By: Titus Hoskins
Submitted: 2009-05-07 10:04:46 | Word Count: 726
Online fax, also known as Internet fax, is simply using your email system and the web to send and receive your faxes. The major reason this new technology has become so popular probably has to do with the fact that you can discard the old fax machine and replace it with mobile devices such as PDAs, laptops, cell phones... making all your faxing entirely portable and mobile.
Obviously, once you have switched over all your faxing chores to these web/computer based devices, you don t need an actual fax machine and all the hassles associated with running such a device. Mainly, no more messy inks, no more paper jams, no more fax machine maintenance and no need for an extra fax phone line. Plus, you will have none of the costs associated with these items which means major savings for you.
[ advertisement ]
Let s face it, these traditional fax costs do add up, especially if you or your company relies heavily on faxing as a vital component of your business operations. Just the cost of paper, inks and toners alone, can be expensive. Therefore, going with an online fax service can save you significant money over the long haul, as well as saving you money on start up costs if you re just creating your business.
Now, if you re thinking of switching over to Internet faxing, you will have to sign up to an online fax service provider which will supply you with your own Toll Free or local fax number. Then your faxes are sent via the web through your email system as attachments, usually in TIFF or PDF format. Because online fax is web based, you can access your faxes anytime, anywhere as long as you have Internet access and these days that s just about anywhere in the world.
With your fax service, you re also given an online site (account) where you can logon and do all your faxing chores. Your faxes are even stored online so you can easily check your faxes, from yesterday or from last month.
Since the different fax providers have slightly different rates and faxing plans, it pays to do your homework and shop around before you sign up to any one service. Keep in mind, you can save money by picking the service that perfectly matches your faxing requirements. If you do minimum faxing, then you can choose a lite faxing plan that charges around $20 a year, but remember most fax plans usually run from $10 to $15 a month. Again, there are cheaper quality services out there, so shop around.
Recently, many businesses both small and big, are saving on their phone/fax costs by going with a virtual PBX (private branch exchange) system that handles all their office phone requirements which includes online faxing services. This can be a great money saver and many companies are switching over to this new method of handling all their business communications. For a small business, it is ideal because you can project a BIG company image at minimum cost or expense. What more can you ask for?
Another way to save money has to do with fax broadcasting, if you send large volumes of faxes out to clients, then online fax is definitely the way to go since you can send countless numbers of faxes simultaneously. In addition, most online fax services are completely scalable for business, which means you can quickly increase or decrease your number of fax lines to match the business climate. You can quickly adjust your faxing requirements to meet your needs.
In all these ways, online faxing can save any company money directly, but it can also save you revenue indirectly if your company depends upon faxing to bring in new sales and clients. In this very competitive business world, any advantage over your competition can mean more revenue for your company and Internet fax gives you that advantage. Plus, it also puts your company on par with other companies using this service.
Remember, online fax is the wave of the future, it connects all your faxing to the Internet and your computer. It brings your faxing into the modern computer age, just look at how email has changed the way we communicate and do business; online faxing will have the same effect. So can you really afford not to have Internet fax?
