I) Enhanced Document Accessibility

OCR plays a vital role in making documents more accessible to people with disabilities. By converting printed text into digital formats, OCR technology enables the use of text-to-speech software and screen readers, allowing visually impaired individuals to access and interact with printed materials. This inclusivity is a significant benefit in education, government, and business environments, ensuring that information is available to all. Having your documents digitized may even help your organization comply with new laws created to prevent discrimination against persons with disabilities.

II) Time Efficiency

One of the most apparent advantages of OCR is its ability to save time. Manually transcribing or copying text from physical documents is a time-consuming task prone to errors. OCR software automates this process, making it possible to use text from documents quickly and accurately. This not only boosts productivity but also reduces the risk of human error.

III) Improved Data Search, Retrieval, and Accuracy

OCR technology transforms documents into searchable text, making it much easier to locate specific information within a large collection of documents. This feature is invaluable for businesses and organizations that deal with vast archives of paper documents or scanned files. Users can simply enter keywords or phrases, and OCR-enabled systems will locate relevant documents, saving time and effort. OCR software has evolved to provide high levels of accuracy, especially in recognizing printed text. This means fewer transcription errors and more reliable data extraction. Accuracy is crucial in sectors like finance, healthcare, and legal, where data integrity is paramount.

IV) Compliance and Security

Compliance and security are vital concerns across various industries. OCR technology plays a crucial role in addressing these issues. In sectors like healthcare, finance, and legal, strict data security and privacy standards are a must. OCR helps with compliance by allowing organizations to convert and securely manage sensitive documents, ensuring they meet legal and regulatory requirements. This includes encrypting digital documents, setting up strong access controls, and keeping detailed audit records. These measures are crucial for protecting confidential data and preventing data breaches. OCR simplifies the process of achieving regulatory compliance and enhances overall data security, making it a valuable tool in today's digital landscape.

V) Cost Saving

OCR technology brings significant cost savings to organizations. It reduces labor costs by automating manual data entry and document handling, allowing employees to focus on more important tasks. Moreover, transitioning to digital document management reduces the need for physical storage space, cutting office rent and storage expenses. Additionally, the decreased use of paper documents lowers spending on paper supplies, printing, and postage. OCR not only directly saves money but also improves overall efficiency, contributing to long-term cost reduction and competitiveness.

Get your free quote today and figure out how we can bring the OCR benefits to you.

1. PDF (Portable Document Format):

PDF is a versatile and widely used file format developed by Adobe. It is designed to preserve the formatting and layout of documents, making it an excellent choice for sharing documents across different platforms and devices. Key features of PDFs include:

• Vector and Raster: PDFs can contain both vector and raster elements, which means they can accommodate text, images, and graphics.
• High Quality: PDFs offer excellent image quality, making them suitable for documents that require precise rendering, such as brochures, presentations, and legal documents.
• Text Searchable: PDFs can contain searchable text, allowing users to easily find and extract information from the document.
• Password Protection: PDFs support encryption and password protection, making them secure for sensitive information.
• Interactive Elements: PDFs can include interactive elements like hyperlinks, forms, and multimedia content.

2. TIFF (Tagged Image File Format):

TIFF is a flexible and high-quality image format commonly used in professional photography and graphic design. It is known for its lossless compression and ability to store images in a variety of color depths. Key features of TIFFs include:

• Lossless Compression: TIFF files use lossless compression, meaning they retain all the original image data without any quality loss.
• Multiple Color Depths: TIFF supports various color depths, including grayscale, RGB, and CMYK, making it suitable for a wide range of applications.
• Large File Sizes: Due to lossless compression, TIFF files can be quite large, which may not be ideal for web use but is excellent for preserving image quality.
• No Support for Text or Vector Elements: TIFF is primarily an image format and does not support text or vector graphics.

3. JPG/JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group):

JPEG is a widely used image format for photographs and web graphics. It uses lossy compression, which sacrifices some image quality for smaller file sizes. Key features of JPEGs include:

• Lossy Compression: JPEGs use lossy compression, which reduces file sizes but can result in a slight loss of image quality, especially when heavily compressed.
• Ideal for Web: JPEG is commonly used for web images due to its smaller file sizes, making websites load faster.
• Support for Color Gradients: JPEGs are suitable for images with smooth color gradients, such as photographs.
• Not Suitable for Text: Due to lossy compression, text and sharp edges can appear blurry in JPEG images.

