5 Tips For Choosing Your Document Storage Provider

Document storage has been a vital part of a successful business for a long while – almost every task within administration has some paperwork linked to it whether that is digital or not. Digital documents are easy enough to store with computer drives but what can you do with the bulky pieces of paper that take up your office space? We have the answers and some tips for how to choose your document storage provider.

1. Think about the benefits and what you want to gain from your document storage

There are so many benefits for your business that document storage providers can offer but you need to know exactly what it is that you want to gain from working with them. This will help you to find the best storage provider but it will also help you when it comes to discussing what you want from them. The main benefits that you should be receiving from your storage providers or from storing your documents are as follows:

• Improved data/document management outside of your office. Working in a cluttered environment is one of the worst environments for productivity so not being surrounded by piles of paper will increase productivity for your employees.
• Ensured security for documents containing your business data.
• Improved access to your documents when you need them.
• Improved service for you as a customer and your customers.

2. Think about the finance behind using a document storage service and how much money you will save

You will automatically be saving money by using a document storage service with the provider that you choose. By storing your documents safely, you are able to make savings in ways that you wouldn’t necessarily think. You will be reducing the need for extra office space if you rent the space as you will no longer need space for your bulky documents. There will also be a reduced need for administrators for tasks such as filing, archiving and destroying documents that you no longer need.

When considering which provider to choose, ensure that they lay out to you what the costs of storage will be. You can then make accurate decisions on how to save your money.

3. Ask your prospective provider what their storage process is and also what their process is for retrieving documents

When speaking with your provider, you need to find out how your documents will be stored once handed over to them and how easy it is to retrieve them if you need them for audit purposes or other reasons. Many providers already have a system they run which will track the location and any information that you have provided about the documents within the box so that they can easily track them for you. This means that if you need to access your documents quickly, you can.

This will also allow the provider to show you the type of boxes that your documents will be stored in to see if this suits your business needs.

4. Ask your prospective provider about the security of their business premises and operations

As we mentioned earlier, the security of your documents is absolutely vital when it comes to picking who you will store them with. You want to find a business that has all of the correct regulations set up to ensure that your documents are safe – while also ensuringphysical security for them. A business with an understanding of GDPR and data protection is only the first step as neither of these things could withstand a physical break-in. Precautions such as CCTV systems and alarms are essential for the safety of your documents.

5. Find out how the document storage provider’s processes affect the environment

The need for improved environmentally friendly services has increased over the past few years which plays a part in many offices becoming paper-free. Many businesses are now aware of how their processes will affect the environment so if this is something that is essential to your business’ values, it would be worth raising that question to your prospective provider.

So, how can we help with choosing the right provider for you? Pay Less provides secure storage with a free free van collection at affordable rates – significantly lower than the high prices of national chains. There is a guide on our website that will help you to choose which storage size you need for when you’re freeing up your office space from bulky amounts of paperwork.

We pride ourselves on top quality customer service – over 50% of our new customers find us based on recommendations from past customers. You can find all of the information you need on our website or by giving our friendly team a call on 0191 300 6565.