Do you have piles of documentation in storage just collecting dust? Do you have rooms and offices dedicated entirely to document storage? Are you certain those boxes or file cabinets are secure at all times? There are many benefits to digitizing your backfiles with a backfile scanning service provider instead of continuing to store the physical copies, here are a few of them:
Free up Space and Enable Easier Retention
People store their documents and backfiles in all sorts of different locations and conditions. Some have entire sections of their office utilized entirely for box storage and filing. Others dedicate basements, attics, and large closets to storage, while many even pay hundreds of dollars a month on storage units. With the cost of real estate, is this really the best use of space when modern technology has eliminated the need for these to be taking up any space at all?
What about accessing the documents? Do you ever need to? How long does that take when you have to thumb through physical files versus simply searching your online portal? When you go to a library, do you still use the Dewey Decimal System to find books? Why do the equivalent of that at your office for your documents then? Backfile scanning services free up space that can be used for much more productive activity than storage, as well as keeps your employees focusing on their actual work rather than spending time searching through old cabinets and boxes to find what they are looking for.
Disaster Recovery
What would happen if your document storage endured a fire or flood? Would your boxes and files be easily recoverable? Do you have the ability to download a backup of all those old boxes? Digitizing your backfile alleviates much of the risk in terms of potential loss associated with your documentation. Fires and floods can wipe out years of historical information that can not be duplicated. While digital disasters can certainly happen, the result is always easier to recover from than in the case of physical disaster. Backups are typically created automatically, and even in the case of a crash, files can typically be restored in a matter of time, giving you an automatic form of disaster recovery.
Data Security
Data and data security is becoming more and more important to people in the modern world. Data has value, people are trying to capitalize on that value, and if you are housing a lot of people’s personal information within your backfile, you are putting yourself (and those people) at risk of having their data stolen and shared unknowingly. Digital security and moving documentation from boxes into the cloud ensures your files are password protected, encryptions are set up, and access is controlled. Most enterprise content management systems will even allow you to see any interaction with the document that has been taken, such as who has looked at it, who has edited it, and who has access to it and when. The same can not be said for physical storage.
If you have an old backfile taking up space, you should absolutely consider digitizing this and moving it into cloud-based storage. It may appear to be a daunting task, but talking to a service provider who can offer an end-to-end solution will likely have you feeling that it is not as daunting as suspected. A good scanning service provider will have scanners that can process 200 pages a minute or more, it will not be the same as trying to do it all yourself.