Survey data processing services from first form to report Every response captured, coded and checked, so the findings hold up
End-to-end survey data processing for your own surveys Customer, employee and event surveys, on paper or online
How our survey data processing works Five steps, each one checked before the next starts
- Before fieldworkDesign and set upWe agree the questions, the skip logic, the codebook and the tables you need.
- During fieldworkCapture responsesAgents read paper forms and merge online exports into one response file.
- During fieldworkCode open answersAgents code each answer, and a person codes the ones that don't fit a code.
- After fieldworkClean and checkLogic checks catch impossible answers, and the batch owner signs the file off.
- DeliveryReportYou get the clean data, the tables and the charts, in the format you use.
When survey data processing services are the right fit And when you need market research forms processing instead
A good fit when
- You run your own customer, employee or member surveys
- Responses arrive on paper and online, and someone has to merge them
- Open answers pile up because nobody has time to code them
Look elsewhere when
- You're a research agency combining many fieldwork sources: see market research forms
- You only need the forms keyed, with no coding or reporting
- You need a new survey platform built
Our survey data processing services in detail What each step covers, and what you get at the end
Survey design and setup
A survey is easier to process when it's set up well. We help you word the questions, set the skip logic and agree the codes before the first form goes out. The survey can run as a poll, an email survey, a phone interview or a paper form.
Survey data scanning and entry
Paper forms are scanned and read with OCR for print, ICR for handwriting and OMR for tick boxes. Online responses from tools such as SurveyMonkey, Qualtrics or Google Forms are merged into the same file, with one layout for every channel.
A tick between two boxes or a crossed-out answer goes to a person, who reads it from the image.
Survey data cleaning
Clean data is what makes a survey result worth reading. We check every response against the survey's own logic and find missing answers and straight-lined grids. We also flag responses that can't be true, such as a 19-year-old with 30 years of service.
- Skip logic checked on every response
- Duplicates and speeders flagged
- Every change to a response written in a log
Coding open-ended responses
Open answers often hold the most useful findings, and they take the longest to process. Agents code each answer to your codebook, a person codes the ones that fit no code, and new codes are added only with your agreement.
Survey data analysis and reporting
We turn the clean file into the tables, cross-tabs and charts you asked for at setup, in Excel, SPSS, PowerPoint or Power BI. Each wave is reported the same way, so you can see what changed since the last one.
Types of survey forms we process
Any survey with a fixed set of questions, on paper or online. These are the ones we see most often.
- Customer satisfaction and NPS surveys
- Employee engagement and exit surveys
- Event, course and training feedback forms
- Product, warranty and registration questionnaires
- Member, patient and citizen surveys
Questions about survey data processing services What survey owners ask us before fieldwork starts
What does survey data processing include?
It covers everything between the questionnaire and the findings: setting up the survey, capturing responses, coding open answers, cleaning the data and reporting it. You can hand us all of it or only the steps your team doesn't have time for.
Can you process paper and online survey responses together?
Yes. Paper forms are scanned and read, online exports are merged in, and every response ends up in one file with one layout. The file shows which channel each response came from.
How do you code open-ended survey responses?
Agents code each answer to your codebook and send the ones that fit no code to a person. The person codes them or proposes a new code, which goes into the codebook only after you agree.
Is our survey data kept confidential?
Only the people on your survey can open the responses, and we sign your confidentiality agreement before fieldwork. We can remove names and contact details before coding, so the people coding never see who answered.
How much do survey data processing services cost?
Damco prices per response, with coding priced per open answer. The price depends on the length of the form and how many answers need a person, which a sample of your responses shows.
Tell us about your next survey
Describe the survey, how responses arrive and what you need at the end, and we'll show you how we'd process it.