Everything you need to know before you hire a data entry provider

Why is it better to outsource data entry services?

You should hand off data entry externally as it will primarily free your team members to work on pressing tasks that require human judgment and business knowledge.

In addition, data entry entails repetitive and time-consuming work that, when added to other pressing tasks, may lead to overwhelm.

Data shows that 56% of employees experience burnout from repetitive data tasks, which often results in decreased productivity.

In that regard, specialized data entry companies have automated solutions, quality checks, trained reviewers, and tools for handling large volumes without slowing down the rest of the business.

As the majority of the errors and delays are attributed to manual entry, hiring a data entry company will help you circumvent costly financial losses.

Improved turnaround is another great advantage of having such specialists on board.

When the workload fluctuates or needs overnight coverage, data entry firms can fill in the capacity with larger teams and round-the-clock service to get the task done on time.

How do data entry firms maintain entry quality?

A data entry firm usually follows a set of frameworks that help them deliver accurate and organized data entry. Here are some practices they have in place:

• Standardization: Establishing clear data standards in a style guide and training teams on these rules
• Automation and validation: Enforcing logic checks, required fields formats, and limiting free text entries
• Advanced technology: Using automations, optical character recognition (OCR), and built-in data validation and checking tools
• Quality control: Doing double validation via a human checker and verifying data against the source
• Process audits: Conducting periodic internal audits to maintain data entry agility and accuracy

How do I choose the right data entry provider for my business?

You should take some of the following steps to choose a good data entry company for your business:

1. Specify your service type, volume, frequency, accuracy, and data formats.
2. Confirm the company’s expertise in handling similar projects by reviewing its portfolios, case studies, and certifications.
3. Gauge service quality by reading client reviews and testimonials.
4. Reach out to potential partners with a detailed request for proposal (RFP).
5. Interview potential candidates and assess their capabilities, communicativeness, project management approach, and culture fit.
6. Do your due diligence by surveying its data quality and checking its data security policies.

What warning signs should I look for when interviewing a data entry firm?

When doing interviews with data entry firms, watch out for these red flags:

• Many negative client reviews
• Lack of experience in your industry and required services
• Weak data security and privacy frameworks
• Outdated technology
• Ambiguous quality control processes
• No mention of tracking metrics and ROI
• No formal contract and service level agreement

What questions should I ask these providers before hiring one?

Before hiring a data entry outsourcing company, you should ask some of the following questions to make sure the candidate is a good fit for the task:

Relevant Background

1. How long have you been working with data entry?
2. Can you provide examples of similar data entry projects you’ve worked on?
3. Does your team have any certifications in data entry?

Services and Processes

1. What types of data entry services do you offer?
2. How do you conduct data accuracy checks and quality control?
3. What technology and software do you use for data entry?
4. What measures do you undertake to handle large volumes of data efficiently?
5. How do you handle sensitive or confidential information?
6. How do you handle changes or updates to the project scope once it has started?

Related to Your Project

1. What is your typical turnaround time for a project similar to ours?
2. Can you provide a detailed project plan and timeline for our request?
3. What challenges do you foresee for our project? How do you plan to overcome them?
4. How often will we receive progress updates?
5. How will we do the handover?
6. Can you give us a detailed pricing plan for our request?

Sources

DesignRush sustains a directory of over 40,000 agencies categorized by service category, location, expertise and reviews. We build our database in two ways:

• Our dedicated team of agency experts actively searches the web for top performing companies. We then pull information from their websites, online presence and client testimonials to verify their status and qualifications prior to listing.
• The agencies listed get notified of their profiles on the website and they can choose to claim it or not, which suggests their availability for more collaborations.

Agencies can also reach out to DesignRush and must go through the verification process prior to being listed.