Benefits of eSignatures when Signing PDFs?

We’ve been relying on pen and paper signatures for centuries, even dating back to the founding the United States. It’s an easy and effective way to authenticate someone’s identity and therefore express consent. But in today’s digital age, how do we harness the power of technology to replicate the authority of a handwritten signature? This is where the benefits of eSignatures enter the digital world.

Yes, you can still print, sign and file a physical copy of a digital document, or copy and paste an image of a signature onto your document. But neither of these processes fit fluidly with digital workflows. In fact, both can be jarring speedbumps as we strive toward streamlining workflows.

That’s where the benefits of esignatures come into play.

Electronic signatures, digital signatures or e-signatures, are a key piece to the digital transformation puzzle, helping companies complete remote, domestic, and cross-border agreements at unprecedented rates.

PDFs have been around for over three decades and are the most widely used electronic document format in the world. PDFs are easy to create, view, and share, making them the perfect format for agreements and contracts.

However, PDFs are not electronically signed, meaning that companies have to print out documents and have them physically signed by all parties involved. This can be a time-consuming and expensive process, particularly for cross-border agreements.

Benefits of eSignatures

Electronic signatures, or e-signatures, are a key piece to the digital transformation puzzle, helping companies complete remote, domestic, and cross-border agreements at unprecedented rates.

Foxit’s Esign leverages powerful e-signing tools to help industries like finance, real estate, and law to realize quicker turnarounds thinks to e-signings. PDFs can be easily converted into e-signature documents with Foxit Esign, making the entire agreement process faster, easier, and more efficient.

And because e-signatures are legally binding in over 180 countries, you can be confident that your electronic agreements will hold up in court. 

As electronic signatures come of age, here’s what you need to know about using them:

E signatures are Legally Binding

• Legislation has passed in the United States (UETA and ESIGN), the European Union (eIDAS) and many developed countries. These countries are recognizing the validity of an e-signature. These rulings have helped pave the way for e-signatures to be valid under law, including requirements for the level of e-signature you are permitted to use for certain scenarios. With the exception of a few special situations, e-signatures are legally admissible in courts.

Both the US and the EU practice an open-technology approach, meaning there’s no law requiring the usage of specific signing technology for producing legally binding e-signatures. 

Sign Anywhere, Anytime.

One of the biggest hassles of pen and paper signatures is the inevitable tedium of moving paperwork. Or worse, paperwork getting lost. E-signatures greatly simplify the process. You can sign a document electronically no matter where you are. All you need is an internet connection and access to a computer, laptop, or mobile device.

For many businesses, this level of efficiency is hugely valuable because there’s no need to wait on paperwork when closing a deal. You can complete time-sensitive agreements on the spot. Without asking customers to engage in extensive paper processes that risk slowing down, or even losing a sale.

• Obtaining a handwritten signature can often hold up a complex and time-sensitive process such as a business deal—and no one wants that. E-signatures makes it so much easier to get authorization from all parties. Rather than waiting on physical papers to arrive, you can electronically sign the document. And all of this can be done as soon as it hits your inbox. Your e-signature immediately triggers the next step in the process.

Customizing and printing a document for every transaction is a time-consuming process. Document workflow automation instantly generates a customized copy that can be quickly e-signed by a counterparty, all based on an internal legal template.

Save Time and Money

• Automated document processes powered by e-signatures minimize the manual steps involved in signing a contract. You can rely on e-signing to execute contracts in a snap. There’s no need to wait for printed documents to travel around the country, or around the world. It’s all done instantly on a computer or mobile device.

Signing documents electronically not only eliminates manual steps, but also saves a great deal of money. Consider both the monetary and environmental costs of paper, ink and physical transport. The practice adds up quickly if you process a lot of documents. You can avoid all those expenses altogether by using e-signed agreements.

Companies can leverage Foxit’s Esign completely paperless process and its strong e-signature integration. This can form a very cost-efficient and environmentally-friendly solution.

Improved Security

• Digitized paper processes leave behind an auditable trail. This goes for electronic signatures too! Giving you a clear view of when and where a document was signed – and exactly who signed it.

Electronic signatures are logged throughout the document process and can be fully archived. So you can actively track the process and refer back to completed transactions. In contrast to paperwork signed in print, risk in losing track of agreements that are e-signed remain minimal.

With both PDF Editor and e-signatures, it’s clear to see how the combined technologies save money, reduce document process headaches and improve security.

If you’re already a Foxit PDF Editor user, you can easily add e-signatures to your PDF forms using Foxit’s Esign. Just sign into Foxit Esign directly from within PDF Editor and simply drag and drop sign and date fields onto your PDF. After that, send the finished document to your intended recipient to sign and you’re free to enjoy all the benefits of esignatures!