It goes without say that we are currently living in the digital age and physical & paper files are soon to be completely replaced with digital files. If you haven’t done so already, you should seriously consider converting your company’s file cabinets into digital format. With this popular change it’s important to know the features of digital documents and why making the switch is so beneficial. Here are 5 advantages that you might’ve not known about digital files.
1. The search feature
One of the key features that make digital documents so great is the search function. Unlike physical documents, you can scan all of your files in seconds for specific keywords or phrases to see which files contain certain information. This is extremely helpful in cases where you forget the name of a file and saves company time spent looking for a file by hand. Even if you were to search for the same file in a file cabinet, it could take hours to locate the file with even the most organized filing system.
2. Loss Prevention
With so many different documents being used on a daily basis, physical copies are bound to get misplaced or lost sometimes. With digital copies, the documents will always be readily available to you and is almost impossible for a file to get misplaced or lost. If a paper document were to get destroyed in a fire, it would be lost forever, whereas a computer being destroyed would still have no effect on that document. With a digital file system, files can be accessed with any computer with an internet connection and only requires a password to get in.
3. Sharability
Another great benefit of digital documents is how easy they are to share. In the past you’d have to scan a document and make copies for other people, but with digital copies you can send the files to anyone anywhere and are able to print out the files wherever they may be. Digital documents make it easy to collaborate on projects with coworkers to achieve the best result and can easily be edited by advisors if something needs to be changed or edited.
4. Cost Savings
According to one study, the average four-drawer file cabinet costs about $25,000 to fill. This is an expense that could easily be saved and be put towards other things. You may not realize it but the yearly money spent on ink, paper, and printer repair costs are higher than one might think. Cut those costs by converting your paper files to the digital age and put that money towards good use.
5. Security
Filing cabinets, paper sitting in printer output trays, and files sitting on employees desks are just some examples of places where private documents could be seen by the wrong person. Private records, financial information, client records, and company expenditures are documents that could damage a business if they are in the wrong hands, but if those same documents are digital, this drastically reduces the chances of that risk. For digital files, there is often a password to access certain files/information and the primary user is able to make restrictions to keep documents as private and secure as possible.