4. BMP (Bitmap):

BMP is a simple and uncompressed image format developed by Microsoft. It is primarily used in Windows environments. Key features of BMPs include:

• Uncompressed: BMP files are not compressed, which means they retain all the original image data and offer the highest image quality.
• Large File Sizes: BMP files tend to be larger in size, making them less practical for web use or sending via email.
• Limited Color Depth: BMP files are typically limited to 24-bit color depth, making them less suitable for high-end graphics and printing.
• Not Suitable for Text or Vector Graphics: BMP is primarily an image format and does not support text or vector elements.

In conclusion, choosing the right image format depends on your specific needs and use cases. PDFs are best for preserving document formatting, TIFFs excel in maintaining high-quality images, JPEGs are ideal for web and photography, and BMPs offer uncompressed image quality but result in larger file sizes. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each format will help you make informed decisions when working with images and documents in various contexts.

You’ve already gotten your free quote, the budget has been approved, and today the contracts just got signed. All the hard work is done… right? Unfortunately… no… now you need to PACK! So, you ask yourself, “Where do I even start!?”

Based on my years of getting clients’ documents packed and out the door, here are 6 Steps to have a smooth pack-up and start to your scanning project:

I) Finalize the folder hierarchy of the electronic files before packing up any of the paper files.

You already have your paper files organized in the cabinets, but that may not be how you want them to be organized electronically. The folder hierarchy describes what the top level folders will be, what the subfolders will be, what the sub-subfolders will be, and continue that on all the way down until you get to the PDFs. Once this is determined, you can start packing your paper files.

II) If needed, rearrange the paper files in the filing cabinets

Once the documents are put into the boxes, the documents will live in those boxes for the rest of the project. In order to never misplace documents, we never mix boxes once they’re in our possession. So, if the files need to be rearranged in order to match the folder hierarchy you determined above, you should rearrange everything BEFORE putting documents into the boxes.

III) Purchase and fold boxes.

We buy almost all our boxes off Amazon in packs of 30. These are a great price and it’s nice to have delivery so quick and easy. The hard part is folding the boxes! I’ve had many paper cuts trying to fold these quickly. (Not that we would race each other!) Be sure to fold the boxes as the instructions say. If you fold them wrong, then your documents could fall out! Here’s a step-by-step video on how to fold these boxes:

IV) Place documents into the boxes.

This seems easier than it actually is, but here’s a couple pro tips!

• Lay box sideways and use gravity to your advantage.
• Don’t pick up too many papers at one time; go slow and steady!
• Alternate which hands you’re using. (My tennis elbow reminds me of this tip every day!)
• Don’t overfill your boxes. This can cause your box to break and increase the risk of losing documents.

V) Label the outside of the boxes.

Keep labels simple, you don’t need to write a whole sentence. Use abbreviations to save time. Don’t write the name of your company on the outside; this is redundant and therefore waste’s your time. Don’t label lids; label the sides of the boxes. Use a bold marker; please don’t make me put my glasses on just to read your tiny pencil markings!

VI) Schedule pickup before you finish packing.

We can normally come get your boxes fairly quickly. But if you pack 500 boxes and block your hallways and then have to wait a week for us to arrive… you might upset a few employees not to mention the fire code enforcer.

But do you really have time to do all this packing? You’ve got your normal job, and now this too! Instead, you can hire us to come pack for you! We bring in a team of employees with premade boxes and are normally in and out in just a few hours. Fill out this request for a quote and we can help price out your packing needs while we price your scanning project!

1. Every Dollar ScansAmerica Earns Goes Directly To Eggleston 

As a daughter company, the finances of ScansAmerica are directly linked to Eggleston Services. Eggleston has a diversified way of collecting income in order to provide their many resources to the Hampton Roads community, but adding ScansAmerica to their roster provides an additional revenue stream. So every time you use ScansAmerica's services, you are directly helping the veterans, seniors, and persons with disabilities here in the Hampton Roads community.

2. ScansAmerica Is Providing Job Opportunities To Veterans And Persons With Disabilities

ScansAmerica not only provides excellent document conversion services for your business and government needs, but we are beginning to employ the very people that Eggleston is on mission to support! Veterans and persons with disabilities benefit by receiving on the job training and employment opportunities to further support their independence and daily living needs. So, when you use ScansAmerica for your digital conversion, you are directly providing employment opportunities to those in need.

3. Eggleston Is Learning From Us Too!

The partnership between Eggleston and ScansAmerica has been steadily growing for the past three years. Eggleston has provided for ScansAmerica through it's strong leadership, but ScansAmerica is teaching things to Eggleston too! As a for-profit company with over 15 years of history, ScansAmerica has been able to pass on much of it's knowledge about document conversion and commercial experience. This has been very beneficial to Eggleston as they look to grow in order to provide even more services in Hampton Roads.

If you would like to support Eggleston's Mission by using ScansAmerica's services, click here to receive a free quote.

