guide to writing a quote for building work walks through the rest.
How Tradeways helps
In Tradeways, speech to text works in the text fields on phone and desktop: job notes, proposal text, messages, expenses and search. Click into a field, press the dictation shortcut (you can change it in settings) and talk. Tradeways transcribes what you say, including punctuation, straight into that field. A single recording stops at two minutes, which is enough for a site note; start another if you need more. Tier 1 and Tier 2 include about 100 minutes of dictation a month. Voice works in the search bar too.