Fix the Paper Hole

February 5, 2009 · Comments

paper products I’ve got a problem. As a professional speaker and someone running an online marketing agency, I am often in a situation where someone sends me a contract to sign. Makes sense. LOTS of businesses run on contracts. Here’s the thing: I’m a digital nomad. I rarely visit the office. I don’t have printers and fax machines. Think about it.

The Process

  1. Someone sends me something to sign in email.
  2. I look at the email for days.
  3. I plead to just send an email signature.
  4. Seven reminder emails later, I find my way to Staples (or *.placewithprintersandfaxes)
  5. I print the form/contract.
  6. I sign the form/contract.
  7. I dig into my iPhone email to find the fax number, can’t.
  8. I email the person to remind me of their fax number.
  9. I listen to bad in-store music and make small talk with the Copy Center person, who hates everyone.
  10. I get the email.
  11. I dial the fax number.
  12. It takes four tries.
  13. The fax goes through.
  14. Weeks later, the process is complete.

It’s 2009

Can we please stop the paper thing? Isn’t there another way?

I know there’s not, but if nothing else, I feel better for explaining why you’re still waiting for me to sign whatever it is.

Photo credit Vali

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader.

Tagged as: , ,

ChrisBrogan.com runs on the Thesis Theme for WordPress

Thesis WordPress theme

Thesis is the search engine optimized WordPress theme of choice for serious online publishers. If you’re a blogger who doesn’t understand a lot of PHP, Thesis will give a ton of functionality without having to alter any code. For the advanced, Thesis has incredible customization possibilities via Thesis hooks.

With so many design options, you can use the template over and over and never have it look like the same site. The theme is robust and flexible enough not only to accommodate a site like ChrisBrogan.com, but also to enable the site to run far more efficiently than it ever has before.

  • Mike Whitaker
    Easy.

    Sign a piece of paper. Scan it in.
    Anytime you're asked to sign a document, print it as a PDF, read into something that'll let you edit PDFs, place your signature in the preferred spot, resave as PDF, send back.

    And when they go 'we can't accept that' ask them why they'll accept a fax, which is pretty much no different.
  • Check out this product from BT in the UK.. I have used it once when BT (!) sent me a contract to sign!

    http://www.btbroadbandoffice.com/broadband-and-...

    Seemed pretty painless, and it is legally binding here in the UK!
  • Chris

    I just read your post and was about to email back exactly the same response as Mike W above.

    We've been doing it this way for a few years now. It means (1) it's quick and easy (2) you can do it anywhere and (3) it's no different for them. Best of all, you can file it away for when THEY lose their copy, and you can save the day!

    Oh the joys of the digital age ...

    Mark
  • ...or the fax goes through and you get a call back saying "you sent the wrong side." :-)

    A few people have done that to me. We're working on automating the process via the web at my company. Should be ready soon.
  • Chris,

    Perhaps the simplest way, and even cost effective when you consider the time expenditure you lay out above, is to set up a power of attorney. Simple to do, and just might do the trick. Here's the scoop, if you're not already in the know:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_of_attorney

    Cheers,
    Doc
  • It is so true. I have been running all around Shanghai from cabs to metros, and as you can imagine even if printing something is very easy, even in China. It's just super annoying...
    And then, what are you supposed to do with the printed doc ?
    File it, store it, and ... ?

    Plus, it's not environmental friendly.

    I guess I'll take Mike's idea.
  • Chris - as the previous readers said convert to a PDF and digitally sign it. OMB Circular ___ - I have it at work...states that digital signatures are legal signatures and may be used so as to not slow down the business of work. I have a copy of the circular on my desk and in Maine there is a digital signature policy signed by the Gov.

    We us PDF and digital signatures quite a bit to cut down on mailing costs and and printing. Besides a FAX is nothing more than a digital copy of your signature.
    Harold
  • Yes, yes. What Mike said.
  • When FAX first came out, I absolutely loved it. It was a remarkable revelation! Now I absolutely hate having to deal with FAXes and paper. Transition times are exciting, but legacy processes persist for a looooong time...
  • Chris,

    Pretty much all that everyone above said. And if you want to help the planet while you're doing the PDF thing, use this plug-n:

    http://eco-safe.com/green/wordpress

    Happy signing!
  • I use a Tablet PC - and get a 'live' signature every time it's needed!
  • Called the water company the other day to pay my bill by credit card over the phone. Sorry, we don't take credit cards? Where am I? Iowa or something?
  • stevenimmons
    It does seem rather unwieldy and archaic. I guess that's many years of legal tradition. In the future - non-repudiation through digital certificates...
  • Here's a recent gadget that I bought last week. A digitizer / tablet. That allows you to write on screen. If a form requires that you fill it with your hand writing, you can do it. It even allows you to sketch and do whatever you wish as if the screen is the paper. Save a screenshot of your screen and then email the result as image or pdf.

