Online Fax Services For Law Firms & What To Look For

Most small law firms we work with use an online fax service instead of a standard fax machine and voice line. Faxing is still popular and that fact boggles my mind as a tech person. Using an online service gives you the ability to send and receive faxes on the go which can be emailed directly to you. Imagine being able to send and receive faxes from your mobile device, the technology is here my friends. This is more convenient than having faxes auto print as they come in and looking through a stack of papers all throughout the day, it’s also more green.  Many online fax services provide users with similar features and pricing. When you’re considering which company to go with, question your faxing practices. Do you generally send or receive more faxes? Some fax companies offer different packages such as send only, receive only or a combination of the two, and your choice directly relates to your monthly cost. Think about where and how often you send faxes. Some services offer different rates per minute for long-distance faxes or charge more for international faxes. Once you have a good handle on your firm faxing practices, you can then find the right company based on the following criteria.

You want to make sure that the features of your online fax company does not hinder the way you do business. Make sure you get these questions answered. Does their software link to outlook or Google Apps, can you use multiple letterheads, things like that. One feature that you cannot work without is the ability to not only send but receive faxes through your email. They should also have other features such as forwarding, notifications and storage options. At some point you may go over your package limit for sending and receiving, you need to know what the overage charges are as well as sign-up fees. Most importantly would have to be the  ease-of-use of the product. How simple it is to use the service to send and receive faxes? One of the most important criteria would have to be support. We have had clients with horror stories, calling support 4 times a day because support was terrible and they couldn’t get their issues resolved. You need to know response times as well as who you get when you call, are you OK with a non-North American support staff, because thats who you will most likely be working with.

If you have an established law firm and are interested in the benefits of an online fax service, check out the following companies, Ring Central, eXtremeFax, MetroFax, &  eFax. These companies rate very high and we even have clients that use a few of these companies particularly. Online fax services are definitely cheaper than paying for a phone line and a fax machine, or a multi-functional printer depending on your needs. Check out online faxing services, they can be a great option for your firm.