What is Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) in Simple Terms?

The term 'document processing' refers to the management of paper-based information and its transition into various forms of electronic format. The popularity of electronic content has allowed a growing number of companies to specialize in converting paper-based documents into digital formats.

Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) is a document processing service that involves more than simply converting paper-based information into electronic format. IDP focuses on transforming paper-based information into applicable digital content for various applications and systems. This includes extracting data from images, creating databases from scanned documents, coding data pulled from records, enhancing visual display properties, and more.

Although some organizations may be reluctant to change from paper-based information to electronic content, it is becoming increasingly clear that this transition is necessary. For example, many schools across the country have begun switching from traditional to digital textbooks. 

What are the benefits of Intelligent Document Processing?

IDP is a technology that allows your computers and other devices to scan paper documents and convert the information into a digital form so people can view, edit, search, store, or transmit them easily over the internet or an intranet.

This technology can have many benefits.

1. Traditional methods. For example, it lets you accumulate and store all your essential digital and paper-based documents in one place for easy access. It also eliminates the need for your employees to spend hours manually filing and sorting paper documents, which saves time and energy. By automating this task, Intelligent Document Processing also helps reduce costs for paper, filing cabinets, storage space, and filing staff salaries.
2. IDP enables you to be more efficient as it lets you access your stored documents easily on your computer or other devices. This means that you can find the information you need much quicker than before, which saves time and ensures that your work is completed on time. In addition, Intelligent Document Processing saves you from having to re-enter data manually, which is both time-consuming and prone to human error. It also eliminates the risk of duplicate data entry, saving your company additional time and money.
3. IDP ensures that the data extracted from your documents is accurate as it uses intelligent OCR (optical character recognition) to recognize text contained in images accurately. This means that business-critical information such as customer names, product specifications, or prices is entered each time, reducing errors and improving customer service. It also helps improve the accuracy of searches performed on stored documents making them more useful in decision-making processes, e.g., finding your oldest sales contract quickly when needed for a particular customer inquiry, etc.
4. With IDP, all documents within any set were scanned using the same parameters, displaying the same formatting, such as fonts, colors, etc. Scanning makes searching more accessible, e.g., searching for a word within either a document or folder of documents, regardless of how these were scanned originally, whether separately or as multiple-page files, etc. Viewing is also more accessible as all the relevant information in each document will be displayed consistently regardless of how it was scanned. Paragraph breaks are retained so that text is displayed continuously rather than broken up into small pieces, which is often very confusing if viewed on screen compared to a paper format where most people constantly read regardless of breaks between paragraphs
5. IDP allows you to view your converted documents in several different ways, including "viewer" modes which enable you to see them very close to their original printed form on screen but in digital format. It also allows you to save your converted documents in many different formats, such as PDF, Word, etc., allowing easy sharing across networks with colleagues using other operating systems. IDP lets you combine additional files into one by combining scanned images with the original document if needed. Incorporating cover pages instead of storing them as separate files helps to increase file size without growing storage requirements significantly.

‍How does IDP help a company save time and money?

IDP allows a company to centralize all its workflow functions by taking control of paper-based documents in circulation within a workplace. This enables an organization to access and manage its records from one location rather than having thousands scattered throughout the workplace. Intelligent document processing also allows for these documents to be viewed simultaneously by designated personnel who have been granted permission, saving time by eliminating the need for physical paper-based searches. In addition, keyword searching capabilities make it possible to locate specific documents without physically going through every piece of paper. This helps companies save time and money by no longer needing to print unnecessary reports.

With the volume of paperwork generated daily within human resource departments alone, intelligent document processing can help save time and money by allowing quick retrieval of information that may be needed at short notice. Rather than searching through boxes containing historical data, this information can be located quickly through intelligent document processing systems. This can save thousands in person-hours spent searching for information that may or may not even is found. Intelligent document processing systems allow for retrieving historical data in seconds rather than minutes or hours, depending on the company's size or volume of paperwork. Reducing this cost makes it possible to lower overhead costs such as payroll and increase profit margins.

Intelligent systems that are designed around customer service have been found to have increased sales figures by up to 12 percent. By using intelligent document processing systems, businesses can gain a competitive edge by providing better customer service. A modern-day consumer is likely to go with the company that offers excellent service rather than with the lowest price available or with another company that will provide another unexpected bill in exchange for their purchase. IDP can deliver better customer service by providing immediate access to order details, shipping information, and other relevant details that customers might require at short notice before their products even arrive at their homes or place of business. This saves time for both companies and customers alike since there is no need for either party to wait around for delivery confirmation or product details since they are already stored and immediately accessible.