Best data collection tools

You can collect almost any type of data, including audio clips, signatures, videos, or barcodes. Once you've created the form on the web, you'll need to access it from your mobile device to collect responses.

Log in to the iOS or Android app, and you'll see all your forms displayed on the first screen. As you start receiving form submissions, you can begin to overlay the submission locations onto different basemaps and map packages.

In the Android version of the Fulcrum app, click Locate at the bottom. By default, you'll see dropped pins on the street view of Google Maps. You could, for example, plot form data about new homes being built onto a Google Street View map to see how your building plan will impact the entire neighborhood. You'll also see three dots at the top-right of the screen. Clicking this Layers tab will allow you to access custom layers that you have either uploaded directly to your device or added to Fulcrum through the web app.

If you need to share your form data, Fulcrum allows you to export it in ten different formats from the web app, including Excel, CSV, and Shapefile. And because Fulcrum integrates with Zapier , you can more easily act on form data using your favorite apps, like creating a task when a new Fulcrum record is created or adding a new email subscriber based on form submissions.

Magpi Web, iOS, Android. In some situations, collecting data in person may be difficult and expensive. Remote areas and places affected by natural disasters can be unsafe for field staff. And even under ideal circumstances, sending data collectors into the field is expensive and time-consuming.

Magpi helps solve these issues with their interactive voice response IVR forms. This feature allows you to deploy your forms as interactive voice phone calls, where respondents answer questions by pressing their phone's mobile and landline numeric keypad.

Think: "Press 1 for sales or 2 for service. Note: During my test, Magpi was in transition between their legacy app and their new version, which will see quite a few design and feature updates. Though I tested both, only the legacy product had the IVR feature available, so that's where I spent most of my time. The new app will have IVR and a new internet-based chat feature that will increase functionality and lower costs over the current SMS feature.

I was expecting first-time set-up and implementation of an IVR to be a challenge, but it was surprisingly easy. If you can create a form, you can create an IVR form. As you think about the content of your form, keep a few things in mind. The questions will be asked by an AI voice, so try to use simple, easy-to-understand words in short sentences.

You'll make it easier for the respondent and increase the odds of a completed response. Also, you'll want to ask either multiple-choice radio button or numeric range questions no photos and signatures. Click New from the list of forms on the home screen, and label it at the top-left. From the New Question dropdown, click Label. Labels are for info only. Thank you for your recent purchase. I would like to ask one quick question about your experience.

If you would not like to participate, just hang up. This is your call's introduction. Now you want to create a multiple-choice option where the respondent is asked several questions. From the same question dropdown, click Radio Button , and in the Prompt box, type: Great, thanks for agreeing to answer our question.

Can you tell us if you would recommend our store to others? Then give the data field a name, and below that, label the two response options with "recommend" and "not recommend," followed by the telephone response codes of 1 and 2. In this section, if the user pressed 1, you would use skip logic, moving the call to the last prompt, where you would wrap up the call by creating another label similar to the first one: Great.

Thank you for answering our question. You may hang up now. Then, in the response options box above for "recommend," click the Jump To dropdown and select 4, the prompt you just created. This links and "jumps" the call to this final message. But if they selected 2, you would create another prompt: I'm sorry to hear that you would not recommend our store!

A store manager may call you to find out more and to find out how we can improve. When you're finished and ready to deploy your IVR form, click Save and then Share toward the top-right. Then click the Interactive Voice Responses sub-tab. Enter the recipient phone numbers, select the language from a list of 17 options with various accents, specify the timing, and click the Initiate IVR Sharing button.

I tested it a handful of times, and each call survey came in within 30 seconds of initiating. Now click the Analysis tab next to Share to see the results of your survey, which show up immediately. You can also extend Magpi's capabilities with Magpi's Zapier integrations , allowing you to more easily connect form data to other apps, like Google Sheets or Excel.

FastField makes the entire data collection process easier, from designing and validating a form to the many options for creating and sending your data. And this isn't to say it's a simplistic app—FastField is filled with advanced features.

We'll get to those in a minute. First, we'll look at how to create and send a form. When you first sign in to your FastForm account, you'll get a tutorial on creating a form. This visual with instructions gives you a good idea of what to expect when you create your first form. From the portal, click New Form and Form from the dropdown, which brings you to the form designer. On the left side column are your fields, and to the left of each field name is a little hidden question mark.

Hover over the field name and then the question mark to see an explanation for that field with an example. To move a field into the middle white space, just click it. No drag and drop needed. If you need to rearrange the order of the fields on the form, then you can drag and drop them. For each field you add, a settings section appears on the right.

Here, you can turn on things like timestamps, geolocation, and field rules. Hover over any of these options to get a brief explanation of the setting, and then just click on one to set it for that field. Each setting will then appear on that field as either a grayed-out icon not set or highlighted in blue set. When your form is complete, click Save Draft and then Preview. Here's where some of the magic happens.

Not only will you see what the form looks like, but you'll also get to test each field e. Qualitative vs quantitative data. The 8 best Wufoo alternatives. What is a double-barreled question, and how do you avoid it? How to use the questionnaire method of data collection. What are focus groups, and how do you conduct them? How to conduct an oral history interview. The 5 best data analysis tools. Types of sampling methods. Benefits of data-collection: What makes a good data-collection form? How to create a fillable form in Microsoft Word.

Hello FREE. Fulcrum Mobile Inspection Form Fields. Magpi IVR. Demographic Survey. Jotform Report Builder. This article is originally published on Mar 17, , and updated on Dec 27, Join , Subscribers. Data Collection Data Collection Tools. Send Comment :. Be the first to comment. Data collection software discards the use of paper based surveys and forms and enables the electronic collection and storage of quantitative and qualitative data on a desktop or a mobile application.

The benefits for data collection software are undeniable. Data collection software has the potential to lower cost, save time, increase access to business analytics and metrics, equips workers with tools to make informed and fast decisions, organizes all the tools you need in one place, and standardize business processes.

Based upon your business needs and industry you can find a data collection software that accomplishes your goals. Researching data collection software by industry and needs significantly reduces the pool of software available on the market and ultimately software you can choose from.

Comparing pricing, features, usability, and customer reviews can be helpful in making an official decision to use particular data collection software to streamline your business processes. According to Array there are seven questions that you can ask when evaluating Data collection software. What does the training and setup process look like? How many supporting tools will my team need to interact with each day?

Are there any limitations when collecting on all devices? Will I get spreadsheets, or will I get insights? What resources does the vendor offer to support long-term success? These questions can be helpful in evaluating multiple data collection products and also choosing a data collection software for your business. Data collection allows your business to store and analyze information about your customers which can help your business make informed and accurate business decisions.

Not only does data collection help formulate accurate theories about your business, but it also enables you to identify problems and inefficiencies. If necessary for your business, then you can purchase more than one data collection software. Although some of the features may overlap with each other, it is possible to have more than one data collection software for your business and even to switch from one data collection software to another.

Yes, KoBo Toolbox is a free data collection software and is included above in our list. However, there are plenty of other free data collection software on the market such as SurveyMonkey, GetFeedback, and many more.