If you would like to directly  donate to Eggleston's Mission, click here to visit their website.

Signs That Your Business Has Outgrown Its Office Space

Think about your office layout and business output. Do you have:

• A Place to Relax: Do you provide a break room or lunch area?
• Sufficient Meeting Space: Can your employees find somewhere to collaborate with coworkers and clients?
• An Unobtrusive Storage Area: Do you have enough room for your files and additional tools of the trade?
• Clear Pathways Through the Office: Can you and your employees walk through your space without trouble?

Did you answer "no" to any of these questions? Consider asking your employees for feedback to see if their office space interferes with their work. It's up to you and your team to decide if you need a bigger area.

What to Do With an Outgrown Business Space

You have two solutions when your company gets too big for its office. Companies with enough of a budget can look for another space to buy or rent. Your business also has the choice to make the most of the space you have. Sometimes, a few changes to your office makes the difference between an outgrown and productive business.

How to Make More Space in Your Office

Try these strategies to get more out of your office's square footage:

• Invest in More Compact Equipment: Large printers, fax machines and shredders take up more space than you think. When you upgrade these machines, consider choosing the small models.
• Offer More Telecommuting Opportunities: As part of your business growth strategy, think about the ways that telecommuting can help you make more room. Some employees thrive when they work from home, and you get more space for your on-site staff.
• Change Your Office Layout: In some cases, creating more space takes simple layout changes. Discuss switching to an open office plan with your employees to maximize your area. To keep your layout compact but private, place desks next to each other with small dividers between them.
• Clean up Clutter: When was the last time you went through your storage? Try reorganizing it to clear the way for extra supplies.

Before you make significant changes to your office, go over the idea with your employees. After all, you want to switch up your space to help them be happy and productive.

Digitization as a Space Solution

Converting paper records to digital formats can give you the room you need to succeed in your business. When you request scanning services from ScansAmerica, our white-glove service picks up your papers. Then, we turn your documents into digital files accessible with your computer, and you get more room after removing your filing cabinets thanks to our storage solutions.

Learn how we can help you maximize your space by requesting a quote for digitization services today.

No matter what type of small business you run, you have files. If you're like many other small businesses in the U.S., at least some of these files are probably stored in filing cabinets in your office. This is a system that has remained in place for many decades, but it's no longer the best method. Technology has made way for a more efficient method of conducting business, one that involves digital rather than physical files.

How can you convert your physical files to digital? The easiest and most effective way is having your files professionally scanned. These scans turn the papers that are cluttering up your office into digital files you can save, duplicate, share and secure with ease. Scanning in your documents helps you save time, frees up space in your office, protects you against risks, allows for remote access, eases the transition to digital, helps the environment and can save you money.

Let's take a closer look at how document scanning can benefit a small business.

Saves Time

One of the critical advantages of document scanning for small companies is that it saves your business valuable time. Consider the current process you have in place for accessing physical files. You have to locate the right filing cabinet and then find a single piece of paper or folder among hundreds of others. What if the document is misfiled? There is no telling how long it could take to find it. Even if your filing cabinets are well-organized, this will undoubtedly take some time. Filing away new files also takes time as you must locate the appropriate place to put the new file.

When filing cabinets become full, you may need to add a new cabinet and completely reorganize your files to maintain whatever system of organization you were using. For example, let's say, one filing cabinet holds files alphabetized under A-F and a second filing cabinet holds files G-L. Once these filing cabinets are full and you need to add some additional files, the first cabinet may only be able to hold files A-D, and the second will now hold files E-H, and the domino effect continues, affecting many or all of your filing cabinets.

When your documents are stored digitally, these scenarios don't happen. You can perfectly maintain whatever organizational system works best for you without having to move files around. When you need a certain file, you can either go to the digital folder where you know it's stored or simply search for it. When you have your documents professionally scanned in, they shouldn't be stored as images. Rather, the system should recognize text on the page so you can search for documents by simply typing in words you know are in the document.

Scanning eliminates the need to file and search for documents physically, freeing your employees to spend their time adding value to your business rather than performing a mundane task.

Frees Up Space

How much of your office is currently being taken up by filing cabinets? Now imagine those filing cabinets gone and the space they occupied completely free. You probably don't have to think long to come up with a better use for that space. You could add more desk space, a coffee bar or just enjoy a more spacious atmosphere that doesn't feel cramped.

If you have your documents scanned in but want to keep the originals as well, you can move them to a secure off-site location or a storage space on-site. Even if you hold onto your hard copy files, you still enjoy the advantage of not needing to have them easily accessible as you otherwise would. Therefore, you free up valuable office space and create a less cluttered environment.

