A New Spin on Old Communication: Apps You Need to Know About

By Uloop Guest Writer on November 10, 2016

Communication has come a long way. But are some channels of communication becoming obsolete? After all, no one sends telegrams anymore. Will faxes be next?

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When was the last time you had to send a fax? If you can’t recall, you’re not alone.

Fax machines are seemingly outdated, but they do come in handy in many different business scenarios, especially where forms and contracts have yet to be completely digitized.

For example, copies of important documents are often faxed between agencies rather than emailed or mailed. For the sender, faxing is as easy as (or easier than) making a photocopy or scanning each sheet in order to convert it to a PDF. For the receiver, faxing eliminates the need to open a file and print it, or to walk to the mailbox; it’s printed right there on the fax machine as soon as it is sent.

When you think about it, fax machines are actually pretty useful if you need to share a large volume of printed documents day in and day out. For those who don’t deal with so much paperwork, though, fax machines are an unnecessary expense.

In fact, you might dread the thought of needing to fax something: “Are you sure I can’t just email it to you?” Why is faxing so aggravating to some of us? Perhaps it’s because we don’t all own a fax machine. Suddenly, the ease of communication inherent in a fax machine is completely lost. We have to hunt down a fax machine to take care of this errand. Does a friend have one? Does a friend’s workplace have one? How about the library? Do they have fax machines at the UPS Store?

What should have been a quick exchange of information has turned into quite the quest. And all because someone couldn’t (or wouldn’t) accept an email.

Faxing Apps Are the Answer

Luckily, we can all have our cake and eat it too when it comes to faxing. Apps like eFax make it possible for anyone to send and receive faxes without a fax machine.

It’s called an Internet faxing service, and it works by connecting emails to fax machines and vice versa. It’s very simple to use: if you want to send a fax, you simply send the document as an email. The document is relayed to the recipient’s fax machine and is delivered like any other fax.

You’ll be assigned your own fax number for receiving faxes. However, when someone sends a fax to that number, the document is actually delivered directly to your inbox. How convenient is that?

Being able to quickly send and receive faxes will give you a polished, professional appearance when you want to send out resumes or cover letters, submit scholarship and grad school applications, share business proposals, and more.

A Professional Impression Doesn’t End With Fax

As you prepare to step into the world of business — especially if you plan to start your own business – a professional phone service can make an excellent first impression on leads and recruiters alike. An app like eVoice can provide you with a call menu, which allows you to direct callers to different numbers based on their needs. You can organize your voicemail inbox or ring an entirely different phone line at certain times of the day. And thanks to a sophisticated talk-to-text system, you can even receive voicemails as emails, allowing you to stay focused at your computer or to keep the library ultra-quiet as you study.

A virtual phone system also gives you the ability to have multiple phone numbers but operate them all from the same phone. The app downloads to your phone and has its own dialing pad that you use to make outbound calls.

Save Time With Mail Notifications

Email is clearly the central form of communication for many people. Just think about how many emails you send each day versus how many phone calls you make or faxes you send. So it makes sense to be able to send a fax from your email or receive voicemails in your inbox.

It also makes sense to get notifications about snail-mail as well.

If you have a P.O. Box that might go for days without actually receiving mail, it’s annoying to waste time checking it every day. Your ability to sign up for notifications will entirely depend on whether your mail system even offers such a service. But most national post offices are keeping up with the times and have integrated such technology into their catalog.

Your university might do the same for your school mailbox. If so, it can be a wonderful time saver and stop you from worrying whether a package has arrived; you’ll know exactly when you need to swing by to get your mail.

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