Digital vs paper signatures is a debate many businesses are having, as signatures remain such a large part of working life and a necessity in many businesses. Like many things, signatures have evolved throughout history - adapting to modern technology and going paperless. At Clinked, we offer digital signatures within our platform, but understand why many businesses are still attached to the traditional way. Here’s our list of the benefits of both methods if you are weighing up choosing a digital vs paper signature, including more explanations of what digital signatures can do if you are unfamiliar with them.
Electronic or digital signatures are becoming a standard procedure in the modern world and new developments from companies like Adobe Sign are making digital signatures more accessible. In the debate around choosing a digital signature vs handwritten signature, a digital signature can stand out for ease and speed of use. Having an effective and reliable way to sign a document digitally can make a huge difference to your business, saving individuals and the whole company a huge amount of time on what can be a very long process. However it can sometimes be confusing as to what does and does not constitute a legally binding signature - here are the steps you need to take into consideration:
When comparing choosing a digital vs paper signature, you may still be attached to the idea of a traditional handwritten signature. A hard or paper signature is a physical mark created by a person on a hard copy of paper. Often this consists of signing a name, but it can be as simple as marking a specific section of a page with initials or an ‘X’.
Signatures are legally binding and are regarded as an approval of consent, often used when finalising a deal or important decision. Hard signatures are still popular when signing many legal or financial documents. For companies working together in an office, it is not an issue getting a piece of paper signed, as all that is required is to walk from one side of the office to another.
However, for many international businesses who have both colleagues and clients abroad, getting a hard signature is almost impossible. Hence why the instant sharing of electronic documents is essential, with e-signatures being a more instantaneous and cost effective solution. The signature also needs to be replicated on each page or contract individually, it cannot be photo-copied or copied across several documents.
While this method of hard copy signatures is the traditional way to give consent on documents, it is very time consuming due to all of the steps required:
Relying mostly on a paper signature is inefficient as it can take a period of time to organise, which decreases the amount of time that could be spent productively. This could also be delayed even further by individuals being out of office or by posting complications. This is why digital signatures have evolved. Using digital signatures with a service like Adobe Sign has a lot of benefits; it's quick, easy and can be used from anywhere, is more secure and it can integrate with products like Clinked.
At Clinked, we decided to bring in Adobe Sign and DocuSign integration for our clients. For those weighing up whether to choose digital signature vs handwritten signature, this integration not only gives you the simpler online option, you also have the benefit of signing documents from within your customer portal. This is a much more efficient process, as it allows for your clients to access and sign all documents in a secure, branded environment.
If you think that using a client portal may suit your business, why not check out our Clinked white-label customer platform? It can benefit your business by providing a secure platform to share documents with your clients and allow them to sign electronically, removing the debate around choosing a digital vs paper signature. But we also offer many more useful functionalities, like task management and employee chat facilities. Learn more by booking a demo with one of our product specialists.