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Advantages & Disadvantages of Fax Machine Communication
by M.T. Wroblewski; Reviewed by Jayne Thompson, LLB, LLM; Updated February 05, 2019
1 Fax Etiquette
2 What Is Data Fax Imaging?
3 Save a Fax to a PC
4 The Definition of Employee Communication
So your employees heard you say that your next move is to send a fax – as in fax machine. And now you can hear them laughing. What's next? Composing a message on a typewriter and taping a picture from a Polaroid One-Step camera to the paper? Let them enjoy their moment of frivolity. Fax technology may seem ancient but it deserves some credit in the Workplace Hall of Fame for being among the first contributors to "verbing." (Other office/computer nouns followed to become verbs, including "bookmark," "Photoshop" and "Google.") While there are disadvantages to fax machine communication, there are advantages that help keep it as relevant as a desktop calculator.
Stifle Those Fax Giggles with Facts
The first "electric printing telegraph" was introduced in 1843, though the fax machine as most people think of it today did not begin to revolutionize the way businesses communicate until the late 1980s. The first "Internet fax," which allowed people without fax machines to send faxes via a computer, debuted in 1996. Today, many people refer to them as electronic faxes.
Thanks in part to the popularity of three-in-one office machines that print, copy and scan documents and pictures, fax communication has remained a fixture in small and large business alike, defying repeated forecasts of their demise. There are many reasons why, and the advantages are especially relevant to small businesses.
Advantages of Fax Machine Communication: Low Hacking Risk
Computers and emails can be hacked and infected with malware and ransomware. By contrast, to intercept a faxed document, a hacker must attack at the precise moment of transmission, which is unlikely. No technology is infallible, but contrasted with computers, fax machines are safer and more secure.
Fax machines are preferred by regulated industries that rely on hard-copy documents, such as healthcare, law and government. "E-signatures" created on a computer might pass muster with many businesses, but not those that prize customer or patient confidentiality.
Other Fax Advantages
A fax machine can be configured so that it becomes a business' "portal of record" – logging and archiving every document that comes in and goes out. As such, faxes may be preferred by business people who believe recipients pay greater attention to paper documents than emailed documents they may not even open on their computer.
Fax communication is embraced by more than older users who like the ease of sending a fax. Businesses in other countries – Canada, Israel and Japan, for example – consider fax communication to be essential
Scan the Unpleasant Facts About Fax
No technology is above reproach – not even the smartphones and social media that may be favored by some of the employees on your staff. In fact, they may be among the first to call out some of the drawbacks of fax machine communication:
Fax machines require vigilance – if not direct supervision – in sensitive environments so that anyone walking by does not see the documents that arrive and may pile up.
If your fax machine is still tethered to a landline, it may not be the most convenient communication option in your repertoire, especially when you're far away from the office.
Fax machines tied to landlines are limited in the sense that they can receive only one message at a time. So if a sender repeatedly receives a busy signal at your office, he will have to stand by and wait for the line to become free. By contrast, an online fax service can process many documents at once.
An online fax service allows faxes to be sent via the web, email, desktop software or even a smartphone app. But the process can be cumbersome and difficult to navigate, especially if you're not in the habit of using it frequently. Like any other piece of machinery, fax machines require maintenance. Depending on how much you rely on a fax machine, the cost of paper, ink and toner can add up quickly, especially if the number is on the receiving end of over-active solicitors. The use of all that paper can be an irritant to environmentally conscious people in particular. They may consider electronic faxes to be "greener" and more practical.
Only you can decide whether fax communications have a place in your small business – for your customers, vendors or other associates. And if your decision to keep the technology in place doesn't play like music to your employees' ears, tell them it's not a streaming device they hear. It's your Walkman.
Fast Fax Facts: A Brief History of the Fax Machine
Higgins International: History of the Fax Machine
Business.com: Why Business Are Still Sending Faxes in 2018
Classic Business Products: Why are Fax Machines Still Used, Anyway?
eFax Corporate: The Top 10 Reasons Companies Continue to Fax in 2017
Entrepreneurship Life: Advantages and Disadvantages of Fax Technology Today
PC World: Send Faxes From Home Without a Fax Machine or Landline
TechFeast: 5 Reasons to Ditch Your Bulky Fax Machine
Carrier Bid Communications: 10 Reasons to Ditch Your Fax
Mary Wroblewski earned a master's degree with high honors in communications and has worked as a reporter and editor in two Chicago newsrooms. Then she launched her own small business, which specialized in assisting small business owners with "all things marketing" – from drafting a marketing plan and writing website copy to crafting media plans and developing email campaigns. Mary writes extensively about small business issues and especially "all things marketing."
Wroblewski, M.T.. "Advantages & Disadvantages of Fax Machine Communication." Small Business - Chron.com, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-disadvantages-fax-machine-communication-23477.html. 05 February 2019.
Wroblewski, M.T.. (2019, February 05). Advantages & Disadvantages of Fax Machine Communication. Small Business - Chron.com. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-disadvantages-fax-machine-communication-23477.html
Wroblewski, M.T.. "Advantages & Disadvantages of Fax Machine Communication" last modified February 05, 2019. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-disadvantages-fax-machine-communication-23477.html
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