Earlier, exporters needed to visit every department or authorized body in person to avail various important documents. The things changed with the origin of internet, as one could submit requests for documents from their offices’ desktop machines. Going further, the increasing use of mobile devices like laptops, tablets and mobile phones added more flexibility to the process of export documentation.
As a result, exporters, agents and documentation teams began to enjoy numerous benefits:
- First, it ensured freedom to prepare documents during any hour of the day.
- Second, one can accomplish the task from anywhere, even while travelling.
- Third, it allowed better and faster status tracking and responding to queries.
- Above all, it eliminated the cost of installing and maintaining desktop software systems.
So, what all you need to start doing it right away? Here’s a quick checklist:
- To begin with, you must have secure mobile devices that you can rely on. Make sure that your devices are optimized to perform well and have the necessary protection to avoid unauthorized access.
- Next, you would need a secure internet connection with decent speed and bandwidth to aid the documentation process.
- Most importantly, you need a document generation software which is customizable to meet the specific needs of your export business.
Undoubtedly, you can take care of arranging mobile devices and internet connection. Hence, let’s elaborate on the software part.
Why a Cloud-based Solution Is the Best?
Needless to say, cloud is one of the most sought-after technologies of the current times. Running an export document management system on the cloud can offer you many advantages:
- Firstly, it brings in true mobility. You don’t need to be device-bound in order to access the software.
- Secondly, the software vendor would take care of things like upgrading the software. You absolutely don’t need to do anything in this direction.
- Thirdly, it saves installation costs and time as you won’t need to install copies of the software in each mobile device. Using the internet and the same login credentials, you can access the cloud software from each of your devices.
- Also, the complexities aspects like storage, data access, information redundancy and security are taken care of well when you switch to cloud.
Now, how to choose the right kind of software for your mobile device? In order to make the right choice, you can follow these tips:
- Refer to the official websites of various departments like the Department of Agriculture and the Customs and check which software solutions and vendors they recommend. It would help you choose the software with the best compatibilities.
- Go with a solution which offers comprehensive documentation, covering all important export documents and certificates. At the same time, the suite should be customizable so that you can pick only the features you actually require.
- Besides, it is better to choose a software which comes with a good mobile app as well. It would add more convenience and flexibility to the process, especially if you plan to use your tablets or mobile phones more often for document preparation.
- It is also important that the software is extremely user-friendly and simple to use. You may go with a vendor who not only offers training to use the software, but also a sound technical support to handle any glitches.
In short, you need to be careful in choosing what can be called a document control system software for a fully-organized documentation process. Only then, you can extract the best out of mobile devices you invest in for improving your overall business performance.