It used to be that a company could get by trading files via email attachments or even flash drives. As technology and Cloud computing have continued to advance, though, these old methods have become clunky and obsolete. Sure, you might still send a document to someone else in the office through email, but isn’t it easier to have the file accessible to the whole team online, via a Cloud- or server-based document management system?
This digital file sharing need within offices and organizations has caused a crescendo in buzz and popularity for DMS. However, the fact is that simply having DMS that your company or your clients can use to upload, exchange, view, and edit files is only half of the equation. If simply having a file-sharing transfer channel was all any business needed, then free programs like Dropbox or Google Drive would do the trick for anyone. Nowadays, though, most companies are on the lookout for stronger, enterprise-based DMS.
The Problems with Common File Transfer Methods
In the simplest of terms, businesses are forgoing programs like Dropbox and Google Drive (as well as other more feature-heavy freeware document management software) because paid enterprise software brings more to the table. When you invest in DMS like eFileCabinet as your office file transfer software, you get more storage space, more security, more customer support, and more features across the board.
One of the features you get with eFileCabinet is portal technology. Document management and file sharing isn’t just about sending documents on an inter-office basis. Sometimes, you need a way to exchange files with clients or customers, as well. One option is email, but for sensitive financial documents or other personal, confidential information, there’s the worry that your attachments will be intercepted. If you are sending a large project file to a client, meanwhile, you run the risk of your attachment being too large to send. As you can see, email isn’t always the best way to send documents or files to clients.
The second option is to send the files in question via regular mail. Unfortunately, mail takes time, costs money in postage (especially if you have to overnight a document or send something internationally), and uses paper. On top of all of these issues, there is always the risk that the mail will get lost or fall into the wrong hands.
The third option is fax, which is an all but obsolete technology at this point. Slow, unreliable, and horrible for sending larger documents, there is a reason fax machines have been phased out by many businesses. Add the fact that fax machines are useless for sending multimedia project files that include music, video, or a bulk of high-quality photos, and you can’t be blamed for seeking out a better means of sharing files with your clients.
Introducing eFileCabinet’s SecureDrawer Client Portal Technology
So how can you transfer files to your clients or customers in a smarter, faster, more secure, more versatile, and less expensive fashion? The answer is client portal technology. By using DMS with client portal accessibility, you enable your business to upload files to an online database that your clients can log into and use remotely.
At eFileCabinet, we have designed our own proprietary client portal system called SecureDrawer. Easy to integrate with the other components of the eFileCabinet DMS, SecureDrawer allows you to drag and drop files into a storage database that your clients can then access with the proper permissions and login credentials. With space for 150 gigabytes of storage, SecureDrawer can be used to share files that are 100 times the size of what most email programs will let you send via attachments. Once you’ve uploaded files—be they written documents, music folders, video files, or some mix of different mediums—your client will be sent an email informing them that they can now access those files.
This entire process is lightning fast, ensuring that your client gets the documents they need much faster than they would ever get them via mail. Furthermore, SecureDrawer offers superb document security. While you are uploading your document to the eFileCabinet data servers, or while your client is downloading those files to his or her computer, the data will be safeguarded with Secure Socket Layer protection, to prevent interception. When your files are being stored on our data servers, meanwhile, they are locked up with 256-bit AES standard encryption. These protections ensure a secure client portal and keep your client’s documents from falling into the wrong hands.
SecureDrawer even supports eSignatures, so that clients can sign contracts or documents and get them back to you quickly and efficiently, without any of the trouble of mail or fax.
Are you interested in learning more about eFileCabinet or about our SecureDrawer client portal system? Visit our website today at www.efilecabinet.com and click on the “Free Demo” tab at the side of the screen to get a 15-minute preview of the software.