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Data entry is a high-effort, low-reward job. It requires you to do repetitive tasks like working with endless Excel spreadsheets, digitizing hard copies of documents, cross-checking facts and figures, and much more.

These types of tasks are very boring and consume a lot of your resources. Thus, it would help if you had new ways to excel at your data entry job and stay afloat in this competitive world.

Today’s post will provide tips to help you become efficient and stand out at work. It will also discuss some advanced tools that can revamp your workflow and make you a highly productive professional. So, let’s get started.

Top Ways to Become a Pro at Data Entry

Below, we’ve discussed some key strategies that you need to follow to excel at your data-entry tasks. We’ll also guide you through the skills you need to polish, and the tools to learn for the job.

1. Organize your workspace

Organizing your workspace is the first step to becoming a proficient data entry worker. This means cleaning any kind of mess and setting the top-priority devices to function.

For instance, a data entry professional might need to get a lot of prints to compile results for a comparison in hard form. In such a situation, if the personal printer fails, you’ll lose valuable time and effort.

Thus, get everything under check, from top priority devices, to even a small notebook and a pen – you must have it during your work meetings.

After aligning your physical working area, it’s also important to organize your virtual workspace. This means clearing out unnecessary apps, containing files into respective project folders, and optimizing the working device for operational speed.

All these steps may seem small in the start, but they do save you time wastage, making you work more effortlessly.

2.  Improve computer skills

Organizing the workspaces (both physical and virtual) was a good start to excelling at your data entry job. However, it isn’t enough to compete in today’s highly saturated market.

For that reason, you need to learn some more basic things. Like, the common bugs, errors, and fixes of the OS (Operating System) you’re currently working on.

If you know what can go wrong, you might be able to fix it quicker than someone else, giving you a competitive edge.

Besides that, it’s important to learn the common data entry software associated with your job. For example, Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, etc., which are the stepping-stones of this professional field. There are a lot of other tools to learn in this journey (more on that later).

3.  Boost typing speed and accuracy

Data entry requires quick fingers to get more work done in less time. So, it’s quite natural that we recommend practicing typing speeds and %accuracy of keystrokes to track, measure, and analyze aptitude in the field.

A very strong site that we recommend for this purpose is Monkeytype. It challenges you to shadow-write; meaning to type in words as you see them on the screen and test out your typing speed and accuracy.

Practicing hard every day can improve your words per minute (WPM.) This will be your advantage over others in the profession since they’ll take more time to complete their tasks than you.

4.  Learn keyboard shortcuts

Learning keyboard shortcuts can be a secret way to excel at your data entry job. It can improve your technical proficiency (IT skills), and time-management; both essential for the said type of work.

The best practice is to create a cheat sheet with the most common and useful keyboard shortcuts. Print it out, stick it to your desk, or keep it open on your device. This will serve you like a guide, helping you to memorize them in no time.

Some common examples we could think of right away are CTRL + 1 to format cells in Excel. Or, CTRL + Z to undo any changes (works for all Microsoft Office applications.)

Practice the shortcuts to complete several tasks. Get yourself familiar with their purpose, and use them often for your data entry projects. Remember, practice makes people perfect.

5.  Work with dedication and focus

Cut out any distracting factors from your working area. For instance, annoying lights, buzzing sounds, etc. Try to work in a silent place with no ambient intrusions so that you don’t lack focus during the tasks.

To excel at data entry, you need dedicated efforts to last long shifts and tough working hours. Thus, to keep your hopes high, you need to create small milestones for yourself. Like, a bite of chocolate after each Excel Sheet populated, and so on.

Whatever you do, you must never let your morale and dedication go down. Otherwise, you’ll lose the will to work, making the performance go downhill.

6.  Become proficient with automation tools

There are many automation tools out there that can make data entry a piece of cake for you. These applications ensure that manual work is avoided at any cost, making each keystroke count.

For example, OCR tools allow you to copy text from images, making it easier to digitize hard copies of documents. You can utilize such tools to create data sheets with the information stored on printed papers.

As an example, we’ll take the following image of a business document written in Arabic. We will digitize it using a popular image-to-text converter.

Let’s upload the image to a selected converter and see how it responds:

Indeed, prepostseo’s image-to-text converter functions accurately to extract information from printed business documents. Now, you can use the digital characters to enter data into spreadsheets or analyze it using tools like FastField, etc.

7.  Develop a consistent routine

As a professional, developing a consistent working routine is essential. This practice ensures that your work is completed on time, without any interruptions.

A set routine promotes a smooth workflow by allowing you to structure your day and allocate specific time slots for different tasks.

Furthermore, a work routine fosters productive habits, making it easier to maintain a steady pace throughout the day. It also helps reduce fatigue, as you’ll know when to take breaks and have well-earned rests.

Hence, it is crucial to work in a systemized manner to grow at your data-entry job and be a top-level professional. Soon, you’ll get the promotion (or raise) you’ve always wanted, certifying your name in the industry.

8.  Get feedback from community professionals

If you’re still looking for ways to excel at your job, try consulting with community professionals. Nowadays, social media has made it easy to get in touch with anyone you want. Use it wisely for connections and to improve upon your skills as a professional.

Log on to LinkedIn to learn tips and tricks from the best. Connect with them and share your story. See what they have to say about your situation and try to incorporate the relevant changes in your workflow.

Use GitHub to apply common automation scripts for Excel, Google Sheets, sending emails, etc. Try to post in community groups on Facebook and take advice on what people have to say.

However, we would suggest contemplating whatever word you receive. No matter the position of the person saying it, if it isn’t working for you, then there’s no point in forcing the issue. Drop the advice and look for some other ways to get better.

Final Words

In this post, we talked about the top ways to excel at a data entry job. It includes organization and computer skills, improved typing speed and accuracy, knowledge of keyboard shortcuts, dedication, and proficiency with automation tools.

Furthermore, it is important to create a structured routine, seek feedback from community professionals, and constantly adapt to new strategies to stay competitive.

By utilizing the things we mentioned, data entry professionals can increase their productivity and efficiency, making them successful in no time!