Posts Tagged ‘Fax Machine’

« Older Entries

Internet Fax Troubleshooting – Possible Problems That May Arise With Your Email Faxing Services

January 28th, 2010



Internet faxing lets you receive and send faxes by attaching the documents to your email or using an online form. There is no need of hardware purchase, no paper cost at all, and the privacy of the faxes are ensured. Using internet faxing is easy, but there are some first time users who may face a sight difficulty. For instant, here are some of the possible problems that may arise when sending out or receiving email faxes.

Problem 1: The internet fax provider has billed you even though it’s a flat free service and you are under the minimum limit of faxes that your plan includes.

The most reasonable explanation to this problem is that the user might have forgotten to prefix ‘1′ before entering the fax number. For example of you were to enter 3065281548 as a fax number, then the fax service interprets the 30 as a country code and tries to place the call as an international one. Now the problem is that most services do not accommodate international calls and thus the user is billed. The problem can be solved by prefixing 1 before all US bound faxes. The service provider can always be consulted for international rates.

Problem 2: It has been almost half an hour and your fax has not reached the recipient yet.

Internet faxing is fast because it saves the user the trouble of printing the document out, walking over to the fax machine and sending the fax out. In the case of internet faxing what happens is that the document is sent to the service provider first, who converts the document into a fax and send it to the recipient. This entire process can take anywhere from 2-15 minutes. The time taken is dependent on various factors such as number of customers, numbers of ports your Internet fax provider has, what time of the day it is etc. This is the reason why there is sometimes a delay in the delivery or reception of faxes.

Problem 3: You just signed up and you already have a load of junk faxes in your account.

Every 30-90 days most Internet faxing service providers recycle numbers from old users. When you get one of these fax numbers it is likely that you will receive faxes from spammers. This is not uncommon. The only real way to fix this problem is to hit the delete key when you receive such spam.

If you were to face any serious problems or you have any real concerns as to how the whole operation works, just reach for the phone and dial the customer care of the service provider. That should take care of whatever problems you might be facing.

By: Phil Anderson

No comments »

Posted in Article

Tags:

Internet Fax And Your Small Business

January 13th, 2010



Operating a small business can be a very worthwhile venture for any individual seeking financial independence. Mainly because a small business can be the source of a full or part time income for any entrepreneurial person who desires to put in the work and effort to make it prosper.

With the advent of the World Wide Web operating any type of small business has suddenly become available to anyone wishing to fulfill their dream of financial liberation. The Internet has opened up a whole realm of possibilities that never existed before the Information Highway became more than just a figment of Al Gore’s imagination.

However, starting any business (big or small) does take some initial capital or funds to get started. Setting up an office or workplace, even if it’s located in one’s own home, does take some ingenuity especially if funds are limited.

Despite limited resources, most budding entrepreneurs will realize presenting and projecting a professional business image is extremely vital to the success of any business. More importantly, your patrons, customers and clients must be able to reach you with one click of the button or mouse.

Using Internet Fax is one way of achieving this professional image for your small business. Internet fax is simply using the Internet and your current email system to send and receive faxes anytime, anywhere. You receive a local or Toll-free fax number for your business and an online interface (site) where you can store your faxes. Internet fax is quickly becoming the way business faxing is done.

Plus, one of the biggest advantages of using Internet fax is the low set-up costs: there is no extra phone line and no cost of a fax machine. If your faxing requirements are very modest you can even get a fax service for under $20 a year!

Another advantage of using an online fax service is accessibility, as our businesses and our lives become more mobile, we want to be connected at all times. Internet fax gives you this quick connection to your business and to your customers, no matter where you are or the time of day.

Using Internet fax with your small business is simply a smart way to proceed. Lower costs, easy accessibility, convenient and efficient… these are some of the reasons most start-up businesses are using or switching to Internet fax for all their faxing needs.

The different Internet fax service providers have many affordable plans and services available to any business. Most fax business services are completely scalable, as your business grows your faxing requirements can be easily adjusted to match your needs.

Most fax services also offer fax broadcasting and a whole range of communication services should your growing business require them.

There are many well known fax service providers. The major ones you have probably heard of before: eFax, MyFax, Trustfax, Send2Fax, RapidFax… however, there are other smaller fax service providers you should be made aware of if you’re looking for a fax service for your business.

For example, don’t ignore smaller fax service providers such as MetroHiSpeed out of Seattle, or Faxage out of Denver… you might find you get more personal service with a smaller company rather than with a larger company which handles millions of clients.

Regardless of which fax service you choose for your small business, make sure you find one that suits your needs and it is a service which you are comfortable using. Make sure you shop around and compare the different companies and plans. Don’t forget you’re purchasing a long term business service, any savings will be greatly multiplied over the long haul — so choose wisely.

