Enterprise customers who focus on SAS-70 vendors realize that not all SAS-70 certifications are the same.  AssureSign, like some other electronic signature vendors, provides customers with the security of running their cloud-based, or SaaS, offering in a SAS-70 Type II environment.  However, other signature vendors merely host their application on other systems, located in someone else’s SAS-70 data center.  That’s great, they are SAS-70 Type II, but there is more to SAS-70 Type II certification than outsourcing your data center.  Which is why AssureSign runs our own Tier 4 (highest possible type) SAS-70 Type II data center.

AssureSign takes it to the next level.  First, we have explicit control over uptime – our own enterprise class, fully redundant (also geo-redundant) in-house data center is SAS-70 Type II certified, offering a Tier 1 level of reliability, providing our customers 99.994% uptime over the last 4 years!  Secondly, we take it to the next level with enterprise-wide SAS-70 Type II certification.

Obtaining enterprise-wide SAS-70 Type II certification means that ALL aspects of AssureSign have a specifically defined tested process and we’re audited annually to assure we adhere to those processes.   This certification includes all internal processes and systems such as software/code development, quality assurance, soft releases, human resources and billing.  Just as important are all customer facing processes such as sales, training and customer support.  The all-encompassing certification means that the way we develop our industry-leading applications and deploy them on our owned and controlled servers while supporting them in certified processes ensures the best possible level of service.

This is important to us and should be more important to our customers.   In order to provide a true enterprise-class SaaS offering, all aspects of the business need to operate in an enterprise class environment at all levels.  This is certainly exemplified by our ever-expanding enterprise-level customer base, who see the value in enterprise-wide SAS-70 Type II certification and, more importantly, understand and appreciate the difference between AssureSign and any other electronic signature vendor.

AssureSign and sister company 3PV have over 10 years of experience in providing SaaS applications, having processed 30 million transactions and over 100 million unique ‘signature events’ and we will continue to lead the field in enterprise class offerings in products, features and customer support.

AssureSign has been bringing tightly integrated electronic signature solutions to LexisNexis Insurance Solutions customers since early 2009. Sop by the LexisNexis booth - #237 - at the ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum for a demonstration of our joint capabilities. At the booth, you will learn how LexisNexis customers can increase sales, mitigate risk and decrease cost by automating the signature process with an all-electronic solution from AssureSign.

Last month, AssureSign and Duck Creek Technologies announced a partnership that offers industry leading biometric and certified electronic signature solutions to Duck Creek customers. The preintegrated solution speeds the deployment of an electronic signature solution that will increase sales close ratios, enhance agent productivity and provide seamless document tracking and transmission. Stop by the Duck Creek Booth - #639 - to see first-hand how Duck Creek has integrated AssureSign into their policy administration and sales automation applications.

Overwhelming adoption and acceptance of the AssureSign biometric mouse-based signing process leads one to wonder why you would implement an electronic signature solution any other way.  At first glance it may seem awkward and uncomfortable, but just as those signature pads in retail stores felt ‘different’ not so many years ago, they are now ubiquitously deployed and no one gives them a second thought as they have become part of our culture. 

As AssureSign users know, we offer the choice of biometric or typed ‘certified’ signatures (representing your signature as a font).  An overwhelming majority of users, more than 90% of AssureSign customers, use the mouse-based signature option.  Both options are equally ESIGN and UETA compliant, each capturing the same metadata and forensics around the signature process for compliance and non-repudiation.  So, why does our user community overwhelmingly select biometric signatures?  Quite simply – it looks like a real signature and most closely replicates the pen and paper process.

Feedback from customers and partners has been overwhelming as well.  In fact, several of our customers came to us after using other electronic signature solutions because their signatures were not accepted by third parties such as financial institutions and government agencies.  When documents signed electronically look like a real signature, rather than a ‘font-in-a-box’, third-party acceptance dramatically increases.  This is why other vendors are launching campaigns to challenge financial institutions and the federal government to accept their electronic signatures, which in fact, do not look like a real signature.   There is no need for this – just use mouse-based signatures and documents will be much more widely accepted.

One of our favorite customer quotes comes from Drew Hyde of Aurora Lifetools, who said “AssureSign Saved Our Company! ...to our horror, the Federal Government refused to accept E-Signatures over 90% of the time. In other words, we could not get paid without ‘real’ signatures.   We found AssureSign, and literally, their product has saved our company. Their Biometric Electronic Signature solution captures ‘real’ signatures similar to the pads in retail that everyone is familiar with.”

