If you’re in sales, you know the drill: record the call, get the notes, follow up, try not to drown in admin. Thing is, most teams are either missing half the story or buried under bad transcripts. If you’re looking to actually get value out of your call recordings—without turning your workflow into a mess—this is for you. We’ll walk through how to record and transcribe sales calls using Goodmeetings, what’s worth your time, and what’s just hype.
Step 1: Set Up Goodmeetings the Right Way
Before you hit "record," get the basics straight. Goodmeetings is made for call recording and transcription, but sloppy setup means headaches later.
Checklist:
- Sync your calendar: Make sure Goodmeetings is hooked up to your work calendar so it can find your sales calls. If you skip this step, you’ll end up with missed or duplicated recordings.
- Integrate your video platform: Connect Zoom, Google Meet, or whatever you use. Don’t assume your company’s default is already connected—double-check.
- Set your recording preferences: Decide if you want to record all calls automatically or only specific meetings. Be realistic; "record everything" sounds good, but it fills up storage with useless chit-chat.
- Check legal compliance: Seriously, don’t ignore this. Recording laws vary. If you’re calling across state or country lines, play it safe: always inform participants the call’s being recorded (and get consent if needed).
Pro tip: Do a dry run. Record a quick internal call to make sure everything works as expected. You don’t want to troubleshoot five minutes into a real prospect meeting.
Step 2: Prep Your Call (and Your Prospect)
You want a clean, usable recording—not one where half the team is on mute or someone’s dog is barking in the background.
- Let everyone know: Remind attendees the call will be recorded and transcribed. It’s polite, and sometimes required by law.
- Test your tech: A good mic matters more than you think. If you sound like you’re underwater, transcription quality tanks.
- Reduce background noise: Tell your team (and yourself) to find a quiet spot. Most AI transcription tools—including Goodmeetings’—struggle with crosstalk, mumbling, or background chaos.
- Set an agenda: Even a rough outline helps. It keeps the conversation on track, which results in better, more useful transcripts.
What to ignore: Don’t obsess over getting studio-quality audio. Just avoid the obvious distractions. Goodmeetings can handle imperfect audio, but not total chaos.
Step 3: Recording Your Sales Call
Here’s where most people get lazy: just hit record and hope for the best. That’s how you end up with two-hour files no one wants to revisit.
- Start the recording on time: Don’t wait until you’re mid-pitch. Get the intro and context—otherwise, you’ll forget why the meeting happened in the first place.
- Pause for off-topic moments: If you’re going to veer off into lunch plans or internal gossip, pause the recording. Saves on storage and keeps transcripts clean.
- Mark key moments: Goodmeetings lets you highlight or “bookmark” important points during the call. Use it—future you will thank you.
- Wrap up on record: Summarize next steps and action items before you stop recording. It’s way easier to find later.
What doesn’t work: Relying on memory to mark key moments. You will forget. Use the tools at hand.
Step 4: Transcribing—And Actually Using—Your Calls
Automatic transcription is where the magic (and most of the hype) happens. But not all transcripts are created equal.
- Review the raw transcript: AI gets better every year, but it still messes up names, jargon, and accents. Skim the transcript soon after the call and fix obvious mistakes.
- Tag and organize: Goodmeetings lets you tag calls with deal stage, customer name, or topic. Use these tags. Searching through 50 “final demo” calls is a nightmare otherwise.
- Share smartly: Only share transcripts with people who need them. Spamming the whole team with every call creates noise, not insight.
- Summarize for key stakeholders: Don’t just forward the full transcript. Pull out highlights or use Goodmeetings’ summary features, but always double-check the auto-summary for accuracy.
Pro tip: Create a template for follow-ups that links to the relevant call recording and transcript. Saves time and keeps everyone on the same page.
Step 5: Keep It Clean—Data Privacy and Storage
If you’re recording and transcribing, you’re creating a treasure trove of sensitive info. Treat it accordingly.
- Set retention policies: Decide how long you’ll keep recordings and transcripts. Not forever—storage costs add up, and keeping old data is a risk.
- Control access: Make sure only the right people can view or download recordings. Goodmeetings lets you set permissions—use them.
- Delete what you don’t need: Old calls from churned leads? Expired deals? Don’t hang onto them “just in case.”
- Stay compliant: If a prospect asks to have their data deleted, do it. Don’t wait for a GDPR headache.
What to ignore: Don’t fall for “unlimited storage” claims—there’s always a fine print. Prune your data regularly.
Step 6: Learn and Improve
Recording and transcribing sales calls isn’t just busywork—it’s supposed to help you sell better. But only if you actually use what you capture.
- Review calls as a team: Use real transcripts in coaching sessions. Don’t just point out mistakes; highlight what went well.
- Build a library of winning moments: Tag snippets where you overcame objections, nailed a pitch, or closed a deal. These are gold for onboarding and training.
- Track your own progress: Use Goodmeetings’ analytics features, but don’t get lost in vanity metrics. Focus on what actually moves your close rate.
Pro tip: Block 30 minutes a week to review a handful of recent calls. You’ll spot patterns and bad habits faster than you expect.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
Let’s cut through the noise:
- Works: Recording with clear intent, using bookmarks during calls, cleaning up transcripts, and tagging for easy search.
- Doesn’t work: Recording everything without a plan, hoarding old calls, trusting AI summaries blindly, or ignoring compliance.
- Ignore: Fancy features you’ll never use (like sentiment analysis dashboards). If it doesn’t help you prep, sell, or follow up, skip it for now.
Keep It Simple—And Keep Iterating
You don’t need a PhD in sales ops to get value out of recording and transcribing calls. Start with the basics: record cleanly, fix up your transcripts, and actually use what you capture. As your team gets the hang of Goodmeetings, tweak your process. Drop what’s not working, double down on what is, and don’t feel bad about ignoring the bells and whistles.
Sales is hard enough. Keep your workflow simple, and you’ll actually stick with it.