We'll talk more about how having your documents scanned can save you money later, but for right now, consider the fact that the average cost of rent per square foot for office space in New York City is about $83. The space your filing cabinets occupy is likely costing you hundreds of dollars every month. No matter where your office is located, your filing cabinets are taking up valuable real estate, so you don't want to waste it.

If you're moving to a new office building, why not leave the bulky filing cabinets behind? You won't have to find an office that accommodates your filing cabinets, and you can start fresh with a more modern and serene environment.

Minimizes Risk

Having your documents scanned can also protect you in a few unfortunate situations. One is a tax audit. If you've conducted business legally and honestly, then a tax audit is nothing to fear. However, it can be a headache when it happens, especially if your files aren't well-organized or easy to find. When the auditor asks for a certain document, rather than handing them a box or folder of loose papers, both you and the auditor will have an easier time if you can instantly provide them with a digital file.

Paper files are not as secure as digital files, which is another important consideration if you want to minimize risk. Storing your files on highly secure servers rather than in a physical location protects them from tampering and theft. While a physical lock that can be tampered with or opened with a key, a digital file can be encrypted and password-protected.

Another risk to consider is the possibility that your paper files could be destroyed by the elements. If your office were to experience a flood or fire and your files were destroyed, imagine how devastating this would be to your company if those hard copies were the only ones you had. Even if you are fortunate enough to avoid a disaster like a fire or flood, everyday accidents like coffee spills can also damage paper documents. Whatever the risk, big or small, it's wise to be prepared for those situations, and you can be by scanning in your paper files.

Allows Remote Access

The world of business has changed in some crucial ways in recent years. Advancements in technology allow people to be connected in ways they couldn't be before. Employees can use email and phone to communicate and work collaboratively through cloud-based services. Today, approximately 43 percent of American employees work remotely at least some of the time.

There are some important benefits to having remote employees, including higher productivity and the possibility to hire the best of the best from a wider pool of talent. To take advantage of these benefits, you need to be equipped for allowing employees to work remotely. Just having collaborative tools and means of communication at your disposal isn't enough.

When employees need to access files to consult information or complete a task, they need to have a means of locating that file digitally. If the file they need is in a filing cabinet hundreds of miles away, then they have a real problem. They'll need to send an email or make a phone call and have another employee in the main office fax the document to them or scan it in and send it.

If you currently have, or are interested in hiring, remote workers, then having your files scanned in is really a must. This way, employees can access the files they need from any location.

Makes the Transition to Digital Smoother

With the world increasingly going digital, some businesses are struggling with the change. If you've had the privilege of conducting business for several years or more, you may have an analog system in place already that you hesitate to change. If your company hasn't made the leap to conducting business digitally yet, the good news is that having your documents scanned in can make the transition to digital an easy one.

Let's say you currently have a folder for each client you work with, including records of their past purchases. If you implement a computerized system for creating new records, this is a great step forward, but it doesn't account for all the files you've already accumulated. To maintain a complete client history that is all stored together, you need to convert your physical files into digital ones.

Another example is a medical office that maintains records on each patient's personal information, past visits, test results and more. By digitizing these records and moving to an electronic system, you can simplify the process of maintaining these records.

When you scan in your old documents, they become digital files that can now be stored alongside your new digital files. The transition to digital can seem daunting, but it is far less so when you bridge the gap between analog and digital by converting your paper documents into digital files. Again, these files aren't just pictures of documents — they are searchable through text recognition, just like the files you create on your computer.

Helps the Environment

When you take advantage of document scanning to help you move to a more paperless way of conducting business, you lessen your impact on the environment. Currently, the average American office worker uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper every year. Paper makes up a large portion of what fills our landfills and is what continues to motivate deforestation.

This is a matter of personal importance to many people as well as good for business. When customers and clients know your business is committed to going green in however it can, this speaks well to your company's social awareness and ethical conscience. Demonstrating a commitment to environmentalism is a great way to enhance your brand image.

Going paperless also makes a positive impression on potential employees. A recent survey found that 76 percent of Millennials take a company's social and environmental commitments into account when choosing where they are going to work. As a group, millennials are especially concerned about the environment compared to other age groups. However, they are by no means the only ones. The percentage of Americans in general who consider companies' commitment to the environment is still well over half.

Removing paper entirely may be unrealistic for your business, but by conducting business digitally wherever you can, you can still reduce your environmental impact substantially.

Saves Money

Last, but not least, if you've been wondering, "Can document scanning save a small business money?" the answer is yes. One of the ways it does this is by saving you the cost of paper and ink. Of course, you can't recoup the costs of paper and ink you already spent on paper documents, but if you choose to scan documents as part of a move toward going digital, you can support a sustainable model that requires far less copy paper and printing ink. By significantly reducing your need for paper and ink, your company can enjoy huge financial savings.