    Like Ian, I can get my signature every time I need it, just that it is a tablet, pluggable to USB, instead of tablet pc.
  • well digital signatures are gr8 i use them when I hire ppl on projects for subcontracting... but the thing in our region it is not that effective nor trusted... I always look for a way to convince ppl agree with that method.... even the PDF signed papers aren't the solution always.... Maybe a global organization or legal department for the e-world can be founded with a department for signatures (digital signatures) would make the e-contracts/agreements a more useful and trusted method. than we can get rid of faxes and hard copy contracts....

    hope i made my point....

    Cheers!
    Jean
  • I have a scan of my sig and just paste it into the document and send it back. Works for most.
  • one more thing....

    "Save a tree. Don't print this e-mail unless it's really necessary."

    and they ask you for a printed signed contract :)

    is there any contradiction in that?

    cheers!
    Jean
  • Jane
    Feel the same way about email...As impersonal as email is, I'd rather email someone. There's always a chance that your words can be misunderstood, but would rather use email..Phone conversations go on for hours, and the original reason for the call is sometimes lost as new topics come into play.
  • tomgray
    Hi Chris,

    Nice responses. Here's one I didn't see. If the contract is in PDF format you can use the Stamp Tool to create your own custom signature stamp. Process is very simple.
    1. Select Stamp Tool.
    2. Select Create Custom Stamp.
    3. Select your signature image (previously scanned to you system and saved as an image file.)
    4. Give the stamp a creative name like, My Signature, and save it in the category 'Sign Here'.
    Then, when you need to place your signature ...
    a.) Click on the Stamp Tool icon
    b.) Select the My Signature stamp and stamp away.
    c.) Save the file with a name like, Contract-signed.pdf and email it back to the client. Your multi-day torture has now been reduced to a multi-second breeze.

    If they insist on a fax copy you can sign up for an internet based faxing service like efax.com or email it to them and ask them to fax it to themselves ;-) They'll never know the difference. If anyone wants to see an example of this email me at tom.gray AT gemsolv DOT com.
  • Well then, if nothing else, you all might have solved several other people's annoyance with my delays. : )
  • With so much focus on being green, using antiquated wasteful things like fax machines sounds downright ridiculous.

    I'm pretty sure you know all about PDF's and stuff, but my question is this: why are some people who want to work with you/partner with you savvy enough to know they should choose you, yet so out of touch with technology that they can't find a way around faxing?
  • I have come across this problem several times - when they will only accept a fax. I do subscribe to an online fax service for $10 a month (I also receive orders via fax so it is worth it).

    What I do:
    1. Print out the form requiring my signature
    2. Sign it
    3. Scan it to a pdf format
    4. Send the .pdf back to them via my online fax service.

    Luckily, these requests are few and far in between.
  • What about an online billing system company. There are a few. Check out @saulcolt on Twitter.
  • Love Tom's pdf instructions! Thanks. In the rare times I've had to do this I've printed, signed, scanned and sent the scan with something like myfax.com. I figured I'd just join a trial period for a new service each time I needed to send a 'proper' fax. Since it's like once a year. In my case it only seems to be USA official/embassy/bank places that insist on a paper fax. Like Tom says, with an online service they get their piece of paper and never know the difference.
  • Why not sign the document and scan it in, sending the scanned SIGNED document by email, this is in effect exactly the same as a fax, they get the option of printing it the other end.
    Only thing is you will have to print it to start with...

    and now I've just read the other replies and my suggestion is not unique :-( And there was me thinking I was genius! :-)
  • I agree Chris, and in the process save a few trees plus use no toxic inks, toner or cartridges too!
  • i've been doing the same thing mike whitacker does -- scanned my signature and place it in docs. i also use myfax.com when crazy people insist they need to fax me a document or i fax them one. it's all pdf based. www.myfax.com -- if you don't send/ receive a lot of faxes, it's $10/ mo
  • Chris,

    As other readers have suggested, you need to have a scan of your signature. This is what I do. All faxes come to me as a PDF attachment. I edit the PDF in Adobe Illustrator and then drop in my signature (just a simple JPEG that only adds 100K to the file size). Then I email it back.

