How small business users can save upto 45% paper handling/filing time

Document scanning and document management i.e. the ability to file and retrieve documents electronically, has long been recognised by major corporations as the only way to effectively manage the vast paper mountains that they generate on a daily basis. Smaller businesses however can benefit from all of the advantages that the large corporations enjoy. So what are the benefits and why should a new or small business consider adopting electronic document management?

1. Viewing documents at the PC without the need to visit the filing cabinet.

2. No lost or misfiled documents, so often the case with physically filed originals.

3. Higher levels of security as access to important documents can be limited by password.

4. You do NOT need to show Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs the originals of any documents. They are quite happy to view electronic copies.

5. The ability for multiple users to view documents at the same time. e.g. sharing access to electronically scanned invoices with your accountant or bookkeeper.

6. More space efficient. Storing documents electronically frees up valuable office space that would otherwise be taken by filing cabinets.

7. A basic system can be purchased for a few hundred pounds making adoption of document scanning a very cost effective solution.

8. Expandable and scalable system to cope with growth.

9. More time efficient as physical files take time to produce whereas document scanning can be done at each users desk or at a central scanning point.

10. Far more productive. Gartner estimate that a 45% saving in paper handling times is achievable by implementing a document scanning & management system.

There are many proprietary systems available on the market today ranging from conventional data which is saved to disc or hard drive through to cloud computing solutions where your company data is uploaded to a remote secure server.

The choices are mind boggling for those with no experience or knowledge of document scanning or document management and I would recommend doing some research to establish the credentials of a truly independent document management expert, either locally or nationally Ask for testimonials and obtain 2 or 3 different quotations/proposals.Don't deal with a provider who only carries one range of hardware or software, they may be independent but a choice of one is no choice at all. As a rule of thumb find a supplier who is an authorised reseller of at least 3 recognised scanner brands and at least 2 software offerings.

When talking to the supplier explain clearly what documents you wish to manage and think carefully about the information you need to extract from the page. For example, you may want to cross refer an invoice with a delivery note either by date order or by customer name or order number. This process is called indexing and every business has different requirements.

Before choosing your supplier do some intense due diligence to safeguard against expensive purchasing mistakes. Ask them for written undertakings of software updates or licenses and establish that these will be provided either free of charge or at pre-arranged cost effective pricing levels.

Finally, don't get drawn into long contracts, there is no need for this and any business who asks to tie you in to a year long contract or 6 month cancellation clause have no faith in their ability to keep you consistently happy.

Thanks for reading and I hope this basic guide to document scanning and document management has been useful.

Article Source: Articles World

About the Author

http://www.click2scan.co.uk geoff.shilton@click2scan.co.uk FREE consultations. FREE collections for all bureau scanning work FREE advice from industry experts.

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