Some of the ways this can save you money have to do with other benefits we've already mentioned. For instance, consider the benefit of saved time. To put it simply, time is money in business. The time an employee spends searching for a document is time you are paying them to do so. Whenever you eliminate steps that take up an employee's time, you promote better efficiency. The time an employee would have been spending on a mundane task they can now spend on a more value-add task.

Some of the reasons small businesses benefit from document scanning may seem less related to finances, such as helping the environment. However, even when it may be difficult to quantify, any benefits that improve your business should lead to financial gain. By making your employees and customers happy, you can expect your business to grow and thrive.

Get a Free Quote From ScansAmerica

Now that we talked about many of the benefits of document scanning for small businesses, you may be wondering what your next step should be. If you're interested in having your documents scanned, don't hesitate to move forward. Some businesses may be tempted to try to take care of document scanning in-house. This method takes up a great deal of time and effort and won't deliver the results that you would get if you went with a professional service.

For digital conversion you can trust, look to ScansAmerica. When you hire ScansAmerica, your hard work ends when you've made the important decision to have your files scanned. We come in and take care of collecting all your files and deliver them back to you digitized and in a searchable database, for the ultimate hassle-free experience.

No matter how many files you have or how overwhelming the task may seem, we can take care of it. We take a custom approach to each and every job and ensure a high level of quality in all the work we do. Don't let that row of filing cabinets in your office fool you. The move to digital documents is well within your reach. Contact ScansAmerica today for a free quote.

Many companies turn to offsite records storage as a solution for document security, entrusting their files to professional archivists. When you store your documents in an offsite storage facility, like with ScansAmerica, you can optimize your workflow and conduct your business without worrying about the safety, security or physical location of your records.

Offsite document storage comes with advantages and disadvantages. The best storage option for your company will depend on your unique preferences and needs. Here are a few pros and cons you might want to consider as you weigh your options.

Pros of Offsite Storage

Storing important records in an offsite storage facility can help you remove clutter from your offices while ensuring the continued safety of your paperwork, whether you have a little of it or a lot. Here are just a few of the benefits of offsite records storage:

1. Increased security: When you move your records to an offsite storage facility, you help protect them from theft and misuse. Though data breaches may be rare, they can cause real damage to businesses and their clients. In offsite storage, your files will benefit from security measures such as camera surveillance, so only authorized personnel will be able to access your information.
2. Protection from the elements: In a climate-controlled warehouse, paper documents are protected from the elements — they won't degrade from humidity or succumb to mold. Even better, your most important files will remain safe in the event of an office disaster like a fire or flood, so your business can recover more quickly.
3. Speedy retrieval: Though picking up a document from storage may not be as quick as walking down the hall, offsite storage makes finding documents easier. Modern barcode management systems keep documents organized and ready for you to access. At ScansAmerica, we keep stored files accessible around the clock, so you can retrieve them at your convenience.
4. More office space: Storing the majority of your physical records offsite frees up valuable office space. You can use rooms that used to be taken up by files for something more productive. If you work in an area where renting an office costs a fortune, reclaiming this space could significantly reduce your costs.

Cons of Offsite Storage

Offsite storage makes a great option for many businesses, but for some organizations, the pros may not outweigh the cons. There are a few disadvantages of offsite document storage that you should keep in mind, including:

1. Lack of instant access: Unlike with digital files and onsite storage, an offsite storage facility may not be able to provide instant access for all of your employees. If your staff will need to reference the same files often, waiting to borrow them can feel like a huge drag. Keep onsite copies of documents you know you'll need often.
2. Distance from the office: A distantly located storage facility can help protect your documents from local natural disasters. However, storing documents too far away may have downsides. If you or your staff need to pick up files, driving to get them could cost you time and money. For this reason, it's best to pick a storage facility that's reasonably close to your office location.
3. Compliance issues: Not all storage facilities are alike. Some may not provide the security or storage conditions necessary to ensure compliance with laws and regulations. However, other storage facilities work hard to meet legal requirements. ScansAmerica delivers full compliance with retention times and other regulations specific to your industry. If you do choose offsite storage, select a provider carefully to ensure compliance.
4. Fire danger: Offsite storage facilities are typically very safe. However, there remains a small chance of fire danger, even as companies actively work to prevent it. If the air becomes too dry, a spark could endanger an entire warehouse. Businesses can protect important documents by keeping second copies elsewhere, just in case.

Choosing Offsite Document Storage

The decision to switch to offsite storage is ultimately up to you. For some workplaces, offsite storage could boost efficiency and offer increased security for important documents. For others, onsite storage could work just as well. As you consider your options, the safety of your records should be your top priority.