We are flattered that other electronic signature vendors who offered certified signatures have begun to have similar offerings as well as newcomers launching with mouse-based signatures.  This certainly further validates our industry-leading position on this important aspect of electronic signature deployment.   

To experience the biometric signature process simply visit www.assuresign.com and Try It Now, selecting the biometric option or enroll in one of our free webinars at www.assuresign.com/webinars.html.

Well, things have slowed down a little after an exciting Dreamforce and the Thanksgiving Holiday and it’s time to reflect back on our experiences at Dreamforce 2009!

First, thanks to the thousand-plus customers, prospective customers, partners and monkey-seekers for stopping by to visit with us at our booth and at our partner’s booths, Riptide and BigMachines.  Many of you got to see first-hand the new, game-changing offer in AssureSign Verbal Agreements, plus see how our enhanced integration is the most streamlined way to get electronic signatures launched (verbal or written) and processed within Salesforce CRM.

One of the most exciting things was the resounding endorsement of Verbal Agreements.   We all know that electronic signatures speed up the document execution process, but what if you can gain an equally ESIGN and UETA compliant verbal agreement while you still have the customer on the phone?  Since we have been doing this for years outside of Salesforce CRM it was only logical to extend our offering.   We had many telesales, trading and not-for-profit organizations interested in these applications.

As electronic signatures become more widely accepted the most frequently asked question was “how is AssureSign different from other vendors?”  Well, it’s pretty straight-forward and was easily demonstrated....

·        We, along with all AppExchange electronic signature vendors easily and seamlessly integrate with Salesforce Realtime Quotes – of course there are differences in all vendors.  AssureSign’s document launch is more streamlined and transparent... Of course there’s more...

·        There really IS something to be said about signing with a mouse – it is familiar to signers, it looks like a real signature, is more broadly accepted, is equally ESIGN and UETA compliant and simply a better way to do it.  Why would anyone want to use a font to represent your signature?  Why would a third party accept a font-based signature?

·        AssureSign is the most transparent signature solution on Apexchange – you can completely brand the entire signature workflow so a signatory would never know they are using a 3^rd-party signature application

·        AssureSign offers the ability to pre-sign documents by originators within the Salesforce CRM application – no need to leave Salesforce AND countersignatures are also accomplished without email, within Salesforce.  This creates a single user experience for complete document execution.

·        Immediate signing within Salesforce CRM – for field personnel with tablet PC’s or hand-held devices, signatures can be done face-to-face for field representatives

AssureSign would like to thank Riptide Software and BigMachines for their support and endorsement of AssureSign by demonstrating our application in conjunction with theirs in their respective booths. 

We look forward to upcoming Salesforce events and of course, remember to sign-up for one of our webinars to learn more.

And, lastly, please remember to take a minute and tell us 'where they are now’. In this season of giving and reconnecting with those we may have lost touch with over the last year, we at AssureSign would like to take this opportunity to get back in touch with some friends we haven't spoken to in a while.

We adopted out several monkeys at Dreamforce 2009, and would like to know more about where they now call home. Is your monkey in the loving arms of a child? Or sitting on your desk ready to cheer up a coworker on a rainy day? We will be setting up a "Where Are They Now?" blog, on which we will be posting updates from our long lost friends. If you know a monkey you'd like to see featured on the blog, please send us a picture and/or any information you have about its whereabouts. Keep checking back to read about other monkeys and their travels across the country and the world.

It feels great to be known as leader and innovator.  It feels even better, and it’s very flattering, that our competitors have replicated some of our popular features this year.  With ground-breaking firsts including biometric signature capture with a mouse, data collection in the signing process, the ability to completely embed electronic signatures in existing applications with 100% customer branding (no receiving emails from some unknown or unexpected source) and the ability to sign remotely and in-person, we are very excited to offer the next game-changing offering with AssureSign Verbal Agreements.

Customer acquisition – getting the contract signed faster – is one of the greatest benefits recognized by electronic signature users.  With new verbal agreements, you can speed that up even more – no waiting for emails to arrive, waiting for the customer to open and sign, you can now secure their verbal agreement while you still have them on the phone – it simply could not be faster than that!

Using the latest in speech recognition software and systems, AssureSign customers can now capture a legally binding, ESIGN and UETA compliant, verbal agreement with just a click of the mouse.  The company representative simply makes the request from their desktop, dials an 800-number and creates a conference with the AssureSign system and their customer.  By answering a few simple identification and compliance questions, a signatory can agree to terms and conditions and sign verbally.  The recording of this agreement, in its entirety, is captured, stored and retrieved in the same way as a written agreement that is electronically signed.

