Document exchange services

A white wall is almost entirely covered in pink and green, and some yellow and orange, post-it notes. Each note contains black writing that takes up most of the space on the note.

Photo by Paula Rey on Flickr (licence)

As a writing and editing business, Red Pony had always relied on email for document exchange and project management, especially since many of our clients are located in other cities and sometimes other countries.

But when we started to encounter the occasional file transmission and storage capacity problem at both ends of the communication chain, we went looking for a better solution.

There are a number of project management applications with a file exchange component available. They range from very basic ones you can use for free, to paid services that incorporate extra features and a greater degree of flexibility. We use Basecamp (basecamphq.com), for which we pay a small monthly fee. This online project collaboration tool enables us to establish document version control and facilitate client communications.

Version control is vital in any large editing project, and all sorts of problems start to arise when different versions of different documents are flying between a dozen different people using a variety of email addresses. Having a central point for document exchange backed by a simple and documented process for its use can save you hours of work trying to track down the latest version of a document containing those vital changes. It also prevents your inbox getting clogged with large files.

Using a central point for document exchange ensures that you and your collaborators are always on the same page – literally.



Peter Riches

Peter is a technical writer and editor, and a Microsoft Word template developer. Since 2006, he has been the Managing Director and Principal Consultant for Red Pony Communications. Connect with Peter on LinkedIn.

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