By Christopher Fitch
One of the reasons so many small business owners and entrepreneurs love Smart Phones like the Blackberry is that they allow for mobility. When it comes to servicing clients or solving problems, you can work from virtually anywhere. But what happens when an e-mail just won't do? What happens when you have reams of paperwork that need to move from one person to the next?
Back in the mid-1980's, the fax machine became a popular solution. It reduced the need for high-cost courier services and eliminated some of the opportunity costs associated with time-sensitive documentation. The problem with the traditional fax machine today is that it needs to be hard-wired to an office. So, unless you or someone working for you sits next to this machine, you will never know that an important document has finally arrived for your review and execution.
Finally, online fax services have evolved to the point where they offer real value, particularly for small businesses and entrepreneurs who need to be mobile. Thanks to high-speed internet (hardwired and mobile) and low hardware costs, online fax services can transmit and store large files for a relatively low cost. As a result, you can outsource this chore for as little as $10 USD per month.
At first glance, using an online fax service might seem like a luxury. At $120 per year, you can own upwards of four traditional machines. But when you consider the monthly fees associated with a dedicated fax line, ten bucks doesn't seem so steep. Plus, the traditional fax won't forward your documents to you by e-mail, which can be accessed anywhere in the world (yes, even through those smart phones!).
Just as a hard-wired fax machine will transmit any document, online fax services can process more than 150 different document types including JPG files and MS Word documents. This allows you to work on faxes on virtually any machine. More importantly, online fax services are now as flexible as traditional fax machines, if not more so.
In essence, since the end user can operate from anywhere, there is less need for high-cost expenses like rent and reception. And since both sent and received files are imaged, their digital format can replace indirect costs such as on-site and off-site filing. And this trend is not specific to small businesses and entrepreneurs; most large now corporations incorporate document scanning technologies and digital storage.
The best service we have come across is one offered through myFax. Even at their lowest pricepoint of $10 per month, their package allows 200 incoming and 100 outgoing faxes plus a local or toll-free number registered at no charge. Their highest cost is $40 month, but all plans allow for data sent through their system to be stored for 1 year. What will typically happen is your faxes will get sent to your e-mail inbox as an attachment. However, if you do not have access to your inbox (either by computer or handheld), you can also access their web address and peruse documents there. Their interface is easy to use and very intuitive. Plus, it allows for higher volume mass faxes.
Since most small business owners and entrepreneurs value flexibility, the fax machine of the 80's has always been one of the last obstacles to true mobility. Through mFax, you can experience the pure meaning of mobility and start enjoying the savings immediately.
Back in the mid-1980's, the fax machine became a popular solution. It reduced the need for high-cost courier services and eliminated some of the opportunity costs associated with time-sensitive documentation. The problem with the traditional fax machine today is that it needs to be hard-wired to an office. So, unless you or someone working for you sits next to this machine, you will never know that an important document has finally arrived for your review and execution.
Finally, online fax services have evolved to the point where they offer real value, particularly for small businesses and entrepreneurs who need to be mobile. Thanks to high-speed internet (hardwired and mobile) and low hardware costs, online fax services can transmit and store large files for a relatively low cost. As a result, you can outsource this chore for as little as $10 USD per month.
At first glance, using an online fax service might seem like a luxury. At $120 per year, you can own upwards of four traditional machines. But when you consider the monthly fees associated with a dedicated fax line, ten bucks doesn't seem so steep. Plus, the traditional fax won't forward your documents to you by e-mail, which can be accessed anywhere in the world (yes, even through those smart phones!).
Just as a hard-wired fax machine will transmit any document, online fax services can process more than 150 different document types including JPG files and MS Word documents. This allows you to work on faxes on virtually any machine. More importantly, online fax services are now as flexible as traditional fax machines, if not more so.
In essence, since the end user can operate from anywhere, there is less need for high-cost expenses like rent and reception. And since both sent and received files are imaged, their digital format can replace indirect costs such as on-site and off-site filing. And this trend is not specific to small businesses and entrepreneurs; most large now corporations incorporate document scanning technologies and digital storage.
The best service we have come across is one offered through myFax. Even at their lowest pricepoint of $10 per month, their package allows 200 incoming and 100 outgoing faxes plus a local or toll-free number registered at no charge. Their highest cost is $40 month, but all plans allow for data sent through their system to be stored for 1 year. What will typically happen is your faxes will get sent to your e-mail inbox as an attachment. However, if you do not have access to your inbox (either by computer or handheld), you can also access their web address and peruse documents there. Their interface is easy to use and very intuitive. Plus, it allows for higher volume mass faxes.
Since most small business owners and entrepreneurs value flexibility, the fax machine of the 80's has always been one of the last obstacles to true mobility. Through mFax, you can experience the pure meaning of mobility and start enjoying the savings immediately.
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