Overcome Data Entry Hassles: Extract Data from Paper Forms Fast

Forms are a structured way to collect information, conduct surveys, and bring enrollments. Businesses have been using them for decades. They pay a handsome amount to labor for managing paper forms. From their scrutiny to organization and text extraction, every task is tedious.

In this blog post, you’ll be walked through common hassles of extracting data from paper forms and their possible solutions.

Why Is There a Need for Extracting Data from Forms?

Today’s businesses mostly use online digital forms. They now use an AI form generator that not only allows them to make one, but also helps in managing and organizing them. But still many have not adopted the technology yet and are stuck to paper-based forms.

For them, extracting data from paper-based forms is needed because it helps in:

• Converting physical records into digital format for easy storage and retrieval.

• Saving time and reducing manual data entry efforts.

• Minimizing human errors in data processing.

• Enabling remote access and sharing of information.

• Ensuring regulatory and legal documentation is properly recorded.

• Lowering expenses related to paper storage and management.

Challenges of Extracting Data from Paper Forms

Below are some of the commonly faced challenges in data extraction from paper-based forms.

1. Manual Data Entry Errors

The biggest challenge in extracting data from paper forms is manual typing. Humans often do make typos and mistakes and sometimes misinterpret things. Plus, sometimes the person who is typing the data fails to understand the handwriting on the form.

2. Time-Consuming Process

Manual extraction of data from forms is very time consuming. The person who is extracting the data has to read every single block carefully and then transfer the data as they need it.

Moreover, if the forms are in bulk and are being handled by a single person, chances are that they might forget the place they have reached. This will make them verify the things one by one again.

3. Storage and Organization Issues

Next come storage and organization issues. These are often faced by businesses, especially their HR department, where employees’ information is stored in bulk form. Sometimes they are in the form of sets having more than one paper. To organize and manage them, a separate record room is needed.

Even after organizing them, it becomes difficult in certain cases to retrieve information out of them. For example, if an HR person comes in, they need to find the employment form of a particular person from a particular department. They have to go through a pile of papers to find the one they are looking for.

Besides, all the above physical forms are always at risk of damage, loss, or misplacement. As you know, papers often clutter over time and get yellowish, which sometimes becomes unreadable.

4. Cost Implications

Physical forms come with a lot of cost implications. As mentioned earlier, for bulk data extraction methods, data entry operators are needed.

Hiring them for just extraction will automatically put the burden on the budget. Not only this, the forms themselves reach the place after spending a lot from manufacturing to storing them.

5. Integration with Digital Systems

Sometimes data inside paper-based forms is needed to run them from digital systems, like for analyzing the sentiments of the people. In such cases, accurate extraction is needed. Yet, there is some software that can process paper forms by just scanning them, but they are very expensive.

The above-mentioned are just a few challenges that one has to face in manual extractions. There are still more like data sharing.

But whatever the challenge is, there’s always a solution. And for extracting data from paper forms, there’s also one that we have discussed in the next section.

Solution to Overcome the Hassles

So, you finally came here after going through all the challenges above. Without any fluff, the solution that eliminates the hassle of data extraction from paper forms is image to text converters. Yes, you have read that right.

Image to text converter is a modern, specialized tool that is meant to extract text embedded inside any image. To extract data from a form, all you need to do is take its picture and run it through the tool. Within seconds you’ll get data inside the form in an editable form, which you can both copy and download. The good thing is that using the same tool, you can extract data from up to 50 forms at once.

Here are the benefits you’ll get after this extraction.

• Store and organize them easily.

• Information retrieval becomes easy.

• Can easily be integrated into other digital systems.

Wrapping Up

Extracting data from paper forms comes with several challenges. However, modern solutions like image-to-text converters make the process much easier. Using them, you can quickly digitize information. Adopting such tools can save businesses time, reduce costs, and enhance overall efficiency.