It is hard to imagine a time when there was no internet, no email, no Zoom meetings, and no way to download your favorite music. However, for over 200 years the postal service has been delivering physical mail all over the United States. It used to be with horse and buggy, and now it is done generally with a mail jeep. Things have changed over the last couple of centuries and today it is possible to receive letters and other documents without even having to touch them. With the help of modern technology and some innovative developers we now have digital mail. And it is a good thing that we do because it has saved a lot of businesses.
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Digital Mail Services
Digital mail services are made possible by a secure third-party company, some incredible software, and a dynamic enterprise that has taken the steps to digitize their mail. It may seem like a very complicated system, and parts of it are, but the process is pretty simple. Physical mail gets received, processed, then scanned into the system and routed to where it needs to go. The digital mail process is as straightforward as things get.
Receiving Physical Mail
The physical mail that we are referring to is the envelopes and document packets that are used in order for a company to conduct business. Documents and paperwork are easy to digitize, but packages and online orders like electronics and clothing are completely different. Regular mail is sent to a mailing address for the business and is received. The physical mail gets organized and put into categories so that the important, or time-sensitive mail gets the top priority. The mail is opened, scanned into the system, tracked, and sent intended recipient, or department. Every person that has access to each piece of mail is logged, and every step in the process is tracked.
Digital Mailroom Software Applications
At the hub of the digital mailroom process, there is a software program that helps to centralize and keep track of everything that happens. In many cases, the type of software is known as software as a service or SaaS. Software applications of this nature can either be licensed for private use or paid for monthly as a subscription. Digital mailroom software platforms are robust and powerful so that they can handle multiple users with variants of permissions and roles. An administrator can create a wide variety of roles with specific permissions for users, groups of users, admins of groups, and so forth. When the mail is scanned into the system, it will be sent to a user in the form of an email or other type of digital document.
The Digital Transformation
Digital mailrooms are growing in popularity, but other aspects of businesses are going digital as well. From managing medical services to source-to-pay processes companies all over the world are switching to an online digital format so that they can work and do business from anywhere in the world. They can also allow their employees to work from home when possible. Technology is becoming faster and smarter very quickly. To get started with your own digital transformation, do your research and take advantage of all of the resources that are available for businesses to go from the ground to the web.