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Will a mobile office get you more business?

It might. It might not. But I think the real purpose for having a mobile office is convenience.

At least that's what I had in mind when I invested in the equipment needed to do mobile computing. It's about saving time, reducing stress, getting a job done in more ways than one, being more versatile, ... etc.

Peyton Colorado A couple of years ago I had a closing out in Peyton, Colorado. While I was driving back to Colorado Springs, I got a call to do a closing. As luck would have it, it too was in Peyton -- just a few miles down the road. But in order to do it, I would have to drive all the way back to my office in Colorado Springs, then drive all the way back out to Peyton.

There must be a better way.

If I could have retrieved the documents from where I was, and printed them in my car, I could have saved an enormous amount of time. I would have saved a lot on gas too. And I would have made some extra money. Because as it turned out, I had to decline the assignment. It would have taken too long to do all the things I needed to do. The company found another notary signing agent.

mobile office I have 2 closings this evening that are spaced fairly close together: one at 5 PM in Colorado Springs and the other at 8 PM in Fountain. There is a chance that I won't have the documents for the 8PM closing before I leave for the first closing. If the documents arrive after 5PM, I won't have to waste time driving back to my office. I can download the documents onto my laptop and print them in my car. I won't be under any stress, because I have a 'Plan B'.

And in the long run, I think that's the real value of a mobile office. It gives you more options, makes you more versatile, enables you to get more work done, reduces stress, and reduces the amount of driving that you have to do.

Good luck.

Posted by Leon Austin, Colorado Springs Mobile Notary on 06/27/2008 10:31 AM

Comments (7)

mobile office

7 Comments on Will a mobile office get you more business?

JUN

2008

I wonder about the wear and tear on a printer and other mobile items in the back of a van or car?

It gets so hot here, in Riverside CA, in the summer that I am afraid to leave anything inside the car.

One suggestion, is to get an account at Kinkos and have the emailed docs sent there and printed. They typically do the printing for about $.08 per page.

JUN

2008

I live in a relatively small community (Santa Clarita Valley) so running back home to print docs between signings is usually not a problem. It can get a little stressful though at times but it usually works out ok.

I've tried having docs emailed to Staples a couple of times and it was more trouble than it was worth. Staples was unable to print the docs because of the format they were in or so they claim. Anyhow, it never worked out. I've never tried Kinko's.

JUN

2008

For those of us in rural areas or that cover a large area (or both), this is a great thing. I have looked into myself.

It is also a good idea for those that cover an area (small) that has LOTS of business, like around a military base.

JUL

2008

Do most loan documents require a laser printer? I'm perplexed on how one carries a laser printer in their car. An alternative would be to charge the hiring entity for you to go to the closest FedEx/Kinko's store to print them out there?

I try to be as mobile as possible with my laptop, blackerry and a 2GB flash drive...but a printer..hm..

I have had a problem with the heat frying a printer I had in my trunk last summer. I am in North San Diego County and during the summer months it does get pretty hot. Just last week I had to copy a borrower's ID on a small printer/copier I had in my trunk. It was pretty hot that day and at first it printed very light but as the printer cooled down (the outside case was very warm) it printed darker. I knew the cartridge was good since I had just used it. I now take the printer out of my trunk if I am not driving around with the air conditioner on.

JUL

2008

I have a very resourceful and helpful husband that helps me in any way that he can. (wow...that was a lot of H's!)

If I am out during a signing and I get a call, I call my husband if he is in my office, to print out the docs for me and he stacks both packages neatly and clips them, until my arrival. This is especially helpful when I get sent 7-8 or more attachments, that take time. I then can go through the packages, make sure everything is there and in its place, then off to my next job. The printing part is done, and that helps to save a bit of time.

I am reluctant to have a printer in my car, because like Joan Bergstrom stated above, the hot weather in Riverside, CA is really relentless. 104+ outside of the vehicle...can only imagine the accumulated heat! It is a catch 22, though, because this really is a good idea!

JOAN-do you know if you can access your own email acct at Kinko's and then have docs printed?

JUL

2008

If you log into your email at Kinkos, they charge per hour to use their computer. If you bring your own laptop, it's very expensive (like $1 per page) to print. You have to email the docs to Kinkos for them to print them for you for about $.08 per page. I have tried this once using Office Depot (not Kinkos). The person printing was not that familiar with printing pdf files. When I arrived to pick up my docs, they weren't done yet. I had to show the guy which settings to set for the docs to print correctly (not shrunken down and on both letter & legal size). Overall, I still prefer to print at home if possible. Another factor is, if they are really busy, they can't always get the docs ready by the time you want to pick them up. I hope this helps.

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