At ScansAmerica, we understand how important your files are to your business — so we want to help you make a storage decision that works for you. Let us help with a free quote today.

Which Documents Can I Get Rid of Right Now?

Business owners who like to hold onto their documents may have more opportunities to toss papers than they think. Records without sensitive information can go into the trash or recycling bin. Consider if you need temporary documents and marketing materials. When you need to get rid of a file, ask yourself if you need it for legal, financial or operational reasons. You can throw out most unnecessary papers you feel comfortable with the public seeing.

In some cases, you can also discard papers that do have confidential information. We will go over basic retention guidelines in a bit that will explain when a document reaches the end of its usefulness. Remember to shred papers of any form that feature sensitive details, including notes and correspondence.

When to Shred Business Documents

Some files can go into the shredder after a set period. Your industry might have regulations that will help you determine when to shred a business document. Try these guidelines for shredding:

• Tax Documents: The IRS has different suggestions for tax-related record-keeping depending on your filing status. Some businesses can keep their tax documents for three years, while the IRS encourages others to hold onto them forever.
• Contracts: Hold onto contracts until four to six years after they expire. They become helpful when a legal situation arises.
• Insurance Files: An insurance record also proves handy as legal documentation. Keep insurance documents for six years after expiration or longer.
• HR Records: Employee information can come into use for years after they leave. Personnel files can stay around for at least seven years. Medical documents can become useful within up to 30 years after termination.

Consult a trusted financial or legal expert for more information about these timelines. When in doubt, keep a document for a minimum of three years.

Documents to Store, Not Shred

Experts recommend storing some records for an indefinite period, including:

• Audit reports
• Capital stock and bond records
• Patents and copyrights
• Cash books
• Pension records
• Licenses and permits
• Building fees, leases and plans
• Retirement and savings plans
• Legal correspondence

Let Us Help You Store Your Files

Business owners who take a conservative approach to record-keeping can also convert their documents to a digital format. When you let us scan and upload your records, you get easy access to as many documents as you want and increased space in your office. Learn more about our services today by requesting a quote online.

Many companies treat document storage as an afterthought, which can be convenient in the short term but costly in the long run. When you add up monthly space rentals for offsite records, storage cost totals over the course of each year can be a huge and extraneous portion of your business overhead. With the following methods, your company can minimize document storage costs and improve the flow and efficiency of operations.

Implement a Records Retention Schedule

To minimize offsite document storage and reduce records management cost, you need to establish a retention schedule. A retention schedule serves as a more organized way to separate the essential, relevant documents from outdated ones.

With a records retention schedule, your business can precisely determine which records to retain. At the same time, you will be able to tell which records you can expunge. In doing so, your company will lower the volume of paper documents to take offsite each month.

A records retention schedule will also give your company a more organized system for filing and deleting records. Over time, the savings will accumulate as you have less need to keep and transport records to overcrowded storage facilities. Moreover, your company will more readily avoid the legal consequences that sometimes come into play when records get retained beyond their expiration date.

Employ Backfile Document Scanning

Another way to reduce record management costs is to employ a system for backfile document scanning. In the course of a given year, a company is liable to spend untold sums of money on document storage. And it continues to grow as you accumulate more documents to preserve. With backfile scanning, you can reduce these costs and have all your documents digitized and secured promptly.

Once you have all your backfile documents scanned, it becomes a whole lot easier to respond to customers when inquiries come up during customer-service interactions. If, for example, a customer needs to know when his or her subscription is up for renewal, you can pull the information up digitally on your computer system and respond immediately.

Backfile scanning also keeps every volume of relevant records safe from destruction. If a flood or fire affects your company headquarters or storage facility, the documents will still exist in digital form and be available anytime for instant reprints.

Activate Document Management Software

To ensure scanned documents get filed properly, it is essential to have document management software installed on your company computer system. Document software allows you to manage your files for instant access, 24/7.

Document management software is the glue that holds together the operations of a company in the modern age. Between the sorting and filing of documents and the backup of each piece of paper in digital form, management software makes it possible to keep track of all these many thousands of files. With management software, no documentation ever gets misplaced or falls into the wrong hands.

Management software also makes it easier to automate the backup and storage of company files among the assigned personnel of your workforce. As long as the software works in conjunction with retention scheduling and backfile scanning, your team can boost efficiency and save money that would otherwise go toward disorganized filing, inconsistent scanning protocols and wasteful storage consumption.

