Quick & Easy Ways To Minimize Paper Use In Your Office

Paper work in office... (via pixnio)

Paper use is more important than you might initially assume. What’s wrong with using a lot of paper in your office? Well, there are a few primary concerns: 

• Too much paper use is terrible for the environment
• You end up creating a messy office space that becomes harder to work in
• It’s harder to keep track of important documents

These three things can lead to a damaged business reputation, lack of productivity, and a loss of vital information.

Thankfully, there are some quick and easy solutions to this; here’s how you can minimize paper use in your office:

Invest in a virtual mailbox

A lot of paper in your office comes from your mail. Clients may send documents to you, contractors may do the same, and so on. Eventually, it all piles up and you have lots of letters everywhere, creating loads of mess.

A virtual mailbox solves this issue by ensuring your mail is sent elsewhere. Companies like Physical Address offer virtual business addresses that come with a virtual mailbox. As such, your mail gets sent to a different location where it can be sorted and scanned into a digital folder. From here, you can access it whenever you want, and it’s all digital. So, your office doesn’t have to deal with all this paper anymore. 

Digitalize your documents

Whenever possible, you should avoid printing things out. To do this, you should consider digitalizing as many documents as possible. Instead of sending out contracts to clients, then having them sign them and post them back, you can send out digital contracts. These days, some services let you send contracts that can be signed online, completely obliterating a large portion of paper use in your office.

The same goes for things like payslips and any other documents you usually print. Of course, there may be instances where you have no choice but to print something out. For example, a client that doesn’t know how to sign digital contracts or requests a physical copy. 

Don’t worry, there’s another easy idea to combat this.

A printer (via pxhere)

Print on both sides of the paper

In instances where printing isn’t avoidable, you should print using both sides of the paper. This idea is one of the simplest ones out there, yet it cuts your paper use in half. Instead of printing out four sheets of paper, you can print out two. So, if clients demand physical documents or there’s no way of digitalizing something, then use this idea instead.
Make mail your last resort

Think about all the different ways you can contact clients or leads these days. Instead of sending them postal mail, you can email them, send a message on social media, text them - or give them a call. None of these options involves the use of paper! So, make mail the absolute last resort when contacting people; try all the other means first.

If you reduce paper use in your office, then you help decrease the carbon footprint of your business. Consumers see the efforts your making, and it helps build a positive reputation. Not only that, but a lack of paper in your office makes it a tidier place to work, and you can improve your organization too. So, try these quick & easy ideas to cut down the amount of paper your business uses.