Customers can also secure a verbal agreement or commitment and follow-up with a traditional written agreement that is electronically signed.  Serenity Insurance has been doing this combination since 2006 and has increased their policy close rates by 65%!

You are probably asking, “Is this for real?”  Well, of course it is!  With more than 26 million written and verbal agreements to-date, AssureSign remains the industry thought leader and innovator and the ONLY electronic signature vendor to be enterprise-wide SAS 70 certified (not just our data center)!

The game has changed again – and we can’t wait to show you our new verbal agreements.  Contact us today to schedule a demonstration or come see us at Dreamforce 2009!

 

Not to sound cliché as this has certainly been used a lot this week, but AssureSign will take a ‘Giant Leap’ next week when the new AssureSign for Salesforce CRM 2.0 is released.  Since inception, the power of AssureSign has been recognized most when integrated with existing business processes.  AssureSign’s API capabilities via DocumentNOW® and DocumentTRAK™, allowing our ability to dynamically create documents for signature from ‘other systems’, has always been at the core of our customer implementations and has contributed to their success with AssureSign.  AssureSign was the first electronic signature solution to create documents dynamically using Salesforce data fields; the first to offer the ability to sign in-person from within Salesforce and the first to secure biometric signatures using a mouse.

So, what is the giant leap?  Well, we believe that AssureSign will be the first and only electronic signature AppExchange partner to have 100% ApexCode integration along with a VisualForce user interface.  AssureSign has completely redesigned its Salesforce Integration Tool by replacing custom S-Control code and integration with a 100% ApexCode.  This means a much cleaner, broader, deeper and tighter integration with Salesforce.  AssureSign customers have always enjoyed comprehensive integration, but here are some highlights that are new or improved:

• New look-and-feel leveraging VisualForce
• Dynamically create documents with fields from ANY Salesforce tab or custom object data
• New views and UI for in-person signing or counter-signing (also known as immediate presentment of documents)
• AssureSign-side Wizard for exporting completed documents back into Salesforce or other data stores
• Ability to initiate workflow upon receipt of document status change OR completed documents via AssureSign-side Wizard
• Easy to select data elements (fields from any tab or custom object data) for integration with dynamic document creation via AssureSign templates and workflows
• New views of document progress status and ability to create unique dashboards
• Easier Setup and ‘New Release Update’ reminders

Look for more information next week as AssureSign takes a ‘giant leap’ when AssureSign for Salesforce CRM 2.0 is officially released.

As I have said many times in my entries – the ‘electronic signatures’ market is a very exciting place to be.  Electronic signature solutions are being adopting more rapidly than ever before and AssureSign’s growth is astounding.  Customers and Partners continue to compliment us on flexibility, ease of setup, ease and sophistication of integration and ongoing support – all things we are very proud of. 

These are great reasons to be excited, but another, which also happens to be very flattering, is to see how other product offerings in the market are starting to take notice – not only are our customers seeing where the market is going,  other vendors are enhancing their products to include features that we have had for years!  We have always believed that our customers (and theirs) should have options in the way they initiate and sign documents.

• In 2003, AssureSign (then under the 3PV brand) was the first electronic signature vendor to work with the FCC to provide an ESIGN-compliant Electronic Letter of Agency (eLOA®) for our voice service provider customers.  It is still provided today, as it was the genesis of our product offering.
• In 2006, AssureSign was the first to offer a signing process that replicates pen and paper – stepping a signatory through a document and placing signatures where they belong, not just on the top or bottom of a page or ‘creating a type-written signature’ or rubber stamping a signature throughout a document.
• In 2006, AssureSign was the first to collect a mouse-based signature requiring no add-on software or hardware- the market and others vendors seemed to really like this one!
• In 2007, AssureSign was the first to offer customers the choice of per-document or per-seat pricing models.
• In 2007, AssureSign was the first web-based/SaaS application to provide multiple signatories in a document – in series or parallel. 
• In 2007, AssureSign was the first to provide email templates and custom workflows to notify interested parties of the status of documents.
• In 2007, AssureSign was the first to provide custom signature and data collection points in a document (known to us and our customers as JotBlocks).
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to offer an open API and Toolkit for partners and customers, known as DocumentNOW®.
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to offer web-based document creation – signing documents while in the same web-session.
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to merge data from Web or CRM applications (such as Salesforce CRM) onto AssureSign templates and send for signature.
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to provide immediate presentment for face-to-face signing scenarios that did not require email notification.
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to expose document status to Web or CRM applications (such as Salesforce CRM) for tracking of document workflow.
• In 2008, AssureSign was the first to introduce Flying Screaming Monkeys to trade shows and customers - if you’ve received one, email us to tell us where your monkey is now.
• In 2009, AssureSign was the first to provide a sophisticated Security Best Practice initiative with flexible rules for each customer implementation.
• In 2009, AssureSign was the first to offer data output and integration back to external applications from data collected in the signing process.

