Dear Users of Microfilm and Microfiche,
Unless you’re doing your work from a typewriter while listening to your favorite cassette tapes and receiving messages on your beeper, you’ve probably taken advantage of the many every-day-life improvements that have been made over the past several decades. But still, here you are trying to load your microfilm without slicing your finger.
I get it. Some things are sentimental. Athough really, it’s probably not sentiment, but more likely the cost of scanning. Time is money, too, though, and microforms spend a lot of it. So much of it, in fact, that it may be cheaper to just go ahead and digitize all that information.
Aside from cost, there’s many reasons to seize the opportunities microfilm and microfiche scanning provides. Other organizations expect digital versions of pretty much everything, and providing it is much faster if that’s already the form your information is in. No more spending tons of time manually searching through your records to find the right one, then printing it, then scanning it, then sending it, then trying to remember what you were doing before this long interruption. Once your information is stored electronically, business processes are quicker and easier, and they involve less frustration and more actually getting things done with your limited time.
Not only is storing your information electronically simpler, it’s more secure than storing a single hard copy in a back room. Your important data should be treated as such. With your information a digital format, you can be better prepared for emergency scenarios by backing it up. Even better, if it’s stored in the cloud, employees can access it from any location in seconds. Not only will sharing content be faster, often you may not have to share it at all when others can access it themselves. With this improved accessibility, collaboration and even customer service is easier, as you can also give the public online access to records and archives they may otherwise be asking you for.
As the world becomes more and more of a digital place, organizations must adapt to stay relevant and keep their competitive edge. If you’re aging business processes are holding back your productivity and service, maybe it’s time to re-assess your microform situation and take action. And, of course, if you do decide it’s time to scan your microforms, we’re here to help every step of the way.
By the way, did you know that scanning is the first step to a paperless office? For more information about going paperless, watch our webinar recording below, “What does Paperless Really Mean – 5 Stages of Efficiency.”
Sincerely,
DataBank
