Requesting document signatures can be a tedious task. You have to wait hours, sometimes even days before you receive documents from your clients or stakeholders. How about getting documents signed within minutes instead of waiting for days or hours? This has been made possible with electronic signature applications. E-signature applications are becoming a fast norm, not only in the South African corporate world but in SME businesses too. 

If you don't know much about electronic signatures applications, here's the perfect place to learn about them and the benefits of implementing an e-signature application into your business today.  

What do you have to lose? Try the simple, secure and legal E-Signature app for free today! 

Start your free Zoho Sign trial here.

What exactly is an electronic signature? 

An e-signature or electronic signature is an electronic form of data which can be used to execute signatures on electronic documents or records. This type of signature enjoys the same validity as the standard pen-and-paper signature. 

Electronic signatures are a legal way to get consent on electronic documents or forms to validate and verify a document in the same manner as a pen-and-paper signature would. It can replace a handwritten signature in virtually any process. 

Are electronic signatures legally binding? 

The short answer is yes. 

In South Africa, electronic signatures have the same legal standing as handwritten signatures if they meet certain criteria of technical reliability. 

For all situations where a document is signed by an electronic signature and where law does not prohibit the document from being signed electronically, the electronic signature will have the same presumption of enforceability as a handwritten signature.

Reasons why you should use an electronic signature application:

Simple & easy to use

The biggest benefit of electronic signatures is that they're simple and easy-to-use. Simply upload a document, declare signers and recipients and deliver a secure link to the recipient. The recipient signs the document and the process is complete. It's that easy! 

Real-time notifications 

Electronic signatures contain traceable information about who signed the document, when they signed it, and where they signed it. That's much stronger and more enforceable than your average paper-based transaction.

Get signatures faster

The convenience of electronic signatures means there's a much faster turnaround. Instead of sending a document to one party, getting them to print, sign, and scan it, sending it to the next party and then repeating the process down the line, everyone can sign off within seconds. This faster turnaround gives businesses greater versatility in time-sensitive situations and provides your customer with their desired product or service quicker.

Better user experience

No one can ignore that client satisfaction is a key factor which directly influences your the success of any business. Electronic signatures save clients’ time and make the whole signing process much more desirable for them. They can sign documents anywhere, anytime they want and using any internet-enabled device they prefer.

Our top pick for the best E-Signature application in South Africa:

Choosing the right electronic signature application can be hard, so we've made it easy for you and selected the best in the market for South African businesses - Zoho Sign. 

With Zoho Sign, you can securely sign, send and manage your business documents from anywhere in a few simple clicks. It's easy to use, quick to learn and simple to implement into your business. What's more, it's now available in ZAR, making it affordable for South African Businesses to adopt so you'll no longer be exposed to fluctuations in the Rand/Dollar exchange rate. Zoho Sign works completely in the cloud and is perfect for anyone that needs to sign business documents - ideal for HR, sales & finance departments. 

We've put together the most game-changing features, to help you make the switch to Zoho Sign today: