Remove ums from interview recordings
People think while they speak, so an interview is full of ums and gaps. erm finds the filler words and long pauses in an interview recording, and tidies it so the answers are what you remember.
Interviews that are easier to watch
Interview clips get shared with colleagues, clients and audiences who weren’t there. Fillers in an answer are normal, but a clean clip is quicker to watch and easier to quote.
What erm finds
What frustrates you most about the current process? 4.4 s pause Um, I’d say uh the handoffs. Things get erm lost between teams.
How erm helps with interview recordings
- Find the fillers across a long recording in one pass.
- Keep any cut that changes the meaning, since you review each one.
- Recordings of customers and candidates stay on your Mac, not on a third party’s servers.
- Export a clean version to share, and keep the original untouched.
Remove filler words from interview recordings in three steps
- Drop in your video. A .mov, .mp4 or .m4v of any length, from your camera, phone or screen recorder.
- Review the cuts. erm marks each um, erm, uh and long pause. Keep any you like.
- Save the edit. Done on your Mac. Nothing is uploaded.
Prefer to do it by hand? Read how to remove ums from a video on a Mac, with or without erm.
Tips for cleaner interview recordings
- For research interviews, keep the pause before an answer. A long think can tell you as much as the words.
- Clean the recording before you clip quotes from it, so each clip is short and easy to share.
- When you ask for consent to record, mention that the recording may be tidied for fillers.
Questions
Is it okay for confidential interviews?
Nothing is uploaded, so recordings stay on your Mac. You are still responsible for the consent and storage rules that apply to your interviews.
Does it change what people said?
It only removes filler words and shortens long pauses. You see each suggested cut before anything is exported.
Can I use it for user research interviews?
Yes. Research calls, user interviews and customer conversations all work, and the recordings never leave your Mac.
Does it work on recordings from Zoom or Google Meet?
Yes, if the recording is a .mov, .mp4 or .m4v file, which is what most meeting tools save.
Other ways to use erm
Video podcasts
A long conversation is full of ums and false starts. Some are part of a natural chat, but too many tire a listener. erm finds the filler words and dead air in your video podcast, so you choose which go.
Webinars and talks
A live talk is allowed a few ums. The recording, shared for months afterwards, does better without them. erm finds the filler words and dead air in a webinar or conference talk, and cuts the ones you choose in one pass.
Teachers and lectures
A recorded lecture gets watched again before an exam. erm finds the ums, erms and long gaps in a lecture or classroom recording and removes the filler words you choose, so the lesson is clearer and a little shorter.