Save the Earth; Embrace the PDF – Find Uses for the PDF
Save the Earth; Embrace the PDF – Part 2
So now that you know how to save files as PDFs, it’s time to learn what to do with this new found knowledge. Whether you put it to use in your home or your office, I’m certain there is something you can digitally print to save money, time, and space.
Most people laugh in disbelief when they hear that I started out and ran my business successfully for two years without a printer. I did. It’s true. I’ve always been the type of person to denounce a need of such technologies mainly because I was too lazy to go out and purchase one, but my resistance here paid off, because I soon found the next best thing… the PDF.
Things that most people print – invoices, contracts, proposals, receipts, project documents – I saved on my computer and accessed digitally only whenever I needed them. I sent invoices to my clients (and still do today) via email and a pdf attachment. My clients can review the invoice, get the total due, write the check, save the invoice into a business expenses folder on their computer and drop the check in the mail (or pay online). It’s a win-win situation. The client got an invoice for his or her records and my business didn’t spend a penny. No paper, no envelopes, no stamps, no trips to the post office. When you send out 20+ invoices a month, all of those things add up.
Sure, there were definitely times when I needed to print something to have a hard copy or to sign and send back to a client, and those were the times when a printer would have come in handy. Instead, I just made a quick trip down to Kinkos with my jump drive in hand. I probably did that 4-5 times a year.
But I’m digressing here. I’m not saying that you should dump your printer. No, not at all. I just want you to start to think of new ways to send information without using paper. Make it a game and take it one step at a time.
Think of all of the things you send out of your office to clients, customers, business associates, and vendors. Is there something you can digitize? The following are some ideas:
- Invoices, contracts, proposals
- Project notes
- Receipts from online purchases or bills payments.
- Posters and other promotional items
- Manuals and how-to tutorials
The PDF isn’t the end of printing, because there are still many things that should be printed and people out there who have to print EVERYTHING. But using pdfs for everyday documents limits overall paper consumption and shifts the burden of paying for the printing to the person or party wanting it.
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Web Guru Tips, Tricks, and Inspiration » Save the Earth; Embrace the PDF – Cyber Storage — March 4, 2010 @ 12:30 pm
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By Britt, April 14, 2010 @ 2:12 am
Save the earth ,nice post.