    The key here is that I don't even tell them it is an electronic signtaure. If they ask I just tell them I scanned in their document so I can keep an electronic record. This way I can sign contracts from anywhere in the world in just a couple of minutes. If a hard copy is needed I can access my desktop PC from anywhere and print it out and have my assistant send it by Fedex. Simple.
  • Mike Whitaker
    For extra points - if they complain about being emailed a PDF+image of your signature? Use one of the email->FAX services or a FAX modem, and FAX them it, :D
  • What everyone else said--I've used literally all of these methods. Two quick thoughts:

    1. When you scan your signature initially, I recommend using a Tablet PC and getting a few versions of it, just in case. Be sure to get a transparent background. I've always signed it into OneNote and then pasted it into a Fireworks or PhotoShop
    2. The Power of Attorney route is a good option--not practical for very basic things (since the extra communication takes longer) but it's great for tax forms to the IRS (quarterly 941s, in particular) where paper is the only option. It takes literally 5 minutes to fill out the IRS form for this..and is doubly helpful since your accountant can then call in to the IRS inquire about your accounts

    Cheers.
  • Hey Chris,

    I had the same problem. A few quarters ago, I signed up for a service called EchoSign. Works beautifully, even over mobile devices.

    Good luck.
  • I was recently introduced to Echosign by someone on the other side of a contract, as an alternative to the sign/email/scan dance.

    http://www.echosign.com/
  • Yep - my little company has been using many/most of the methods listed above for years - some of them since I arrived here in 2001, really. Many print-to-PDF programs are available but ultimately, it is nice to have the full-fledged Adobe Acrobat for all the features it gives (maybe an older version to save some $$?).
  • Use Echosign
  • Digital signatures are definitely the way forward... Are they legal and above board?

    This article explains all...

    Who to buy from? Echosign are great and have been around for years
  • Mike W nailed it with the first comment. Scanning and PDFs are you best friend. Not only eliminates paper, but upload it to Gmail/GDocs and you have a permanent and easily searchable record of every important document you ever need.

    Patrick
  • Erika Owens
    I find myself faced with the very same problem, i think ill try Peter's suggestion above that seems very convenient for busy person always on the go.
  • Thanks for validating our ongoing irritations! :)
    We're touring musicians; where (and why) would we have a fax machine?! The scanning idea has gotten us through, but even that requires a printer and the use of yet more paper --
    We feel delightfully represented. ;)
  • I should mention that we haven't tried the scan of our sigs -- That IS fabulous.
  • I'm so with you. Faxing is such a pain compared to email. If someone sends an electronic document I use Adobe Acrobat (professional) to electronically sign - a little trick worth knowing about. If someone sends me a paper version, I'm likely to send it back by snail mail.
  • I completely agree that paper should become less used every year because of the fact that we are going so digital. The problem is, not everyone has a computer with internet access which means that they have to make an exception for those people by making it a fax standard for everyone which seems kind of ridiculous.

    I am a sophomore in high school this year and I enrolled in online courses for a change which are so much better because I can go on my own schedule and even better. The use of paper is very minimal since it is only used by me when I am doing math but that's about it. Not only would things be easier to manage and file and organize, but we would be saving the environment too because we would be cutting down less trees to produce all of this stupid paper.
  • I still think faxing is the coolest thing. There was nothing there and them WHAM!, I sent something physical to their machine. It blows my mind.

    And yet, I hate it when people insist on getting a fax from me.

