Traditional wet signatures have been the gold standard for signing documents for decades. They may be done in several forms, including inked signatures, stamps, marks, or seals. However, this traditional method is often time-consuming and limiting.
Fortunately, as technology evolves, the way people affix their signatures on important official documents has also improved. Today, digital signatures are a new method of signing documents, especially in the business sector.
This post shares the basics of e-signature, how it works, and the various benefits it can offer to transform your business. Continue reading to learn more.
E-Signature: What Is It?
E-signature, short for electronic signature, is a digital form of the traditional or manual signature. Instead of signing on paper with a pen or ink, an e-signature allows you to sign documents online.
A reputable e-signature provider like jSign complies with e-signature laws and regulations. They often follow a security protocol called Public Key Infrastructure (PKI). This protocol uses a mathematical formula to generate keys and verify the communication’s integrity and authenticity.
When you sign a digital document, the e-signature is created using your private key. Then, the mathematical algorithm creates data or hash that matches the signed documents and encrypts the data.
When you send the signed files to your recipient, you also share the public key to decrypt the document. If the document or e-signature is modified in any way, the generated key is changed too – causing a mismatch between the private and public keys.
Thus, if the public key can’t decrypt the document, it’s highly likely that the document is modified, or the signature isn’t considered valid.
How Can E-Signatures Transform Your Business?
As the modern business world becomes more advanced every single day, e-signatures quickly become necessary in helping companies like yours run efficiently. Here are some benefits of using e-signatures and how they can transform your business:
- They Ensure Higher Level Of Security
While most people consider written signatures as the golden standard of security and authenticity, e-signatures are fast becoming a more secure alternative.
As mentioned before, e-signature has an additional level of security that uses digital certificates, mathematical algorithms, and cryptography. These technologies ensure that the e-signature becomes part of the final document. As a result, it ensures better cybersecurity protocols and prevents fraudulent actions such as replacing signatures or modifying the document after signing.
In addition, e-signatures provide an audit trail of the signed document, reducing the risk of forgery and preventing information leaks and unauthorized access.
- Using E-Signatures Is Time-Effective
Perhaps the most apparent advantage of e-signature tools is that it helps save you time.
In the past, signing a business document consisted of several time-consuming steps. You’ll need to personally go to the other person to get their signature. If they’re too far away, you’ll have to send a fax to their office, waiting for them to sign, scan, and send the documents back to you. It becomes even more complicated if there are multiple signatories for the document.
Either way, the whole process described above can take a few hours to even days, slowing down your business. Instead of arranging in-person document signing or back-and-forth transfers, you can send your recipient an electronic link facilitating the document signing process in just a few seconds or minutes.
- E-Signatures Helps Save On Costs
E-signature provides significant cost savings in terms of document management. Using digital documents and e-signatures eliminates the need for printing, ink, paper, travel, mail delivery, electricity, and more. Furthermore, it helps reduce indirect expenses such as archiving, storing, filing, and tracking your documents.
In business, time is money – every second literally counts. By providing speedy turnover, e-signatures help save your employees time, allowing them to focus on more critical tasks that ensure your business’s growth like product research and development, management, and so on.
- They Improve Business Workflow
Aside from saving precious time, e-signature can help streamline document signing as well. It’ll be much more straightforward and will take less effort to track and manage papers. Recipients can quickly sign contracts and papers with a single click.
Furthermore, signing digital documents and re-sending signed files virtually from anywhere and anytime is possible, minimizing delays and improving your business workflow.
- Adopting E-Signatures In Your Business Promotes Sustainability
An e-signature is processed digitally meaning the document that has been affixed with an e-signature doesn’t need to be printed, so there’s no need to use paper and ink. With less paper and ink waste, you can reduce your company’s carbon footprint and have a more sustainable business operation as a result.
Takeaway
Thanks to their numerous benefits, e-signatures are quickly becoming essential to most business documentation and transactions. Regardless of the type of paperwork involved, digital signatures can help your company save precious money and time, streamline the document signing process, and provide a more convenient experience. All of which contribute to your business’ growth and development.
