E-Contract Tool Helps The Dunes Close More Business
The Dunes Golf and Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C., is one of the most sought after private clubs on the East Coast, but getting customers to sign and return catering contracts in a timely manner was an ongoing challenge. After spending hours printing, labeling, stuffing and mailing contracts to our customers, we could do nothing but wait — sometimes for weeks — for the documents to be returned. There had to be a better solution.
Our linen contractor, Cloth Connection, suggested that we try Sertifi — a 
company they use to automate and fast-track their contract-signing processes. The Sertifi platform entirely replaces the labor intensive paper process of obtaining signatures — sending, printing, signing and mailing — with a quick and affordable electronic signature method. The Dunes Golf and Beach Club had nothing to lose and everything to gain by migrating to an electronic platform.
company they use to automate and fast-track their contract-signing processes. The Sertifi platform entirely replaces the labor intensive paper process of obtaining signatures — sending, printing, signing and mailing — with a quick and affordable electronic signature method. The Dunes Golf and Beach Club had nothing to lose and everything to gain by migrating to an electronic platform. With 15 to 20 events booked for our members and discressionary guests each week in our 5,600 square foot Ballroom (which breaks down into two separate rooms, The Atlantic and Palmetto), I couldn't wait to get started with e-Sign from Sertifi. Because the program is so intuitive, I took a quick tutorial online and was up-and-running in less than one day.
Fool proof contract management
One of the best features of Sertifi is that it is web based. There's no learning curve and it's very easy to install. Although I also serve as the Club's Information Technology person, no formal IT traning was required to launch and use Sertifi. To send a document, I simply fill out a basic webmail form with the name of the person who needs to e-sign the document. After attaching the agreement, I simply hit “Send.” It's that easy.
Our members and discretionalry guests now receive their contract via e-mail, and reviewing the document, entering their electronic siguature and returing the finished contract takes only minutes. And, if they prefer to physically sign the document, they can print, sign, and fax the agreement back to us. Sertifi technology can scan faxed documents and track and store them for easy retrieval.
Another aspect that I really enjoy about Sertifi is its reporting capability. The system provides me with a listing of all documents that have been sent, and identifies those that have been signed and returned, and which are still pending. This simple tool enables me to pull the member's file and either make a personal phone call to follow up with the event planner or simply resend an invitation to sign the document.
The environmental friendliness of Sertifi also is a winner. By eliminating paper contracts, the Dunes Golf and Beach Resort has greatly reduced its paper costs while saving trees at the same time. Using a digital format versus sending documents through the mail has lowered our postage costs as well. Therefore, Sertifi not only streamlines our operation and gets business into our door faster, but it has enabled us to enhance our Club's sustainability program. That's key to maintaining existing membersships and attracting new business.
Close more business
It's been one year since we migrated from a manual process to e-sign from Sertifi, and it's been a great addition to our work environment. To date we have seen a 50 percent reduction in the amount of time it takes to get a contract signed and a 30 percent increase in the number of contracts returned since switching to e-sign from Sertifi.
Our clients are well adapted to the digital world and they tell us often just how much they appreciate the convenience of being able to electronically sign documents. For me, getting documents out the door faster means more time to book new business. Booking more business means more revenue to the bottom line from this department, thereby making me more valuable to management. Finally, I am more excited about doing my job than ever before, and it shows in my overall job performance.
Brooke Greenwood is catering assistant/information technology at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Brooke’s responsibilities include handling administration for the food and beverage department as well as implementing the Club’s website, social media outlets, and desktop publishing needs. She is currently a student at Horry-Georgetown Technical College majoring in the Digital Arts program. She has further plans of continuing to expand the Dunes Club’s I.T. and Graphic Design department to stay current with 21st century technology.