    I mean, seriously?
  • BRAVO!
    Personally, I don't think we should even have email. I think the larger majority of us are plugged in that much in this day and age that it should be real time. If you can't find me in real time, you aren't trying hard enough. Even if it means you have to (gasp!) call my cell phone.
  • I use Echosign for digital contracts. I write about my experience with on-line contracts at my real estate website:
    http://www.walkerswholesalehouses.com/get-signatures-on-your-contracts-via-email
    Opening a small account is free and I get my signatures signed and delivered in under 1 hour. No faxes!
    Chris Walker
    Walkers Wholesale Houses
  • I had exactly this problem today and after finally being told to get the contract in or lose the auctioneer--I headed over to Staple--lost fax number. I am reading every one of the comments and betting someone has a solution!
  • For the past five years I have been inserting a picture of my signature, a .jpg, on every document I sign. The only time it's a problem is when someone sends me a form in .pdf, like a W-9, in which case I sign one form and save it and send the same copy to everyone else.
  • Liz
    Printers are so cheap. Why not just go the old-fashioned route, spend $100 on a printer and 42 cents on a stamp and mail it back? Sometimes simple is the way to go instead of looking for complicated solutions.

    I discovered this after my PDA address book was deleted (update gone wrong) and I had to depend on my paper address book which has never been lost or deleted. My computer address book has been erased several times, thank goodness there has been a backup copy most times.
  • I refused to fax my ISP. I told them they need to upgrade their system. I have subscriptions everywhere and no-one has ever asked for my signature to effect a debit order on my cheque account. So they relented and opened my account without getting my signature.
  • The voice of reason on paper. Thank you.

    Sounds like one of the solutions to saving the planet is to get rid of the paper thing. I drove by a stack of phone books in front of the mailboxes on my street the other day, and thought how ludicrous they are. Now you really hit the nail on the head with the whole signature thing that is almost as outdated as cuniform in clay.

    Count me in on the abolish paper program. Can we keep the toilet paper though?
  • @tomgray That stamp deal is amazing. Much appreciated.
  • You could always put it in an envelope and mail it but you probably don't want to kill more trees for the envelope and pay for the postage. I must say that I find it hard to believe that any serious business person doesn't have a printer and a fax, digital age or not.
  • How about scanning your signature into an image file and then adding it to contracts, then sending it back as a read-only file?
  • I understand how you would be frustrated with this. I wonder how long it will take until someone finally finds a way to sign contracts without the use of pen and paper. Tom Gray's comment about the signiture stamp tool seems to be a solid temporary solution for you. However, I think the idea of placing your own signature over the internet scares many people off...including myself. I personally find it a little risky.
  • Check out PDFpen for the Mac from SmileOnMyMac (we're also the makers of TextExpander). It's the affordable alternative to Acrobat and I think you'll find it's exactly what you need.
  • Mike Whitaker FTW - I've been pure digital for years now - I hate faxes (as well as the phone!) And big kudos to Tom Gray for his tips, I'll be incorporating that stamp idea as it's easier than locating my signature graphic.

    I use uReach.com and have for at least 6 years. For $9.99 a month (plus purchase of blocks of minutes) I get a toll-free number good for faxing in and out as well as VM that can be forwarded anywhere. I get a control panel to keep address book and files and an email that lets me pull incoming faxes into Outlook.

    So I get a fax via email, I convert to PDF (I have full Acrobat as it's quite handy), insert my signature, save and fax back out via uReach.com which will automatically try 10 times before giving up and notifying me if successful or not.

    When I send contracts out, I include my signature graphic in my contract template so the job is 50% done right away. A quick 'find and replace' for the dates and client name and disco!

    Great topic, Chris!
  • 1. Create a JPEG of your signature
    2. Ask for all contracts, NDA's etc in Word or similar
    3. Append JPEG in signature spot, PDF it, thus creating a unique digital signature.
    4. Email back.
    5. No print, no paper, no fax. Whole audit trail kept in your email.

    Works for me.
  • Chris,

    Sadly, I don't think our legal system has quite caught up to the technology. I'm a Web designer and Internet Marketer and I still need signatures. What I commonly do is digitally sign my contracts with a scanned signature that I have on file (mine of course) and email the PDF of the contract to my client to sign and if I'm lucky scan back into the computer and email back (that's never happened so far). More commonly we either meet to sign the said contract or they fax it back to me signed. Either way I get the contract back. Honestly, faxes are old tech but they are still pretty hi-tech when you think about it. They enable us to conduct business across vast expanses.

    Anyhow that's my take. You still need contracts. Sorry to say.