Train Employees on Document Storage System Protocols

Successfully reducing the cost of storing business documents requires an educational component that will bring your staff up to speed on the new initiative. The backup and storage of materials can be a confusing and messy process on a company-wide scale, especially if your workforce consists of dozens or even hundreds of employees who process and file papers daily.

As your company implements a schedule and protocol to backfile scan documents for access and storage, make sure everyone is sufficiently knowledgeable about the steps involved. Only through training can a company ensure its filing system is thorough, efficient and legally compliant.

Institute a Purge Schedule

The accumulation of documents can quickly balloon into a filing headache, especially for medium to large companies. As documents pile up, company personnel must know which documents to keep and which ones to eliminate. Moreover, it is crucial for employees to know when to delete expendable documents.

Document sorting and deletion schedules should be among the basic elements of the training component. Make sure to train each staffer who handles documents on how to distinguish between essential and non-essential documents. Implement a purging schedule to keep your company clear of legal trouble and to reduce the consumption of document storage.

Allocate Areas for Document Filing and Disposal

To further minimize offsite storage costs, allocate space onsite for the sorting, filing and disposal of documents. Depending on the size of your company headquarters, the three tasks could take place in three separate rooms, or along three different corners of one large room.

Reserve one room or corner for the sorting of incoming documents. Here, employees can separate essential documents from ones that are not important. Critical documents would include papers that must always remain on file, as well as those to keep on file for the duration of a given contract. Non-essentials would consist of papers to discard either immediately or very soon.

The second room or corner is where to file essential documents for safekeeping. Here, file documents of permanent necessity separately from files with a far-off expiration date. Place files that are only temporarily necessary in another category.

Lastly, there should be an area or separate room for the shredding of unnecessary documents. Equip this space with recycling bins for all the shredded paper that accumulates throughout a given day.

Audit All Boxes Currently Stored Offsite

As you institute steps to sort, scan and file incoming documents, you can further minimize document storage costs for business by doing an audit of the boxes at your storage facility.

Depending on the size of your company and how long you have been in operation, a full-scale audit of your offsite document archive could be a time-consuming undertaking. However, the process could save you money as your team sorts out and ultimately disposes of tens of thousands of documents. Once you complete this audit, you might be able to cut your company's storage consumption in half.

Optimize Your Onsite Storage Space

As you allocate spaces for the filing and shredding of documents, consider ways to optimize your onsite storage space. At a company headquarters, costliness and inefficiency often stem from onsite disorganization. If your storage rooms are so overcrowded that there's little to no room to walk around, yet the stacks are low and the walls are clear, chances are you have not made efficient use of the space.

To clear up and maximize the storage space, install shelving for the filing of onsite documents. Designate filing folders for each month's box and file successive months side by side across each shelf. Place documents for the current year on eye-level shelves and older ones on high shelves. It might be most efficient to have a shelving system that spans the full height of the room with a ladder to reach the upper shelves.

With an organized onsite storage space, you can maximize the number of boxes and files you store onsite and, in turn, minimize the amount of space you need offsite. Some smaller companies employ this strategy and discover they no longer need offsite storage space at all. In any case, a maximized onsite storage space could help you reduce the cost of storing documents for your business.

Document Management Reduces Your Operational Costs

It's impossible to overstate the importance of retention scheduling, backfile scanning and digital document management for any 21st-century business. For companies that refuse to go paperless, it is also crucial to organize and optimize physical filing systems and audit onsite and offsite storage boxes. However, the companies that do go paperless and handle all document management digitally reap the following benefits:

Eliminate Storage Costs

When you switch to a digital form of document management, you can eliminate offsite records storage costs from your list of company expenses. Instead, you can scan all incoming files and gradually scan and eliminate old documents until all you need for physical storage space is a small niche in an onsite room.

In today's world, it is unnecessary to have paper copies of most documents on file. As long as files are scanned and accessible on a company software system, you can pull up files on request, print them out if necessary and otherwise keep your space consumption to a minimum.

Reduce Copying and Printing Costs

With a digital file management system, you can minimize and possibly eliminate the need for paper copies and printouts of active documents. For many companies, redundant paper copies account for the lion's share of storage consumption and printing expenses, including paper, toner and copier maintenance.

Once you have everything digitized, there is no longer a need to print multiple copies of a given document for different departments because the source file lives in a centralized repository. When you need a hard copy, an authorized employee can access the digital file and copy it to paper for the party in question.

Lower Business Process Costs

As you reduce the need for document paper copies and storage space, you can also bring the costs of your company's operations down and reap significant annual savings. All this is possible thanks to the streamlining capabilities of a document management system, which simplify the process of communication between the different departments that comprise a company.

