The first step most organizations take on their digital transformation journey is scanning their paper files and trying not to generate any new paper documents. But if you have a large client base or membership, it’s likely that you also have a busy, paper-filled mailroom. Digitizing mail is just another step in the digital transformation journey!

Like all steps in digital transformation, it can be a tricky process to switch from paper to digital. But outsourcing your mailroom into a virtual mailroom is an easy transition with a lot of immediate benefits!

Below are some reasons why you should consider outsourcing your mailroom.

1. Most or All of Your Employees are Working Hybrid (or from Home)

With employees working from home either full-time or with a hybrid schedule, it’s far more difficult to get them the mail they need in a timely manner. Envelopes could sit on desks for days (or weeks). Checks could go missing if not processed immediately.

When you outsource your mailroom, this ensures that all mail is accounted for, scanned, and delivered to the organization quickly and efficiently. Mail can either be uploaded to a repository or secure FTP site for manual sorting, or workflows can be built to deliver the mail directly to the recipient. However it is delivered, employees will have the information they need to continue their tasks without interruption or the need to drive into the office.

2. You Can Repurpose the Space (or Downsize Your Office)

No matter the size of your mailroom, it’s still taking up valuable space in your office. Whether you want to put an office or two in the mailroom space, or downsize your office all together, outsourcing the mailroom instantly reduces your square footage.

And while you’re repurposing your mailroom, this may also be the time to examine how much space your filing cabinets and other paper storage take up. Scanning those files will immediately free up valuable office space.

3. You Don’t Have to Staff or Manage the Mailroom

This is an obvious one, but when you outsource your mailroom, you don’t have to hire staff to handle that mail. If you’ve been having issues finding the right people to hire for the job, or would rather repurpose your current mailroom staff to other work, this is an easy way to reshuffle your workforce.

This also means that you don’t have to buy or maintain expensive equipment. This includes the service contracts necessary to keep your equipment running in top condition.

4. You Need Better Compliance and Audit Tracking

How many times have you gone looking for a piece of mail just for it to not be there? Unfortunately, lost mail and misfiling are still common problems.

But with a digital mailroom, you never have to worry about not having a piece of mail. You simply log into your repository and pull it up. Depending on your content management solution, this will also make a log of who assessed that document and when. It’s essential for audits!

Additionally, having your mail scanned with full text searchability completely eliminates the problem of misfiles. You can find any document you need with a simple search.

5. Your Business Needs the Ability to Quickly Scale Up

Is your business growing and you’re receiving more mail than ever? With an outsourced mailroom you don’t ever have to worry about the issues that come with quickly scaling up. You simply need to inform your vendor (and depending on the volume, negotiate your pricing and delivery expectations), and they will take care of the rest.

Why take on that operational stress when you don’t need to? Your vendor will be well-versed in how to scale their workforce to support the increase in your mail.

6. Your Information Deserves the Best Possible Security

When you handle your mail internally, what’s to stop someone from picking up a letter from another person’s desk? Even with a clean desk policy, employees may not immediately file away information or secure letters in their desk before getting up.

When you outsource your mailroom, your trusted vendor will pick up the mail, bring it back to their physically secure facility, scan the paper, and securely transmit the images to you via FTP or directly into your content services platform.

When interviewing prospective vendors for your digital mailroom, make sure you ask about their security. Some good questions are:

• Who has physical access to the building?
• Do they have a SOC II Type 2 audit?
• What cybersecurity products do they use to ensure that customer data is protected?

Those are just six reasons that it’s time to look into digital mailrooms. With lower costs, improved efficiency, and less operational hassle, it’s a natural next step for your digital transformation!

If you’re ready to learn more about outsourcing your mailroom, contact us or give us a call at (630) 321-0601.

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