Until you actually stop printing or using paper forms, you really never stop to consider just how much money you are saving. Why not take a good look at what you could be saving if you learn how to reduce print and paper costs in the office from today on out! There are a number of ways you can begin immediately cutting back on the amount of paper you use, but some things may take time in order to get the technology you need to make the switch.
First Order of Business – An Audit Is in Order
Most companies set a budget and then work hard to stay within the amounts they have allocated for each area of the business. For example, your office budget includes more than paper and ink for your printers and copiers, so you would need to do an audit to see just how much you have actually spent in the past year on paper and printing related products.
Even though 39 percent of paper in use today comes from recycled paper, according to Canvas.com, the cost isn’t any different than the cost of paper from freshly milled trees. When you’ve tallied expenditures, you can begin to cut costs immediately, but you will also free up funds to buy a bit of technology to be used in lieu of hard copy papers.
Technology to Help You Reduce the Amount of Paper You Use
While you can always communicate via email instead of sending out office memos, there are other ways to communicate within an office. Some companies have begun using Cloud based HR software that lets administrators and directors to communicate through an online portal. Cloud based software even provides a cyber-room where team members can meet without leaving their desks but when working on design and other tasks that had previously required being printed, sharing in the Cloud eliminates the need for hard copies.
Some companies no longer make copies of documents to keep in paper files. There are any number of scanners on the market that do everything from scanning small IDs like licenses to scanning oversized blueprints to be viewed on a large flat screen monitor or computer screen. No matter what kind of business you are in, it is possible to reduce your consumption of paper by as much as 80 percent, and even more in some cases.
If You Can Print It on Paper You Can Print It on Screen
It has been several years now since companies like UPS and FedEx have begun using handheld signature capture devices, but this just goes to show you that just about any form or document can go paperless. Hospitals are now using them as are stores for their POS credit card readers. In fact, there is even some amount of conjecture that someday in the not so distant future we might even transition to digital currency with no new paper currency ever being printed again.
The point being made is that with a little extra help from technology you may be able to reduce the amount of paper used in your office and cut costs in the process. With e-signatures and signature capture machines, you don’t even need to sign contracts anymore! Go paperless and see just how quickly your profit margin rises.
