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Digitizing data is becoming a norm in recent working culture, and rightly so. You get information quickly accessible at your fingertips, streamlining workflow and helping you boost your productivity. However, key tips and tricks for digitizing data are seldom known.
In this post, we aim to highlight such techniques to help you save time, reduce manual efforts, and maintain organized records. We will also cover some best practices and tools that you can utilize for a better workflow. So, let’s get started.
Data digitization refers to the process of converting physical pieces of information, handwritten notes, images, or printed documents into digital formats.
It is a vital process to make your data available all the time by leveraging cloud storage solutions. Plus, word-processing software and file managers on PCs, laptops, etc., ensure that searching and indexing data is rapid and accurate.
Although there can be many reasons to digitize data, the main and most common reasons are discussed below.
Other reasons include saving overheads for storing physical files in vaults or storage units, reducing labor to take care of such documents, etc.
Even though we do know that digitizing data is helpful, sometimes it is not clear which documents are worth the effort.
If we are strictly talking about documents, you can have contracts, financial records, meeting notes, etc.
Images can be of many types and shapes, like photographs or historical records, screenshots of crucial information, infographics, and more. You can also have handwritten notes with a scanned copy of notebooks or brainstorming sessions.
The true questions that you want to ask yourself when determining whether to digitize data or not are
If your answer is yes to any of the given questions, then you must consider digitizing that data for secure storage, better accessibility, or both.
To digitize data effectively, you’ll need reliable tools that can do the job according to your needs.
However, since this space is taken up by a lot of tools on the internet, finding good digitization solutions has become a bit difficult. This is especially true for users who have little to no prior knowledge about such technology, which is why we are here to help.
We scavenged different tools online to come up with the following options for your convenience:
Credits: https://www.picturetotext.org
The Picture to Text tool converts images in PDF, PNG, JPG, TIFF, and other file formats to editable text using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology.
Key Features:
Best For:
Professionals working on contracts, handwritten notes, or screenshots.
Credits: https://www.imagetotext.cc
The second tool on the list quickly extracts text from documents, photos, and handwritten notes like meeting notes, memos, etc.
Key Features:
Best For:
Automating data extraction for bulk files and multilingual documents.
Credits: https://www.prepostseo.com/image-to-text/
This image to text converter from Prepostseo extracts text from images and scanned documents into editable text for free.
Key Features:
Best For:
Educators and researchers are digitizing notes or articles.
Each tool is effective in its way. So, you have to choose the one that best fits your requirements.
Credits: https://imagetotextconverter.net/
Imagetotextconverter.net is another free OCR tool that can extract text from images and PDFs with ease.
Key Features:
Best For:
Students, teachers, office workers who have to digitize physical texts.
Digitizing data is a must to compete with current organizations and businesses in your niche by making information easier to access, manipulate, visualize, and analyze.
However, where should one start with this process? To answer this, we’ve picked one of the given tools in our list to help you get started with a step-by-step guide.
First, you need to gather all the documents, images, or notes you want to digitize. You must ensure that these files and records are not damaged or stained to ensure maximum word-for-word accuracy during scanning and extracting processes.
To put things into perspective, we’ve provided a sample image below, which is ready for text extraction.
The following are the notes from a content writer that we think need to be digitized for aided guidance throughout their crafting process.
Choose one of the tools we mentioned above, depending on the format and type of data. For demonstration purposes, we will pick the first option on our list to show you the process, however, you are free to pick any digitizing solutions you want.
For scanned documents or photos, simply drag and drop or upload them to the tool. You can also grab the file directly from an online link using the ‘URL’ feature.
After uploading the file, you can crop the unnecessary parts out of the image for better conversion results.
Click the ‘Convert Files’ button to proceed with the digitization process. You may have to wait out a CAPTCHA load, so don’t worry about it.
Soon, you’ll see that the information is made into digital form, ready to be downloaded and saved as a .TXT file.
You can also copy the digital text to your clipboard for easy access and later use in other work activities.
While digitizing data, you need to learn about the following tips to ensure maximum accuracy and efficiency.
Once your data is digitized, the way you manage it will determine its long-term usefulness.
Below are some of the best practices that we think you should know about digitizing data to save you time and hassle in the future.
Use cloud storage platforms like Google Drive or Dropbox for automated backups. Store sensitive files in encrypted, secure environments. If your Mac is running slow or cluttered, I highly recommend CleanMyMac — it’s an all-in-one tool that safely cleans up junk, optimizes performance, and keeps your system running smoothly.
Categorize documents using clear, consistent folder names to avoid losing them on your computer, laptop, or other devices. This also facilitates teamwork as all members can access the required files quickly and efficiently.
Audit your folders every few months and delete outdated or irrelevant files. You must keep file formats updated to prevent data corruption over time and preserve the format, layout, and key content in the documents.
Digitizing data is essential for businesses to compete in the industry by gaining quick access to crucial insights and information. The said process is also important for other fields, allowing people to organize and secure their data in a better manner.
By using the right tools, you can easily categorize information into meaningful patterns and streamline your workflow. Make sure to follow the best practices mentioned in this post to help you carry out key activities without any hassle.
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