Saturday, August 21, 2010

Send Hard Paper Mail From Anywhere In The World!

Think of this... You are sitting on the lanai of the condominium you have rented in Kaanapali, Maui. You are enjoying your morning cup of Kona coffee, while reading the paper that the concierge delivered to your front door. The grass of the resort golf course is cut close against the concrete edge of your patio. You follow the swath of green to the ocean less that a quarter of a mile away. Off to the side a sprinkler runs, with soothing metronome pace. The air is still and warm. The setting is calm and peaceful. You are relaxing. Life is good.

Out of necessity you call the office and check your voice mail. You return a couple of the calls. One is a new client, with a case that can prove very lucrative to you. She is ready to sign a contract and get a retainer check to you. Primacy is everything! You don't want to wait a week until you are back in the office to mail her the paperwork. What do you do?

Not to worry, there is a easy solution....

Jay Fleishman is a real innovator when it comes to practicing law remotely and when it comes to operating a virtual law office. He is also a tireless promoter of technology to make your law practice work better. I am a passionate fan of his posts on his Legal Practice Pro blog. Here is how Jay solves our snail mail quandary:
One of the problems I have encountered when trying to work remotely is being unable to send traditional paper mail. Jay has identified the tools to solve this problem. Here is his great article on a great internet resource called SnailMailr.com.

Everything’s online these days. My email’s here, my files are scanned and accessible here, even my faxes come to me by email. The circle, however, is incomplete.

Some days you need to send out a piece of paper through the old-fashioned US Postal Service.

Well, maybe not. There’s this cool service called SnailMailr.com. The premise is so gloriously simple I nearly broke out into cheers when I heard about it. You type in a return address, then type in your recipient’s address. Once done you can either type a message for inclusion or (glory glory!) upload a PDF for them to print in 4-color (that’s full color, folks). Pay $0.99 for up to two pages (including the postage stamp) via Amazon’s payment mechanism and you’re all set.
This isn’t a substitute for serving litigation-related documents (but you already use CertificateOfService.com, right? RIGHT?), nor is it a really good idea for mass mailing needs. But for the times when paper mail is the only option, this may be a winner.

For example, you’re on vacation and speak with a new client. You need to get out a retainer agreement but the client doesn’t have email – or doesn’t have a printer so he or she can sign the document. With SnailMailr you just upload the PDF and it gets mailed. You go back to drinks with umbrellas on the beach, client gets the retainer for signature, and the world is good.

Sure it’s $0.99 to send out two pages, but it includes all the grunt work involved with sending out mail (print it, fold it, lick the envelope, affix the stamp, get to the mailbox) and it’s full color. Not a bad price overall, I think.

Please click here for Jay's original article.

By the way, I have used SnailMailr myself, and it is great!

Please visit hardinglaw.com for more information of Harding & Associates Family Law

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