Online fax services have been of great help during these times we live in, when many businesses have closed offices and instead are opting for remote work solutions. Fax services take the job traditionally reserved to the fax machine and push it quite a few steps further, letting you fax directly from your computer and without the need of additional equipment.
Choosing the right fax provider is essential to have a good experience when making the switch to digital medium. Fax online for faster, more effective, and at a lower cost, but only if the service works with you every step of the way. Choosing a bad service can be as bad as having a paper jam in your machine’s feeder, so it’s important you learn how to separate the good from the bad.
Before you subscribe to a monthly fax plan, check out some of the tips you need to keep in mind when picking an Internet fax provider.
Check If It Works With Any Type of Email
A service telling you it’ll only work with certain email addresses is a big no-no. All the best providers in the market let you send fax from Gmail, Hotmail or any other email you have at your disposal, even those with your custom domain names.
Faxing through email is perhaps the most common way to fax online, it basically lets you send a fax online in the same way you send an email, but instead of dialling your fax machine, you enter the recipient’s fax number on the TO field on your email message, followed by the domain specified by your provider.
Stay Away From Fax Services With Hidden Fees
When online fax services started out, many of them charged you to set up your account and provide you with a virtual fax number. However, nowadays, all the best fax providers don’t have this cost, because they already have thousands of accounts ready to be used at any given time. What’s better, your line will be active and ready to be used just a few minutes from creating your account.
Another tip is to look for the overage fee prices, some shady fax companies lure clients with the promise of low monthly plans, but once you go over the limit of pages you can send a month, you start paying high prices per page.
Test How a Service Works by Creating a Free Trial Account
One of the coolest things about online fax services is that you can actually try before you buy. It is a common practice in this industry to give potential customers the chance to try out the service for a month before they start paying for a plan. This free trial period comes with all the perks of having the basic plan, including a toll-free or local fax number of your choice.
By creating a free account you can try first-hand how the service adapts to your needs, and even check advanced faxing features such as scheduling, cloud integration and more.
Does It Have Mobile Fax Capabilities?
If you are a person who is always on the move and can’t depend on a single location for faxing, it is a must that you pick a service with a robust mobile faxing app. There are only a handful of services that have a corresponding app, the rest that you find on your cell phone’s store are apps that charge you per page or per fax, often much more than the cost of a service.
Currently, apps are able to send faxes, receive fax to Gmail, and sign faxes electronically without having to print them. A good app must let you do these things in just a couple of taps.
Research and Compare the Best Fax Plans
There are many online fax services in the market, so you can rest assured you can find the right plan for your business. Just take the time to compare the different companies and see what they offer not only in terms of money, but also in terms of features and the amount of faxes you can send each month.
It is a common mistake among businesses to pick a plan that barely fits their needs. Although this may seem like a good idea to save money, it can turn out to be the opposite. Once you reach your limit of pages you can send/receive per month, you start paying overage fees, which are paid per page sent. The cost of overage fees should be easily found on your chosen service’s webpage.