Tattoo shops can see anywhere from 1,000 to 7,300 clients or more on an annual basis, which translates to a lot of consent forms. The paperwork becomes tedious fast, and physical copies can take up unnecessary room.
Luckily, owners in the modern age can use digital software to simplify the process. The shift to paperless systems offers several benefits that not only enhance operational efficiency but also improve the overall client experience. Here are some of the greatest pros we’ve witnessed with paperless consent forms during our years of experience in the tattoo industry.
Streamlining Administrative Processes
Digital consent forms can help tattoo shop owners streamline their admin processes. For starters, it keeps valuable money in your pocket that would otherwise go toward stacks of paper and ink. In fact, printing supplies can cost your business upwards of $1,200 per year. Not to mention, the consumption of paper continues to increase and impact pricing annually.
Aside from saving money, here are a few other impressive ways paperless consent forms can streamline operations:
- Time Efficiency: Digital forms can save you and your clients time. These can be filled out at home or in-shop quickly with the click of a few buttons. The form requests all necessary customer information in one convenient section – tattoo descriptions, inspiration photos, consent to procedure, proof of ID, signatures, etc. This reduces tedious admin tasks and allows your artists more time to do what they love.
- Simplified Storage and Retrieval: Paper forms can stack up fast, leaving you with minimal space to store them. File cabinets cost an arm and a leg, and it can cause major headaches finding one name in an endless sea of forms if the need occurs. Luckily, digital forms all remain in one software and you can use the built-in search feature to find the one you want right away.
- Easy to Share: It’s a legal obligation to share these signed consent forms with your clients, and a digital system makes it simple. They just provide you with an email or phone number, and you can send the completed document straight to their mobile device. This eliminates the need to use more ink to create copies.
Enhancing Client Experience
As an owner, you know client satisfaction is one of the biggest objectives for your shop. It creates loyalty and returning business, especially when it comes to tattoos. Digital consent forms are a great way to make the visit better and more efficient for your client.
When they book an appointment, you can send the form directly to their phone and let them sign it at home. The form can even redirect them to your website or social media so they can check out common questions, read through pre-appointment checklists, or draw inspiration for their tattoo from your socials. This can provide much-needed comfort and speed up the process on the day of the appointment.
Your digital system can also store each client’s preferences based on their form inputs. This is extremely beneficial when providing a personalized interaction.
Improving Accuracy and Compliance
Another benefit of paperless consent forms at your tattoo shop is the ability to improve accuracy and compliance. As humans, we’re bound to make errors in day-to-day data entry. Digital forms reduce the likelihood of errors or illegible handwriting. It also makes it nearly impossible to lose important documents because they’re all stored on an online platform.
While physical paperwork easily becomes outdated, digital systems automatically update forms to ensure compliance with the latest legal and health regulations.
You can also rest assured because a digital audit trail makes things 10x less complicated in the event of legal conflicts or inspections.
Enhancing Data Security and Privacy
The cost of a data breach is estimated to equal $4.2 million for businesses globally. That could completely collapse your tattoo shop. Here’s the good news – secure digital forms not only ensure compliance with data protection laws, but also mitigate the financial risks associated with potential data breaches.
These online systems are encrypted and keep your shop in line with protection laws such as GDPR. They also significantly reduce the risk of losing or misplacing sensitive client information.
Supporting Environmental Sustainability
Paperless consent forms are an easy way to support environmental sustainability. Traditional paper forms contribute significantly to waste, with millions of sheets discarded yearly across industries. Shop owners can reduce their carbon footprint simply by switching to digital.
While this may not be your primary motivating factor, it’s a great way to help the planet and relate with clients who value environmental sustainability.
What Features Should a Digital Form System Include?
There are a few crucial features shop owners should look for when choosing a digital system. We’ve listed each one below with brief explanations.
Storage For Client Information
A functional digital forms system should include one secure location to store all client information. This could include contact information, medical history, tattoo preferences, etc.
Post-Edit Options
A post-edit feature allows artists to add information to the form after it’s signed. This can come in handy when including ink/lot expiration dates. Some counties require artists to file these details on each consent form, and your digital system should make it easy to comply with these rules.
QR codes
You should also be able to print QR codes that link walk-in clients to their necessary digital forms. This makes the process fast and easy – even when the unexpected happens.
ID Upload
Digital platforms that allow clients to upload their IDs make the consent process much better for you and the customer. It helps you store the card on file without the need to take the license in the back and make copies.
Conclusion
Paper consent forms are quickly becoming a practice of the past, and not without good reason. Digital forms streamline the admin process, enhance the client experience, and improve accuracy. Shop owners will also notice better protection against data breaches and better alignment with environmental sustainability standards.
All of these benefits help you say goodbye to tedious tasks and hello to more money. By saving on expensive printer supplies and paperwork storage costs, you can free up the funds for things that really matter to you and your artists.
At Keep The Fees, we provide an all-in-one online suite for tattoo shop owners just like you. Our software has several notable features, including all-in-one client information storage, QR code integration, pre-filled forms, and so much more. We help you take control of your admin process so you can focus on creating memorable tattoos. Reach out today for a free demo of our tattoo shop digital forms system or take it for a spin with a free trial!
