Regardless of the size of your company, managing and processing data into useful information is critical. As your company grows, the job of handling growing data needs becomes increasingly time consuming and costly.

Outsourcing data entry services could be among the safest and the most cost-effective move that your business can invest in. Data entry was one of the first things to be outsourced since a time when outsourcing wasn't such an abused word, and it has now grown to be one of the largest outsourced services.

Many companies and individuals around the world saw this opportunity and started providing offshore data entry services. Given the number of choices today, choosing the right outsourcing partner for your business can get very confusing.

Why outsource data entry?

1. Save on hiring & training costs
2. Save on time & effort
3. Save on expensive software
4. Save on infrastructure
5. Save on administrative costs

Top 8 things you should ask before choosing a data entry partner

1. What is the background of the company? How big is it, how many years has it been in the business and other credentials

2. Does it have the right skills and experience necessary to take up your requirements?

3. Has it done similar projects in the past and can it provide references or proof of its expertise?

4. Is my data secured? What systems and processes are in place to ensure that my information doesn't land in the wrong hands?

5. Does the company have confidentiality and service level agreements for the service they are providing?

6. Does the company have facilities to share progress of the project and communicate clearly and effectively?

7. Is the company I'm dealing with honest and upfront in their communications or do they over-promise and under-deliver?

8. Is the company able to clearly understand my requirements and my business goals? Is it a partner or just a supplier?

Top 5 benefits of data entry outsourcing

1. To focus on strategic needs: Outsourcing lets you move the focus away from less important activities to strategic tasks such as growing your business and improving customer relationships

2. Gain a competitive advantage: By working with a company with specialized skills and expertise in specific areas, it gives you the competitive advantage of moving quicker through the market and acquiring a bigger customer base

3. Availability of resources: Outsourcing gives you access to resources people and systems, that wouldn't be so easily available in a local market

4. Manage processes that are difficult to control: In many cases where it has become difficult and expensive to control certain processes and functions, outsourcing helps take control and frees you of managing them

5. Lower operational costs: The cost of running and managing a particular task or tasks come down drastically in an outsourcing arrangement owing to factors such as resources, labor, infrastructure etc that your outsourcing partner.