Managing your documents can be time consuming and costly, especially when you’re relying on manual data entry and applications that don’t talk to each other. The bad news is that documents and paperwork aren’t going anywhere. The good news is that there are ways you can streamline your document management processes that will actually save you time. And it all comes down to the number and type of platforms you’re using.
Areas you can streamline document management
Reduce the number of paperwork systems you’re managing
Ask yourself: how many platforms am I currently using in order to manage my document processes? If your answer is more than one, you’re not alone. In trying to streamline different aspects of your paperwork, you may find yourself using a different tool for each step. Before you know it, you have a form-filling application for data capture, an e-signature software for signature collection, spreadsheets for sorting through and managing the data, and email to manage timelines and tasks.
While technology is meant to make your document workflows more efficient, having too many business tools can actually create new inefficiencies and hinder productivity. This is especially true when you’re implementing tools that don’t communicate well or integrate with each other. You end up having to move data around manually, slowing your team down, increasing security risks and errors.
Limiting the number of platforms you’re using can save your team valuable time and resources, while allowing you to focus on work that truly matters. Vouch, a digital insurance provider that offers proprietary coverage for startups, can attest to that. After relying on several tools to manage their paperwork process, they switched to Anvil for a streamlined solution that automates their documents from end-to-end and connects seamlessly with their Salesforce CRM.
Find automated ways of connecting platforms
Even after you’ve combed through your tech stack and condensed where you can, you’ll find that you can’t truly manage all of your processes out of one platform. This is where you’ll need to connect your platforms in an automated way. For non-engineers, integration Platform-as-a-Service (iPaaS) solutions enable you to create, execute, and manage integration data flows between disconnected systems. Some of the benefits include:
- Better data flow -integrations allow for smooth data flow, reducing the risk of having data in silos.
- Error reduction - lowers risk of scattered data and need for manual intervention.
- Speed up information exchange - real-time syncing integrates data instantly.
- Increase team efficiency - when you’re not focused on manual data transfer and all its complications, you can focus on accomplishing business-critical goals.
When choosing a iPaaS solution, you’ll want to find a platform that can handle any connection. This is especially important if your industry uses unique or specialized applications. Zapier, for example, connects 4,000+ applications, automating repetitive tasks without any code necessary. Anvil’s Zapier integration unlocks end-to-end automation for Anvil Workflow users, allowing them to build automated triggers and actions (Zaps) across their apps. Here’s some examples of what you can do with Anvil and Zapier:
- Fill PDFs with data from outside Anvil
- Push Workflow data and documents from Anvil to other applications (such as Salesforce)
- Trigger custom notifications and actions based on Workflow progress.
Although document management is notorious for being time intensive, we hope you see that it doesn’t have to be that way. By reducing the number of systems you’re managing and connecting your platforms, you can automate data flow, streamline your paperwork processes, and reap the benefits of time spent on higher-order work.
If you have questions, we'd love to hear from you at hello@useanvil.com.