    -Seth Goldstein
    http://www.twitter.com/sethgoldstein
    http://www.sethgoldstein.net
    http://www.goldsteinmedia.com
  • Hello Chris,

    I too am a public speaker and have the same problem. I try to always use my contracts for speaking gigs - where they can sign electronically thanks to Adobe Acrobat's electronic signature or I copy a jpeg of my signature into their electronic document. All docs start in Word or something like that, so I always request a soft copy and use that. Otherwise I am using hotel or airport lounge faxes and wasting a lot of time. I would say I only submit 1 in 15 contracts the old fashioned way now!

    All the best.
    William
    www.williamarruda.com
  • intuitiv
    What are you doing with pdf stamp, inserting jpegs, scanning, printing, tablet-pc?!?!?
    Just building up a workaround for the analogue stuff - nothing else.
    And why? - because others are still used to it!
    Remember the days when facsimile was invented, it was a hard trail from sending contract via (snail-)mail to sending via fax.
    We are in the digital age! (hope so)
    Why always looking back? Look forward! Use digital signatures!
    Have you ever tried these kind of stuff? You have nothing to do fiddling around with scanning, converting, attaching to email.
    You just klick a button - o.k. - signed, finished!
    You need more information? Contact me, I might help you jumping into the digital age.

    Stefan
  • Had a little contract to do some text editing for an international engineering firm last summer. Had to sign a 20 page contract and initial every flipping page. They're basedin Montreal, Canada and I was on a visit me mum trip to the UK. Had to print all 20 pages at the local library, sign them and fax them back as only the library had a scanner and it was not working. The time and the expense. Ridiculous. Totally agree that people out there should get a bit more paperless especially in a world where we constabtly are being admonished to stop our environmental footprints. Here's another gem - in the UK for many things you need to take a bank statement to prove you are who you say you are etc but I am paperless banking and, guess what, they will not accept a screen print of my account so have to have a paper statement sent - takes two weeks..... Go figure......
  • I am a cofounder of a site called Agree2, where you can easily invite, negotiate and sign contracts all in the web browser.

    Assuming that the contract you are signing itself is legal, the signatures are legally valid in common law countries (like the UK, the US, Canada etc) and the EU.

    Most people focus too much on the signature however, while courts look at the whole process of negotiation, intention etc. We record the whole process for both parties to view, examine and provide as evidence through our evidence browser. We believe this provides you a much safer electronic contract than services that focus exclusively on the signature.

    We have a free account which allows you to create one contract a month. Our commercial plans are not particularly expensive either and offer things like multiple users and web services support.
  • Ditto on EchoSign
  • Hi Chris,

    Thanks for giving voice to a frustration I hear about more often than I'd like to. Not only are electronic signatures more convenient, they're also more environmentally friendly - no more paper (and paper storage) from faxed or overnighted documents.

    DocuSign provides electronic signature and online contract execution services. To DocuSign, all you need is a browser, internet connection, and Adobe Reader - it's really easy to use. DocuSign's electronic signatures are also legally enforceable, under the legal requirements established by ESIGN and UETA.

    When I joined DocuSign, I had my papers in my email, downloaded them, clicked to sign, and sent them back - the entire process took less time than it takes to join a social networking app.

    Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything I can help you with. I'm on Twitter @DocuSign, or you check out the DocuSIgn Blog: http://blog.docusign.com.

    Thanks for throwing the question out there - An
  • steveellwood
    Mike W nailed it in the first response. I've done this for 5+ years, originally faxing my signature to myself as a tiff

    I fax stuff through my corporate outlook, or if at home I do have an MFD. Usually? Send 'em a pdf.
  • Kyle
    Hi Chris,
    I work for a fax company (yes, we're still around!). The thing is our fax thing is done over IP networks, so there's no paper involved. Or at least there doesn't have to be. But faxing is still legally binding and secure, so sending and receiving important documents (like your contracts) this way works.
  • Echosign all the way for me here - everything is now going through this.

    Works flawlessly and is great value too.
  • Visioneer makes some really nice, compact scanners that could be used for travel. Check out the RoadWarrior. Always keep a scanned copy on the laptop and back it up to the cloud, something like Mozy.https://mozy.com/?code=UXW2GB
  • Plus they are not environmentally friendly; save a tree, don't print unless absolutely necessary.
blog comments powered by Disqus

Previous post:

Next post: