Transform Your Non-Digital Data Before It’s Too Late

For the time being, the use of technology is at its peak. More and more businesses are opting for digitization. Backlinko mentioned in one of their articles that around 58% of the companies in the US and UK are interested in spending more on digital transformation. 

But there are still some, like those in underdeveloped countries, who are not paying attention to this digital transformation. A possible reason behind this can be budget issues. But the thing can’t be ignored for too long. Because the time is near when all the businesses will go digital.

So, what to do? Well, this is what this blog post will revolve around. In this post, you’ll learn about an easy and affordable way that businesses can opt for digitizing their physical data. 

Benefits of Digitizing Non-Digital Data

Before diving into the way of digitization we are talking about, firstly let’s get into the benefits of it. Below are listed a few benefits of them. 

• Data retrieval becomes easier and quicker.  
• Reduce costs involved in storing and managing physical data. 
• By going digital, you can also reduce paper clutter in the workplace. 
• By digitizing data, you can automate many of your day-to-day tasks.
• Digital data can be accessed from anywhere the internet is available. 
• Digital data is easy to share, plus you can make it collaborative when needed. 
• By digitizing physical data, you can make it more secure and password-protected. 

Challenges of Digitizing Physical Data

Besides multiple benefits, there are some challenges that businesses have to face when going digital. Below are listed some common ones. 

• Poor image quality upon scanning. 
• Inadequate quality control to check whether the data is accurate or not. 
• Inconsistent file names make it easy to locate a file. 
• There is a chance of security breaches in case the access to the data is not restricted. 
• Lack of standardization can lead to data silos and difficulty in accessing information. 
• Digitization can lead to a reliance on technology and choosing the wrong one can lead to a disaster.  

Easy, Efficient, and Affordable Way of Digitizing Data

Now comes the turn to discuss the thing you need at the time. Yes, we are talking about the right technology that lets you transform your non-digital data easily and efficiently. So, without any suspense, the technology that lets you do the job without disturbing your budget is optical character recognition, aka OCR. This technology can turn any data image into text (the editable one). No matter what language the data is in and whether it’s printed or handwritten, the technology can handle it efficiently. 

To digitize your non digital data using the OCR technology, you need to follow some simple steps. Those are listed below. 

Step 1: Choose the OCR Tool

As the name indicates these are specialized tools that are powered by OCR technology and let you transform your physical data into digital data. You can find many of them online, some free and some paid. Those that are paid are also affordable to small businesses. 

But that is not the case. To carry out efficient transformation, you should look for a tool that boasts the following features. 

• Good output accuracy
• Supports batch processing
• Understands handwritten text
• Allows to download the editable file

Step 2: Take Pictures of the Data

After deciding on the tool you are going to use, the next step is to take the pictures of the data. Make sure that pictures are visible and are not distorted. Rename the pictures in numerical order, this will help you keep the sequence the same later. 

Step 3: Submit Pictures to Tool

Next, you have to upload the pictures taken onto the tool. Upload options vary from tool to tool. For demonstration, we are going to use Jpgtotext.com. This tool can convert image to text efficiently and quickly. Plus, the tool is much more affordable as compared to other options in the market. 

The mentioned tool offers multiple uploading options, i.e., Drag and Drop, Manual Upload, and Link Insertion. To show you, we have manually uploaded some pictures (screenshot shared below). 

Step 4: Start Extraction

After uploading the images, what you have to do next is click on the Extract Now button at the bottom. Upon clicking, the tool will start the extraction process, and within seconds, the output will be shown on your screen. 

Step 5: Download the File

Once the extraction process is completed, the output screen (like the one shared below) will appear in front of you. 

Now, what you have to do is download the file and save it on your device. To do that, simply click on the download icon beside the result of the image. You can also download all at once by clicking on the download all button at the top. 

The tool that we used for demonstration let users download the file in .TXT format. However, if you need the file in other formats, e.g., Docs, simply copy the extracted text and paste it manually inside a Doc file. 

Note: The method discussed has a limitation. It can be used for digitizing text only data. If the data you want to transform involves images or drawings, you have to look for another method. 

Wrapping Up

Transforming your physical data into digital data is no longer a hectic task. By following the method described in this post above, you can do that with ease. Plus, there’s also no need to worry about high costs, as most of the OCR tools will probably cost you less than the amount you have to pay for manual storage and management. So, try them out and go digital now.