The development of the economy leads to increased competition, in which management uses all available means, including data rooms, to improve the quality of the company’s activity. So, how to compare and choose the best data room vendor? Here are valuable tips.
Does your company need data room software?
The business has been aiming to create a completely paperless office for several years. As the popularity of cloud-based file-sharing systems grows, this dream is slowly becoming a reality. Today companies move their daily business operations into virtual data room platforms. This software suite combines scanning, storing, organizing, and searching for files with functionality for collaborative work on them, forming a complete system that meets all possible document management needs of a company.
At the technology level, a data room is a set of applications connected by single business logic and integrated into the company’s corporate information environment based on a single database. This full-packed software automates relevant business processes in marketing, sales, and service. Thus, the introduction of the data room software is much more than just a business development project: it is a corporate transformation program that includes a huge range of business, human and organizational issues in various areas of activity where the enterprise operates.
What are the top considerations in data room comparison?
So, what to look for when choosing a data room provider for your business? First of all, you should focus on the individual needs of the company and its capabilities. Also, when selecting a provider, you should pay attention to the following factors:
- Interface convenience
Each service has its own set of tools and a different interface. Some are limited only to basic functionality, such as signing and sending a document, while others offer ample opportunities: creating a departmental structure, setting up a route for several recipients, defining user roles, etc.
- Storing multiple versions
Because different users can modify the same documents, the question arises as to what changes the user made to the document. Therefore, it is also sometimes important to view the entire history of document changes: when and who edited the document, and what was corrected in the document. Some electronic document management systems store all versions of documents to solve such problems. Each version indicates the author of the changes, and the date of the changes, so you can always find out when and what changes were made.
- Automatic notifications
When working with documents, users change their content and the content of document cards. Electronic document management systems can send notifications to users when documents of interest to them change. Such notifications contain a description of the essence of the changes made, an indication of the author, and a description of the task within which the changes were made.
- Price
All data room vendors offer different tools and prices, from free services to monthly or yearly subscriptions. To choose the most convenient service, use the free trial period, which almost all providers provide.
- Compatibility
Most data rooms allow you to work through a regular Internet browser without installing specialized software. Thanks to this, users can work with documents from any device and at any time.
- Availability of a support service
If necessary, the service support manager can personally help the user quickly understand all the tools or answer important questions. This service is especially important if the data room has a wide functionality you plan to use actively.
- Functionality
This criterion is assessed by whether the system has both a standard set of functions (submission of reports, external and internal document management, etc.) and the presence of unique functions (reporting calendar, counterparty verification, mobile application, etc.).