Accurate and efficient title searches are essential for protecting property rights and facilitating smooth real estate transactions in the title insurance industry. Traditional manual data entry methods are prone to errors and can be time-consuming, hindering operational efficiency. However, with the advent of automated data entry technologies, companies have revolutionized their processes to boost efficiency in title searches.
Read this eBook: The Rise of Automation in the Title Industry
The role of automated data entry in title searches continues to evolve. The addition of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other technologies is now making a big difference. Greater volumes of data can now be collected automatically and processed with far greater performance and accuracy than ever before. Here are five examples that highlight how automated data entry and extraction can be used to boost efficiency and performance. This can be achieved by cutting manual entry errors to improve data accuracy and trust by Title industry companies.
1. Enhanced Data Accuracy through Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
Automated data entry systems have been utilizing optical character recognition (OCR) technology for decades. The basis of OCR technology was originally patented out of Germany in the 1920s. But it was not until 1950 that David H Shepard delivered the world’s first commercial OCR system (source). Early use cases included scanning coupons distributed as part of print advertising campaigns. This technology has taken on many roles since its early beginnings.
The concept of OCR is to convert scanned or photographed documents into machine-readable text. OCR algorithms can accurately extract relevant information from documents such as property deeds, mortgage records, and legal contracts, reducing the risk of human error in data entry.
By leveraging OCR, most title insurance companies have already incorporated this technology to boost data accuracy. This has minimized potential mistakes that could impact title searches and transaction processes. Automated data entry systems can extract data points with very high precision. This ensures that critical information is correctly recorded and reducing the likelihood of costly errors or delays.
By implementing OCR-based automated data entry, a title insurance company could boost efficiency in title searches. This is achieved by reducing data entry errors by 90%. This improvement led to faster and more accurate title searches and improved customer satisfaction. The challenge, however, is that the remaining 10% of the data still requires manual intervention. As transaction volumes increase, the time, effort, and resources required to address this remaining 10% can be very expensive. The cost could total millions of dollars a year for large organizations.
2. Streamlined Document Classification, Indexing, and Retrieval
Automated data entry can streamline the indexing and retrieval of documents. This enables quick and efficient access to relevant information. Instead of manually sorting and categorizing documents, data entry systems can automatically apply meta tags. These will then index documents based on predefined criteria or machine learning algorithms.
This streamlined process was able to boost efficiency in title searches to ensure documents could be easily located and retrieved. The results were significant time savings and reduced effort for Title industry professionals. It eliminates the need for manual intervention in organizing and searching for documents, allowing employees to focus on more value-added tasks.
By implementing automated data entry systems with intelligent document indexing, Title companies could reduce document retrieval time by 50%, enabling faster decision-making and improved operational efficiency. The challenge is the remaining documents that have not been accurately scanned or must be manually inputted could potentially not be accurately indexed either. This is another example of how the impact of potentially inaccurate data can have far-reaching effects.
Learn more here, A Quick Guide to Document Classification and Why AI is Changing It.
3. Improved Workflow Consistency and Standardization
Automated data entry can help to ensure better consistency and standardization across Title search and related workflows. Manual data entry methods are prone to inconsistencies, variations in formatting, and typos. This, in turn, can lead to issues with workflows, such as when this data is shared with other departments or integrated with other enterprise applications. In contrast, automated systems enforce predefined data validation rules. This ensures data is entered consistently so workflows can be executed accurately every time.
By maintaining standardized data formats, Title companies can improve data quality and minimize the need for time-consuming issue resolutions when workflows don’t operate as planned. A common culprit is inaccurate data that needs to be cleaned and normalized. Data consistency also enhances collaboration and data sharing among different departments and stakeholders, reducing the likelihood of miscommunication or discrepancies.
Through automated data entry, Title Insurance companies could achieve up to a 30% reduction in data discrepancies, resulting in improved data integrity, streamlined processes, and increased trust among customers and partners.
4. Accelerated Turnaround Time and Faster Decision-Making
Automated data entry expedites the Title search process, leading to accelerated turnaround times and faster decision-making. By eliminating manual data entry and automating information extraction, companies can significantly reduce the time required for processing title searches and related tasks.
With faster access to accurate information, Title insurance professionals can make informed decisions more quickly, expediting the overall transaction process. This not only improves operational efficiency but also enhances customer satisfaction by reducing wait times and enabling swift real estate transactions. Today, processing time expectations continue to accelerate. The choice to not invest in systems that can shorten review and approval processes can have an impact on competitive advantage.
Read this case study for an example of how a National Title company dramatically cut its data extraction time resulting in the following achievements:
- Reduced title clearance time from 2-4 hours to just 20 minutes
- Achieved a 10x reduction in manual data entries, a drop from 4-5% (industry average) down to 0.5% to 1%
- Better utilization of Subject Matter Experts to reengineer business processes and workflows instead of performing manual data entry
- Unlocked new business growth and scalability potential achieving higher customer satisfaction to clients through faster decision-making.
- Delivered higher customer satisfaction to clients through faster turnaround times
5. Cost Reduction through High-Performance, AI-Driven Data Extraction
Automation and AI technology can be applied to data extraction processes to help overcome shortcomings with other automated data collection and processing strategies, such as OCR. This strategy can make a big impact on Title industry operations. Many benefits extend beyond improving operational efficiency and reducing manual labor requirements.
Manual data entry should be avoided wherever possible. It is labor-intensive, time-consuming, and prone to errors, which can lead to additional costs for error correction and rework. Automated data extraction processes dramatically reduce the need for manual intervention, freeing up valuable employee time for more strategic and higher-value tasks. This optimization of resources not only improves productivity but also reduces operational costs associated with data entry, data verification, and document processing.
Read the case study for an example of how a Title industry analytics company differentiated itself by providing a faster, more reliable service. By adopting an Axis Smart Data Extraction solution, this company achieved cost savings of 40%.
Automated data entry technologies offer tremendous potential for improving efficiency, accuracy, and overall operational effectiveness in the Title industry. By leveraging OCR, streamlining document indexing, improving workflow standardization, accelerating turnaround times, and reducing costs, companies can revolutionize their Title search processes. Implementing automated data entry systems not only reduces errors and improves accuracy but also minimizes the need for manual intervention, resulting in significant time and cost savings. By embracing these innovations, Title insurance companies can enhance customer satisfaction, streamline operations, and position themselves for growth in a competitive market.