Today, online faxing is fast replacing the traditional style of sending and receiving messages in businesses primarily due to reduced communication costs, among other advantages. The effect of internet faxing trickles down to other cost centers, like phone bills and office stationery.
Digital advancements influence today’s business operating models. It’s not a secret that companies embrace new technological adjustments and get rid of old tools and systems, such as fax machines.
With that, companies are prompted to train their staff how to fax via the internet to streamline business operations and communications effectively. But before upskilling your staff, you might want to consider the following factors before signing your business up for online faxing:
1. Your Business Needs
It’s always good to start by evaluating your business needs to determine your next course of action. You could be running out of space to keep your printed fax documents, calling a technician to come and fix your broken and outdated fax machine, or taking longer to access your inbound and outbound fax.
You should make a decision following the results of your business appraisal. If you think there’s a need for employing online fax in your business because you’re handling too many electronic files, then it’s high time to invest in good software. That way, your business can achieve efficiency in service delivery.
2. Cost Of The Service
The cost of switching from the traditional faxing method to online faxing is relatively cheap. The price range is between USD$3 to USD$5 per month, depending on your business operations. That includes a free account setup by the service provider and the number of pages your business can transmit throughout the month. Your company has a choice to subscribe for monthly or yearly billing.
Despite the cost of introducing new digital products to your business being low, online faxing is affordable and convenient for communication. It allows you to work from anywhere using the internet on your mobile phone. You can respond promptly to faxes in your inbox without printing the information.
3. Fax App Features
There are only two process participants for online faxing, which is either sending or receiving a fax. One crucial component of faxing services is the internet, which allows for the transfer of information. But apart from it, you must consider other fax app features that will help your business become more efficient.
Must-Have Features
If your goal is to stand out from the crowd, reach out to online faxing service providers who meet your requirements. They should be able to offer cutting-edge faxing services that provide convenience, trust, and storage for your inbound and outbound faxes.
An online faxing service provider should be able to offer premium packages:
- Free mobile fax app: It allows you to work on the go.
- Toll-free number: It shows that your business has a strong foundation.
- Local phone number: It shows that you’re a part of the business community.
- Lifetime storage: It offers backup storage for all your business communication data.
- Electronic signature: It shows ownership and that you’re trustworthy.
Bonus Features
Some of the additional features offered when you open an account with an online fax service provider are:
- Address book: An integration of your business contacts with your fax account.
- Third-party cloud storage: You can transfer files from storage applications to your fax account through this third-party storage.
- Large file sharing: You’re not limited by the size of the files or the number of recipients; online faxing can handle large volumes of information.
- Email addresses: This feature allows you to provide access to several team members at once, which is helpful when reaching out to the entire business community.
- Fax search: With this feature, you should be able to search and find faxes that were previously sent or received.
4. Security
Evaluate the privacy policy of the online faxing company you plan to partner with. That way, you’ll be in a position to determine how safe your business information can be transmitted. No one wants their closely guarded data to fall into the wrong hands.
They should demonstrate how they protect clients from digital preys trying to access faxes online. Security measures put in place to combat any breach should inform your decision.
5. Mobility and Ease Of Use
Because the uptake of contemporary online faxing is fast-growing, traditional faxing machines are slowly becoming obsolete.
The mobility aspect of sending and receiving fax is shaking the world of business. Online faxing enables you to transmit faxes via your mobile device by just tapping ‘send’ or ‘open.’ The ease of use is seen through the quick turnaround when responding to faxes reaching your inbox.
Conclusion
Introducing new communication systems to your business can be an eventful undertaking. It entails taking time to review your business needs, budgets, and the benefits of such platforms, like online faxing. However, a thorough evaluation of service providers should enable you to make an informed decision.
In addition, the service provider should be reputable enough to provide high-quality faxing services. Above are some considerations that can help you when signing up your business for online faxing.