And the firsts will continue; by year’s end, AssureSign will be the first to have enterprise-wide SAS-70 Type II certification (not just our own world-class in-house data center, but the whole enterprise).  If you know SAS-70 you will certainly appreciate this initiative!  In a few months, we will be the first electronic signature vendor to be integrated with Salesforce using 100% Force.com Apex code.  We will also release our new DocumentTRAK™ API that will provide an easy to use GUI and ‘Wizards’ to post document status changes to just about any external application.  We’re glad that the competition appreciates the same features our customers have always enjoyed.   Follow the leader – follow AssureSign.

 

Electronic signature solutions have been around since the ESIGN Act of 2000, yet they have been a part of Salesforce AppExchange for only a couple of years. Why did it take so long for electronic signatures to become an integral part of CRM applications? There is an easy answer – web-based tools and platforms. It has not been until the last couple of years that electronic signature solutions became available to the masses in a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, with easy integration to CRM applications via web-services, XML, SOAP and the like.

AssureSign has the most sophisticated and thorough document creation and electronic signature process available today for Salesforce CRM users. AssureSign is the only application that can map Salesforce data fields into document templates, creating unique documents and then route them for signature. Taking the valuable CRM data that is relevant to the ‘account’, ‘opportunity’, ‘contract’ or any other Salesforce CRM tab and creating dynamically unique documents means minimal input from users. All activities are initialized within salesforce.com and there is no need for users to enter any other application.

No other AppExchange solution offers signature options as strong as AssureSign. There can be a single signatory or a virtually limitless number of signatories in a workflow, and documents can be signed in series or parallel. Oh, and the signature, well it can be a biometric mouse-based signature or a ‘certified’ typed signature; and they can be mixed within a document signing workflow. AssureSign is the only mouse-based signature solution on AppExchange – providing a wet-like signature and a sense of ‘really’ signing a document. AssureSign documents can also collect unique data from signatories during the signature process and insert them into the document.

Oh, and we’re not done yet… In-person or face-to-face sales, can be accomplished with AssureSign “Immediate Presentment”, which allows a Salesforce CRM user to have a document presented right to their PC, laptop or tablet PC, within Salesforce, so they can get the deal signed without the need to send an email. All the back-end workflow, including multiple signatories, is also supported.

Lastly, if you can’t report on the workflow or know where your documents are in the signature process it’s no better than fax or overnight, so AssureSign exposes all the document forensics to you within Salesforce CRM. You will know when each signatory has reviewed, signed and/or completed documents with time stamps and detailed signatory forensics such as email address, IP address and more.

AssureSign for Salesforce CRM is available for integration via the Salesforce AppExchange. Integrate AssureSign today with Salesforce CRM or any other legacy system for a shorter, more efficient signature cycle.

All AssureSign customers realize the value of signing documents online – speed, efficiency, integration with existing business processes, more control over the process and, of course, the cost savings.  The insurance industry could be considered an early adopter of web-based signature applications such as AssureSign.   In fact, some of our very first customers were insurance agencies. 

One such agency, Serenity Insurance, began using AssureSign late in 2006 and realized immediate, tangible benefits as their capture rate went from 20% to 33% - a 65% improvement! – because their agents could “close the deal” while on the phone.  During the call the agent e-mails the policy for mutual review and execution; any questions or concerns are immediately addressed, the customer signs with their mouse and the deal is closed.   There’s no need to print the policy and then find a fax machine or stuff it in an envelope, and the traditional obstacles of overnight fees, postage, “lost in the mail” and additional “shopping” are eliminated.  For Serenity implementing a web-based signature solution offered the following benefits: (1) Elimination of geographic boundaries which allowed them to easily expand into new regional markets, (2) Increased revenue without increasing staff due to higher close ratios and process efficiencies, (3) Seamless integration with their existing customer capture-and-fulfillment process, (4) Increased agent confidence in policy execution and (5) Increased customer confidence in Serenity. 

This is just one example of the benefits recognized in processing insurance-related documents.   Some additional applications include:

• Integrate with existing web portals for customer self-service
• Support for P&C, Life, Commercial Lines and Specialty Lines
• Policy initiation
• Policy renewal
• Claims processing

To learn more email us at sign@assuresign.com or attend a FREE webinar that reviews these applications and provides a demonstration of some of AssureSign’s capabilities. Sign up today!