Do you want to know why text to speech is so popular? You should keep reading this post!
Everyone knows text to speech is a popular tool however not everyone knows why people use it so much.
15-20 percent of the worldwide population has some form of language-based learning disability and 14 percent of adults in the US are illiterate and many have only basic reading skills.
This is why making your online content audible helps you, it’ll allow you to reach more people and eventually grow your platform.
Text to Speech (TTS) is an assistive technology capable of reading digital text. This technology is also known as “read aloud” tech. TTS reads words on a digital device like a smartphone or computer with a touch or a click and converts them into speech or audio.
Who needs text to speech?
Converting text to audio allows easy access to digital content for those with visual impairment, caters to more audiences with language proficiency issues, to the growing aging population, and permits more flexibility for the content owner.
All these people need TTs however people who don’t necessarily need it also benefit from it. It just makes it easier to consume content. Sometimes you don’t have time to read and listening is easier, in those times text to speech is the perfect solution.
If you’re trying to find the perfect text-to-speech tool we recommend Woord.
Why Woord?
Woord is a free online TTS that has a number of useful features. It is available in over 50 languages, including several English dialects, Portuguese dialects, and Spanish dialects. You can also select a male, female, or gender-neutral voice. All of these features are available for free, allowing you to test the service before investing in the premium version.
The free edition includes premium voices, a Chrome plugin, an SSML editor, an MP3 download, and up to 20,000 characters per month. You can also change the speed and format of the voice with this software.
Woord´s vocal characteristics allow you to use it in a variety of situations. You can use Woord´s Text-to-Speech (TTS) functionality to create applications that assist people with reading difficulties, such as those used in E-learning and education.
Woord, as previously mentioned, can be used to assist the blind and visually impaired in consuming digital information such as eBooks and newspapers, but it can also be used in a variety of devices such as set-top boxes, smartwatches, tablets, and smartphones.
How to use it?
Woord‘s interface is designed in a simple way to be intuitive for the user. With these simple steps you will be able to generate quality audio:
1- In the format you prefer, write or upload the content you want to convert to speech (it can be an image, PDF, text file, blog, or a variety of other formats).
2- Select the language, voice gender (male or female), and pace. (From within the PDF, you can also choose where to begin playing.)
3- You can listen to or download your audio recording as an MP3 file online.
Also published on Medium.