In accounting, for example, a digital filing system makes everything accessible at a moment's notice. The moment a sales transaction goes through, a copy of the receipt will instantly appear in the filing repository for instant system-wide access. If a question arises in the customer-service department, employees can access the file from that same repository for immediate answers to the matter at hand.

A digital filing system can even streamline the process capabilities of large companies with many locations spread across multiple regions. With instant access to tens of thousands of secured files, departments can speed up workflow for rapid payment and refund processing, all of which builds customer confidence and satisfaction.

Eliminate Disaster Recovery Costs

When you convert volumes of paperwork to digital form, you no longer stand to lose essential documents in the event of a disaster. In contrast, if thousands of files are all stored in boxes and stacked upon shelves, they could all get destroyed in a matter of minutes due to a fire or flood. Consequently, your company could face prolonged downtime and a round of client complaints in what would ultimately be a costly effort to retrieve lost information.

Of course, you could invest extra in a fireproof storage space high above the ground, but there is still no guarantee it will protect your documents from flames or water damage.

With a document management system, your files exist on a remote repository and are thus permanently out of harm's way. Moreover, digital filing allows you to cut the costs associated with disaster-proof storage provisions because you no longer even need a physical location for document keeping.

Reduce Time and Labor Costs

The filing and storage of paper documents can be a time-consuming task. If you run a large company with hundreds of employees, the hours for such work could consume a hefty share of productivity and payroll.

With a digital document management system, tasks that once took minutes and sometimes hours now take only a few seconds. The division of labor required for large-scale paper filing becomes even more streamlined when all documents are available digitally in a secure, central repository. As a result of this new kind of system, you can reassign your employees to more efficient tasks and boost the overall productivity of your company.

Reduce Cost of Storing Business Documents

Offsite document storage pricing can claim a chunk of your profit margin as papers and boxes accumulate. Document storage costs for a business can be exceptionally steep if your company serves tens of thousands of clients across multiple geographic areas. However, you can reduce the cost of record retention to virtually zero when you scan business records and documents to digital form and run a paperless company.

When it comes to the scanning of documents, it is best to hire a company with scanning expertise to have the job done properly. For B2B bulk-scanning projects, ScansAmerica is the best option for entities in the legal, medical, education, human resources and government sectors.

With all your documents scanned, your business can free up onsite space and save money when you reduce the cost of storing documents for business. Best of all, your staff will be more productive thanks to the convenience of the searchable database, in which they can access any document at a moment's notice. Fill out the form on our contact page to learn more about ScansAmerica services.

Moving to a new office is an exciting change — but it's also one that’s highly stressful. You may think you nailed everything on your “to-do” list, but moving documents can generate hidden costs if you don’t plan. You may think your files are already maintained, but when it’s all added up, your papers can amount to a significant transfer. ScansAmerica is your primary solution when you’re planning for an office move.

Things to Consider When Relocating a Business

When it comes to moving your medical documents, engineering blueprints, secure files and other necessities, refer to the following tips:

• Use the best skills when it comes to project management.
• Determine what stays and goes beforehand.
• Anticipate downtime, but work around it by using a cloud-based system.
• Work together to make progress and to create a smooth transition.
• Manage your new space by reducing clutter.

Things to Remember When Moving a Business: The Scanning Process

The first step you should take is to evaluate your papers, photos and other documents. Before you move, decide which ones you physically need, which ones you can digitize and which ones you can shred. You may not think so, but the weight of your papers can become an enormous issue. Space can also be a major factor. Can your new accommodations accept both the weight and physical space requirements of your files?

Streamline your stock by:

1. Taking inventory of all your files by looking through desks, boxes, filing cabinets, etc.
2. Knowing how much you have and which types
3. Classifying them into the following three categories: scan, keep and discard

Scanned papers are the ones you will need access to on a regular basis. Most of your employees may even need specific pieces at the same time.

Then, figure out which documents you need to keep but can store. They are the files you won't need quick access to.

Your discard pile consists of items you no longer need. Get rid of anything that’s collecting dust or that’s out of date. It can lessen the clutter and make your office more streamlined.

The Final Step: Reaching out to the Professionals

Once you have an idea of which papers go where, contact a ScansAmerica representative. We provide bulk solutions when you need to scan documents when moving office locations. Our support will help you keep track of all your vital files without losing them during the chaos. ScansAmerica professionals implement a high-quality, 12-step process to ensure accuracy and efficiency. We will even pack and pick up your boxes for a complete experience.

When you digitize your documents, you can use your new office space for more business-related activities. It helps you save time by having instant access to files and photos that we upload to a searchable database. Your employees can access sources at any time, and our services limit the risk of losing critical papers.

Digital Conversion You Can Trust

Contact us for a free quote or to learn more about how we can support your new venture.

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