What is OMR based survey?
OMR stands for Optical Mark Recognition and also Optical Mark Reading. It is a technology that extracts the data through the human marks made in the relevant bubbles on the OMR sheet.
When carrying out surveys, OMR software is used which is efficient in designing, printing, scanning, reading and evaluating all types of OMR sheets and forms. It is useful for both small scale as well as large scale surveys.
The main aim of the survey is to acquire relevant insight out of the target group and then interpret the obtained data to derive a final conclusion. It is overall a lengthy process which when done manually can lack in many ways and this is why OMR based surveys are mostly preferred.
How to use OMR software to create and evaluate surveys?
To know in detail as to how OMR software is used for creating and evaluating the surveys, refer the steps mentioned below-
Step-1 Contact the best OMR software company
First of all, the “best OMR software company” doesn’t mean that the software you are purchasing has to be expensive. Many companies that are providing OMR software have got the best features in their product and still, it is cost-effective. When searching for OMR software, make sure to check out all the features and inquire about the support service.
Step-2 Integrate the software with your system
Because it is software, so it needs to be installed on the computer. Check the compatibility of the hardware of your computer with that of the software. Also, get help from the support team if you are facing any issues when installing the software.
Step- 3 Create and design the survey
Decide the purpose of the survey that you want to create.
- Be clear about what is your target group?
- What is the strength of the sample (the group in which you will conduct the survey)?
- What are the answers that you are looking for through your survey?
By keeping all of these points in mind, design your survey with the help of free tools and templates that come integrated with the OMR software.
Step-4 Processing the OMR survey sheets
Once the sheets have been collected from the group the next step involves the processing of the sheets. The steps that go into processing the sheets using OMR sheet checker is given below-
- Scanning- The sheets can be scanned by using any regular scanner such as Flatbed, ADF, and MFP. You can change the settings of the scanner from the software itself. Start putting the sheets carefully through the scanner and wait for them to be scanned completely.
- Reading- OMR sheet checker software mostly provides a good reading speed that is around 300 sheets per minute. During the reading part, the software maintains high-level accuracy through its various advanced level features.
Step-5 Evaluation and data sorting
The data that is collected from the sheets, is provided by the software in a well-categorized format. OMR software can automatically evaluate the data and generate the report; there is no requirement for any type of manual intervention. The report that is generated can be separately imported to a file format of your choice and can be referred to any time in the future.
How much does the entire OMR survey system cost?
OMR software in itself is a complete OMR solution so you do not have to bear any extra cost for purchasing sheet designing or data sorting software. The only add-ons that you require are a regular printer and scanner which are not that costly.
The average cost of some of the best OMR software available in the market ranges somewhere between INR 20,000 to INR 70,000. There are also some cheaper OMR software companies available in the market but choosing them means compromising on the speed and accuracy which is not advised in case of surveys.