The world\u2019s business gets done digitally, and the rental counter is no exception. Electronic signature capturing devices and PDFs have replaced paper contracts and terms and conditions sheets. Easily searchable databases have replaced Byzantine filing systems in back rooms. These processes have saved rental businesses countless hours and resources by reducing printing costs, filing time, time spent searching for contracts, and waiting for signatures.<\/p>\n
While electronic signatures seem new, they\u2019ve been around in some form since at least the 1800s, with telegraph signatures having been enforced as legally binding. Similarly, faxes, with electronically transmitted signatures, have been accepted since the 1980s. Electronic signatures are simply the most recent evolution of this process as we make it easier to get documents signed.<\/p>\n
But how do they work? Why do we trust them with the lifeblood of our business – our contracts? What should an electronic signature software provide?<\/p>\n
In a rental business, you\u2019re already taking customer information. It\u2019s stored in your system, along with your inventory information and the contracts that tie the two together. When you send an electronic signature request, either to a kiosk at your counter or via email to the customer\u2019s record, you\u2019re fulfilling two of the legal requirements for a valid electronic signature.<\/p>\n
On contracts, key data, like the name of the signatory, how they were identified, and the IP address and location where it was signed, is encoded in a QR code-like block. If someone tries to change the accompanying data, it\u2019s easily cross-referenced with the encoded data in your system and an altered contract would be identified so you (and the legal system) can reject it.<\/p>\n
Being able to easily obtain a signature doesn\u2019t mean much if you\u2019re not able to find one when you need it during a dispute. Electronic signatures are actually more secure in many ways than ink – there aren\u2019t many companies that make copies of every signed document and store both original and copied signatures in two separate locations, one of which is heavily guarded by security experts. But that\u2019s standard protocol for electronic signatures, which are hosted with redundancy on cloud servers like Amazon Web Services (AWS). Security is handled in multiple layers, with the cloud server\u2019s security team, web application firewalls, and third-party audits continuously checking to ensure the process is secure.<\/p>\n
The first electronic signature solutions were created for payment processors, which already have their own secure connections, gateways, servers, etc., or for lawyers and real estate companies, which are high-value contract, low-volume businesses, especially compared with rental stores. A busy rental store can require more signatures in a week than one of these businesses would need in a year. Point of Rental\u2019s customers were having an issue using these electronic signature products because their pricing models didn\u2019t work for them. As software experts, we realized we had the opportunity to resolve that issue, and released the industry\u2019s first electronic signature solution, Rental E-Sign.<\/p>\n
If saving money on paper and printer maintenance and avoiding the hassle of filing your contracts doesn\u2019t seem worth your while, perhaps this will: Offering electronic signatures makes your customers happier, too. According to Nielsen tracking, the average adult in the U.S. spends more than 3.5 hours per day on a mobile device. By offering electronic signatures instead of requiring them to sign at the office or use a fax, you\u2019re making it easier for them to do business with you.<\/p>\n
And who doesn\u2019t want to work with someone who makes their job easier?<\/p>\n
This article first ran in March’s issue of Rental Management<\/a> magazine. To read the full article and more “Tech Talk,” click here<\/a>. If you’re interested in your own electronic signature solution, Rental eSign is designed for rental businesses moving toward paperlessness.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The world\u2019s business gets done digitally, and the rental counter is no exception. Electronic signature capturing devices and PDFs have replaced paper contracts and terms and conditions sheets. Easily searchable databases have replaced Byzantine filing systems in back rooms. These processes have saved rental businesses countless hours and resources by reducing printing costs, filing time, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":25514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55,56],"tags":[665,666,667,668,669,187,670],"class_list":["post-25509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rental-industry","category-software-features","tag-accessibility","tag-ease-of-use","tag-electronic-signatures","tag-esign","tag-rental-esign","tag-security","tag-signatures"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t