Just remember, starting up any business can be a daunting task but with the proper tools and services that task can be made easier. Using Internet fax should be one option that is at the top of your list mainly because the rewards and benefits are well worth it.

By: Titus Hoskins


No comments »

Posted in Article

Tags:

Internet Fax Providers – What to Look For Before Buying?

December 13th, 2009



Internet Fax is known by many different names such as email fax, online fax, electronic fax, e fax or even digital fax. Regardless of what you call it, Internet Fax simply means using your email system and the Internet to send and receive your faxes via email attachments usually in PDF or TIFF formats.

You have an online interface (site) where you can not only store your faxes but also where you send and receive your faxes. In addition, many providers will let you fax thru a desktop application or directly thru your email program.

Internet faxing has become very popular mainly because it is relatively inexpensive and it lets you send and receive your faxes anywhere, anytime. It is more secure than theold fax machine and since it is web based, you can basically fax wherever you have Internet access and these days that’s just about everywhere.

If you’re looking to purchase an Internet Fax service you will probably consider some of the more popular brand name online fax providers such as MyFax, eFax, RingCentral, RapidFax, TrustFax, Send2Fax, MetroFax and Faxage.

However, choosing an Internet Fax service does take some consideration, especially since this is usually a “long-term service” and even a small difference in price can add up quickly over the long haul. So here are some certain common features and qualities that you should look for before buying or signing up to any one fax service.

1. Overall Quality Of The Fax Service

The overall quality of your chosen fax service is very important to consider. You want a reliable service with a minimum of problems. Your online faxing should be seamless and hassle-free; with any issues quickly answered or solved. Checking customer reviews and ratings will give you some idea of the quality of the different fax service providers. Test-driving a service will give you a better view.

2. Good Reliable Customer Support 24/7

You want good customer support that’s available 24/7. Again, if you should have problems, they should be taken care of in a timely fashion. Check the Support hours — most companies have
24/7 service but not all.

3. Competitive Pricing

There are countless fax plans and services so it pays to shop around for the best price. But again, look first for a quality service instead of just choosing the cheapest rate. Consider the number of pages (incoming & outgoing) which you will receive with the monthly fee. Check what’s being
charged for overage or extra pages. Also remember, buying with an annual plan can save you up to 25% or more.

4. 30 Day Free Trial

Most Internet Fax Providers give a 30 Day Free Trial so take advantage of this offer to test-drive a service. Try before you buy. Some companies also offer one month free but you only get this on your second month into the plan.

5. $10 Monthly Fee

The average monthly fee is around $10. Some plans offer a small annual fee of around $20, which should be considered if your faxing needs are very minimum. There are also some services where you pay around $4 per month with no free pages, you buy faxes as you need them.

6. No Set Up Fee

Most but not all Internet Fax services have no set up fees. Check your service plan before you sign up. Keep in mind, it might be worth your while to pay a start-up fee if the service you’re getting is worth it.

7. No hidden Fees

Most fax services do not have hidden fees but you must ask or check before you buy. Make sure all your faxing costs are up-front and you can check these costs at any time. Some companies will notify you when there are extra charges over your regular limit.

8. Around 300 Combined Pages (Incoming & Outgoing)

There are different amounts but most companies have around 300 combined faxing pages included in their plans, this includes incoming and outgoing faxes. If you do a lot of faxing, it pays to shop around for the best service with the largest number of faxes each month.

9. 10 Cents Per Minute for Extra Pages

The average for extra pages is around 10 cents per minute but again it pays to shop around. Also
note, some companies quote rates in pages, while others quote in minutes… for pages it is assumed that it takes 1 minute or less to transmit your fax, however, with large faxes it may take longer.

10. Local and Toll-Free Numbers

Check what type of Fax Number you will be receiving, Local or Toll-Free. Check to see if there are any extra charges for the Toll-Free number.

11. Online Interface & Storage Capacities

Most companies have an online interface (site) where you can send and receive your faxes. But each will have different storage amounts and different lengths of time you can keep your faxes online. This is important if you plan to keep your faxes for a long time or if you want to store large quantities of faxes online.

12. Scalable Business & Corporate Plans

Most fax providers offer corporate faxing plans that are completely scalable to meet your growing company’s needs. Also check for special rates if you will be doing any large volume fax broadcasting or you’re operating a large amount of fax numbers within your company.

All of the above features should be considered when buying your Internet Fax service. Some of these will vary depending on your own faxing needs or requirements; but always keep in mind, you’re looking for a good reliable service that offers quality faxing at a competitive price. Do a little homework now and it can pay big dividends down the road.

By: Titus Hoskins

No comments »

Posted in Article

Tags: