Electronic signatures have completely changed the game when it comes to closing deals and finalizing agreements. No longer restricted by geography or physical documents, modern businesses are using eSignature solutions to accelerate contract processes and collaborate more effectively.

TeamWave offers a built-in electronic signature feature that makes it simple to get documents signed in just a few clicks. Integrated directly into TeamWave’s project management and document collaboration platform, eSignatures enable users to send, sign, and manage signatures right within the app.

In this post, we’ll explore the benefits of electronic signatures, provide statistics on their rising adoption, outline key use cases, and demonstrate how TeamWave is making eSignatures accessible for teams of all sizes.

The Benefits of Electronic Signatures

Electronic signatures deliver a wide range of advantages over wet ink signatures. Some of the top benefits include:

• Faster turnaround times – Documents get signed in hours or days rather than weeks. The average contract completion time with eSignatures is 80% faster than with paper.
• Increased security – Electronic signatures are more secure than wet signatures with encryption, audit trails, and identity verification.
• Improved accuracy – eSignatures eliminate errors from illegible signatures or misplaced signatures. The average error rate is 26% lower.
• Reduced costs – eSignatures cut costs by removing printing, scanning, faxing, and shipping of documents. On average, businesses save $36 per document.
• Better collaboration – All parties can sign instantly from any device rather than routing paper contracts back and forth.
• Environmental benefit – Going paperless with eSignatures saves millions of trees each year.

With these advantages, it’s no wonder electronic signature adoption has been skyrocketing.

The Rise of eSignatures

While electronic signatures have been around for decades, recent years have seen massive growth thanks to new regulations, advanced verification methods, and wider SaaS adoption.

Consider the following statistics:

• The global electronic signature market will reach $6.1 billion by 2025, up from $1.1 billion in 2019. That’s a compound annual growth rate of 31%.
• By 2025, over 75% of business-to-business transactions are expected to be digitally signed.
• In the U.S. alone, over 60% of documents are now signed electronically as opposed to wet ink.
• 73% of businesses have an e-signature policy in place.

Several factors have fueled this rise, including:

• Government regulations legitimizing eSignatures – Laws like ESIGN Act (U.S.), eIDAS (Europe), and EECA (Australia/NZ) have made eSignatures legally valid.
• Advancements in identity verification – Solutions like SMS, knowledge-based authentication, biometrics, and ID capture ensure signers are who they claim to be.
• Growing SaaS adoption – Cloud solutions have made eSignatures accessible to organizations of all sizes without large upfront investments.
• Cultural shifts due to COVID-19 – The pandemic necessitated digital alternatives as businesses adapted to remote work.

With the right policies and technologies now in place, electronic signatures have hit mainstream adoption and become a standard way of doing business.

Common eSignature Use Cases

Electronic signatures streamline a wide variety of common business processes. Some top use cases include:

• Sales contracts – eSignatures accelerate deal completion by allowing buyers and sellers to finalize agreements digitally. Sales cycles can shrink by days or weeks.
• New employee onboarding – From offer letters to tax forms, HR teams use eSignatures to onboard new hires completely online. eSignatures reduce contract completion time by up to 80%.
• Insurance applications – Insurance brokers leverage eSignature solutions to bind policies fast without paperwork. eSignatures cut application completion time in half.
• Mortgage lending – Mortgage lenders use eSignatures to close loans quickly. An eMortgage closes on average in 25 days while paper mortgages take around 50 days.
• Lease agreements – Landlords and property managers use electronic signatures on leases and renewals to start leases faster.
• Contractor agreements – General contractors digitally route subcontractor agreements to speed project timelines.
• Patient intake forms – Healthcare providers reduce patient wait times by sending intake paperwork ahead to be signed electronically.
• Non-disclosure agreements – HR and legal teams quickly get NDAs signed by new employees, contractors, partners and vendors.
• Government/Public Sector – Government agencies can improve constituent services by enabling citizens to sign applications and forms online instead of in-person. Electronic signatures save time and resources.
• Higher Education – Universities use eSignatures for enrollment agreements, financial aid documents, transcripts, and more. It speeds up admissions and enrollment processes.
• Banking – Banks leverage electronic signatures for account openings, loan applications, wire transfers, and other financial transactions requiring consent.
• Real Estate – Real estate agents and brokers get offers to purchase signed instantly instead of having to track down clients for wet signatures.
• Nonprofits – Nonprofits use eSignatures to get donor agreements and fundraising event waivers signed seamlessly. It reduces paperwork costs.
• Auto Sales – Car dealerships get buyer motor vehicle contracts signed right on the spot without having to print and scan contracts.
• Telehealth – Doctors use electronic signatures for patient intake forms, consent forms, prescriptions, and other healthcare documents. It enables remote healthcare delivery.

The use cases are practically endless. Any process that requires signatures is a prime candidate for electronic signatures.

How TeamWave’s eSignatures Work

TeamWave stands out from other electronic signature solutions on the market by incorporating eSignatures natively into its broader work management platform.

With TeamWave, users don’t need to toggle between apps to create documents, send them for signature, and manage approvals. The entire process happens in one place:

Create Documents

TeamWave equips users with powerful content creation tools to craft professional-quality documents including sales contracts, onboarding paperwork, NDAs, and more.

Users can start from scratch or choose from a library of expertly-crafted templates. Dynamic fields allow users to pre-populate documents with data from TeamWave’s CRM to save time.

Send for eSignatures

Once ready, users simply click the eSign button to initiate the signature request process.

TeamWave lets users customize the signing order or request parallel signatures. Email invites are automatically sent to gather legally binding signatures.

Sign Documents

Signers receive an email notification with a link to securely review and sign their documents within TeamWave. They can sign by typing, drawing, or uploading an image of their signature.

TeamWave also supports advanced identity verification through SMS and knowledge-based authentication.

Manage the Process

Within TeamWave, users have full visibility into the real-time signature request status. They can check signature progress at a glance or receive email alerts when signatures are complete.

If needed, users can also cancel signature requests or re-send invites with a single click.

Get Legally Binding Signatures

Completed documents receive a tamper-evident seal showing they were electronically signed.

All activity is recorded on a detailed audit trail for added security. Documents can be downloaded as PDFs or in other formats.

By consolidating the entire eSignature workflow into one platform, TeamWave makes it effortless to go from document creation to signed agreement.

Key Capabilities of TeamWave eSignatures

TeamWave packs an impressive lineup of capabilities into its built-in electronic signature solution:

• Legally valid eSignatures compliant with eSignature regulations
• Customizable signing workflows: single signer, multiple signers, and parallel signing
• Real-time signature tracking and email alerts
• Tamper-evident seals and detailed audit trails
• Identity verification via SMS and knowledge-based authentication
• Signer attachment and annotation capabilities
• Support for common document formats: PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint
• Seamless integration with TeamWave’s broader platform
• Mobile signing support lets signers review and sign anywhere
• Custom branding on signing emails and pages
• API support and Zapier integration
• Detailed eSignature analytics and activity logs

With these capabilities, TeamWave provides a complete end-to-end electronic signature solution tailored to modern work.

Who Can Benefit from TeamWave eSignatures

TeamWave’s built-in eSignatures are designed for a breadth of industries and teams, including:

Sales Teams
Accelerate deal completion and shorten sales cycles by getting purchase orders, contracts, and approvals signed faster.

Human Resources
Streamline onboarding and get new hire paperwork signed electronically from offer letter to I-9s.

Legal Departments
Speed up vendor, partner, and client agreements with easy electronic signatures.

Mortgage Lenders
Reduce loan closing times by getting borrower consent and documents signed digitally.

Insurance Firms
Bind new policies instantly by having applicants sign applications electronically.

Property Management
Start leases faster by getting lease documents and addendums e-signed by tenants.

Contractors
Quickly sign subcontractors and get approvals to move projects along faster.

Healthcare Organizations
Eliminate patient wait time by getting intake forms signed in advance.

Any business that frequently routes agreements for signatures can benefit from TeamWave’s seamless eSignature capabilities.

Get Started with eSignatures on TeamWave

Electronic signatures are rapidly becoming the new norm as organizations recognize their power to accelerate business processes. With COVID-19 expediting the shift to digital, eSignatures are now a must-have solution.

TeamWave makes it easy to incorporate eSignatures into your workflows with powerful built-in capabilities purpose-built for modern teams.

To learn more about streamlining your document processes with electronic signatures on TeamWave, sign up for a free trial.