Top 5 Reasons to Switch to eFAX

eFAX services have been around for 10+ years but we still meet business clients who are reluctant, to do away with that old fashioned physical FAX machine that they can run by, drop a pile of papers into, dial a number and hit “SEND”. Given the numerous paper jams, toner shortages and other cryptic error messages that these FAX machines spew out this is rather surprising right? So what’s the hesitation here?

Well the answer here is a familiar one. Technology changes scare people! So while it is well known ”you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, we are now finding by demonstrating how easy it is to use eFAX services, and then by explaining the considerable advantages of eFAX services, even the most wary and technology adverse “old dog” can be made to “change their spots” and to embrace eFAX services and send their old FAX machines to be recycled.

So what are the primary advantages of eFAX services that are having your peers finally adopt this well proven service? Here are the Top 5:

1. Sit back and receive faxes directly in your email (and send faxes directly from your computer)
   eFAX services deliver your inbound faxes directly to your email inbox, typically as PDF or TIFF file attachments. Forget about having to run to the FAX machine to check for inbound faxes, and smile at the thought of never having to change the toner or deal with poor reliability and the cryptic error messages served up by your old and badly maintained FAX machine. Equally to send an eFAX just login to your eFAX service, attach a PDF of whatever you want to send and type in the destination FAX number and press send. Your eFAX service also keeps track of every fax you have received and sent, and delivery confirmations are available right there on your computer.
2. Get rid of those expensive POTs lines
   Most FAX machines, particularly larger multi-purpose printer/scanner/copier/fax machines don’t work well with the protocol translations from PRI or SIP based telecom services and so most businesses have to keep a POTs line for each FAX machine, despite the very few faxes each machine sends and receives. With AT&T and the other local phone companies now charging between $40 and $70 per POTs line (after taxes have been applied) so this very quickly gets seriously expensive. eFAX services by contrast run between $5 and $25 for each FAX number (depending on your eFAX provider the quantity of inbound and outbound faxes you receive or send). These service savings soon add up.
3. Get rid of those expensive FAX machines
   Most FAX machines are low efficiency machines and chew through ink toner (when they are actually working), and chew through your time (or your IT/Print vendors’ time) trying to resolve all those error messages (when they are not working). Also FAX machines have no intelligence, they print every last page that is sent to them, whether that page is a SPAM fax you have been sent by a roofing company after a heavy downpour or perhaps one from a finance company trying to encourage you to take out a “pre-approved loan”. With eFAX services you can preview every fax you receive and choose which specific pages you really want printing out and then print them on a high efficiency printer to cut your print costs in half or perhaps even in quarter. Equipment savings, toner savings, paper savings, maintenance savings, that’s a lot of savings!
4. File your faxes with your other electronic files
   When you receive a fax on a traditional FAX machine more than likely you are having to then scan that fax so you can store it electronically alongside your other records for that client, vendor or patient. Then of course you have to shred the original fax or worse yet physically store it for 7 years to meet some data reporting guideline. Clearly this is both time consuming and expensive. By contrast with eFAX services your faxes are received in electronic format and can be reviewed and then stored electronically and inexpensively with the click of a mouse.
5. Help avoid delicate information getting in the wrong hands
   Even if you don’t share a FAX machine with other people in your office, do you ever receive or send confidential or sensitive data that you wouldn’t want anyone else to have access to? Perhaps you are in HR and your employees or prospective new hires send you personal, HIPAA or CPI information, or perhaps it is salary information that you don’t want other staff members or your office janitorial staff to see when they are cleaning your office. A physical FAX machine presents a real security issue. What is to stop somebody other than you from picking up whatever has been printed out? In short, nothing!! eFAX services ensure the wrong data doesn’t get in the wrong hands by delivering faxes directly into your email, and so long as your email is being securely protected with passwords and encryption you are 100% better off from a security perspective.

So in summary eFAX services are convenient, easy to use and allow you to save money, save time, work more efficiently and with less security concerns. So where can you buy eFAX services when you are ready to make the switch? Well most telecom providers these days offer eFAX services of some nature or another, but some of these are inbound only and have volume constraints.

If you would like to review your eFAX service options don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and call USA Voice & Data at 312-604-3070 or email us at info@usavoicedata.com. We are happy to help you find an eFAX service provider whose services best fit your needs and fax volume.