How do I find document scanning services near me?

In the current business environment digitizing is a necessity for most organizations. Whether you are a growing company, a multi-location company or a company with a remote workforce, digitization gives your employees easy access to information, and keeps them well-informed.  It secures a competitive advantage, increases accountability within the organization, improves operational reliability, and avoids duplication.

The first step toward digitization is to use a document scanning service to convert physical files into digital ones that are accessible at all times. Document scanning forms the basis to transform your company into a digital enterprise and drive growth in the new economy.   

How do you determine if your organization will benefit from document digitization? 

Answer these questions to find out!

1. Do you want to free-up prime office space currently used to store large volumes of paper documents?
2. Are you looking for a way to mitigate the risk of loss or damage to documents in storage, especially of single-copy documents?
3. Do document security and safeguards against unauthorized access feature on your list of top corporate priorities?
4. Do your employees require remote and collaborative access to shared documents?
5. Do your off-site teams demand convenient and secure access to the latest information and files from anywhere at any time?

If you ticked off most of the above, it is time to search for a document scanning provider!

Scanning your documents is not only about reducing storage space in the office, paper and printing costs. It's not the paper that is important—it's the information on it that is! Quick access to the information when required is the key to improve your performance and efficiency. You focus on more value-added activities to enhance customer satisfaction and add to the bottom line.

“Are document scanning services near me the best option?”

Document digitization is a challenging proposition at the start. The thought of sending valuable, confidential, and proprietary documents out of the office premises to a remote, third-party location is a big concern that often proves a hurdle for digitization. The way out is simple—find a competent and reputed document scanning vendor nearby. 

So the question is: How do I find a document scanning service near me? It’s simple and easy, actually. First, decide the geographical radius within which you want to find a scanning service provider. Keep in mind that you will ship valuable, confidential company documents to this location. If you want to retrieve a file from the scanning facility, having the vendor close by is an advantage. Going local is always the first preference. Keep these requirements in mind and conduct a search using a search engine like Google or Bing.   

Review the search results, visit the websites of some of the vendors, and shortlist a few. Try to identify which service provider will effectively handle and safely process your document scanning requirements. Here is a handy checklist of questions to ask before you choose a document scanning vendor:

Six things to look for when evaluating document scanning service providers nearby

1. Capabilities

Capable document management vendors provide fast and reliable turnaround times for large scanning volumes. You need to determine:

• What is their average processing volume? And their maximum processing capacity?
• What kind of scanners do they use; how well are they maintained? Do they keep maintenance logs?
• What sizes of documents do they handle?

2. Reputation

• What is their primary business?
• Do they provide references from past clients?
• How long have they been in the business?
• What was their largest scanning project; what was the completion timeframe?
• Do they have experience working with other companies in your industry?

3. Document security and confidentiality

• What is the level of security they provide? Do they have cameras and security clearances at their facility?
• What measures are in place for the security of documents in their custody? Do they assure confidentiality of records?
• Do they conduct background checks before hiring employees?
• How effective are their network security protocols and document control processes?

4. Quality control

• What quality control, process and security standards do they vendor demonstrate?
• Are they self-certified or certified by a third-party?

5. Data management

• What file formats do they support for the scanned images?
• Do they offer options for OCR (Optical Character Recognition) or automated data capture?

6. Pricing

• Is the pricing transparent and upfront, with no hidden costs?
• Do they offer bundled pricing?
• How do they compare with other vendors? 

It’s not only about the price!

Sure, you must compare a few price quotes from the shortlisted vendors. Price is a crucial factor, but it is certainly not the only one. Companies often make the mistake of selecting a scanning company based on the price alone. Do not assume that all vendors are equal and operate in the same way. 

Here are some other evaluation criteria to consider, which may also impact your selection:

1. Minimize the impact on your daily operations

• Who is responsible for packing and shipping the documents to the scanning facility? 
• If you need a file urgently while it is in the scanning facility, is it retrievable quickly? Are there any cost implications?

2. Insist on stringent quality control measures

• What are the quality standards and procedures they follow?
• Do they have a documented QC (quality control) policy to share with you?
• If their QC policy and procedures do not match your requirements, are they willing to conform to yours? Is this considered as additional services with extra cost implications?

3. Fix accountability for project timelines

• Do they have a system to track the quantum of work completed? Are they accountable for completing the scanning within a pre-decided timeframe?
• Do they maintain operator logs for various stages of the scanning process, such as document preparation, scanning, indexing, quality control, corrections, quality checks, and image corrections?

4. Check certification, clearances, and compliances

• Do they have the necessary certifications, clearances, and compliances to handle your company's documents? Are these from the appropriate authorities, such as the Government or are they from other agencies?

5. Ask for integration and paperless office support

• Do they supply and support Document Management Systems to assist with your paperless goals?
• Do they integrate scanned images with your existing content management or other IT systems? Or is that your team's responsibility?

Now, with all factors considered, you are well on the way to finding the ideal document scanning services near you. Choosing a local digitization partner who will execute your project exactly as you want it done will put you on track toward a paperless office system.

If all of this sounds overwhelming, contact MES to handle your digitizing projects. We tick all the right boxes on your list!

We have the experience: We have been in the business since 1971 and scanned over 1 billion documents to date. Our production facility converts over 10 million images every month into electronic file formats. 

We provide turnkey services: From start to finish, we offer project planning, project management, secure transportation, document preparation, scanning, file indexing, OCR conversion, image QC, records storage, and document shredding.

We guarantee complete security and process control: We employ a strict "chain of custody” process; we track all client files throughout the process, facilitate emergency retrievals, and perform regular audits.

Get a free quote from us today!