Paperwork can cost your small business time. A job that could have been started right away could get stopped because you realize a document is missing.
Which may hold up your next task. Most small businesses do not have extra employees to run around and get documents.
By improving your document turnaround times you can allow your business to function faster. That includes contracts, employee forms and time-sensitive affidavit notarization.
Learn More:
- How paperwork can affect your business
- Notarizing documents and why you should plan ahead
- Documenting tips to speed up your workflow
Why Paperwork Takes So Long
It seems harmless to have a document waiting in your inbox. But what if something is waiting on that document to proceed?
Your supplier could be waiting on that contract to ship materials to you. Your accountant may need that document to close out taxes. Or maybe it’s your customer that is waiting on paperwork to begin.
These are some of the many reasons why you want your document turnaround times to be as fast as possible. There can be wasted phone calls, lost time and more to come if you’re not working efficiently.
Paperwork and compliance takes valuable time away from small business owners. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Index, 29% reported spending increased time or resources on compliance in Q3 2026.
Allowing paperwork to take over your day could impact your ability to serve your customers. Assign tasks to those who can handle them and set time frames to complete them.
Know What Your Notary Will Need From You
As mentioned above, there are certain documents that will require notarization. If you are notarizing an affidavit you will need to know what the notary will need from you. An affidavit is when a person makes a declaration that is sworn to be true. If the affidavit requires a jurat, then you must swear or affirm to the truthfulness of the document before a notary public. The notary will then ensure your identity and witness you signing the document per the laws that apply to your situation.
Affidavit notarization should not be left to the last minute. Make sure you know who will be signing, what document will need to be presented and find a notary that can accommodate your time frame.
If your signer is unavailable during normal business hours you can look for a notary open on Sunday. This can help your business accommodate documents that need to be signed outside of the regular hours. Be sure to confirm that the notary is open on the day you need them and what their location is.
When looking to book your appointment ask yourself these questions.
- What does the document require? Ask whoever is receiving your document what they need the notary to use. Some documents may be used in other states, so you want to know what certificate they are looking for.
- Who is going to be signing and what ID will the notary need? If you are doing a jurat make sure the person is able to sign at the time of your appointment.
- Do you have enough time before your deadline to book an appointment? Make sure the notary is able to perform what is requested of them and that you have plenty of time to complete your task.
- Is remote online notarization available? Check whether remote online notarization is allowed under the applicable rules and whether the receiving party will accept the result.
If you need to have something notarized by Monday morning, you don’t want to find out your notary didn’t use the proper certificate.
Speeding Up Your Document Turnaround Time
Say you got a new contract from a customer. They want to pay you for a service you are ready to perform. You just need that contract signed and returned to you to proceed.
You may not feel comfortable buying supplies or assigning an employee to the task until that contract comes back to you. Which can cause you to lose time for the week you are trying to work on that project.
Now say you have a workflow that allows you to send that contract to your customer quicker. They receive it and know they have until a certain date to return it to you. Once they do, it can be routed to the next person in line.
Of course you want to give your customer time to look over your terms and conditions but you want to help expedite the process on your end.
This can help your business stand out to your customers as well. If they know that they can work with you and get their document back quicker they may be more inclined to keep you in mind for future projects.
Same with your customer’s documents that you may need. Making sure they know what they need to fill out and get back to you will allow you to move forward with your business. Some documents may need to be notarized or have extra information filled out.
Each document is different and some may allow e-signatures while others may require more documentation to be signed in front of a notary public. Don’t assume that everything can be e-signed.
Your Customer Will Appreciate It
People like to know what they need to do when they are given a task. Especially if that task involves a company.
Imagine getting a contract that doesn’t tell you what you need to do. You don’t know what to sign or where to send it back to. You could end up wasting more time just figuring out the process.
Help your customer out by letting them know what you need from them. Send them the information they need and have them sign and send it back to you by a certain date. Give them an opportunity to ask any questions they may have.
Have someone on your team keep track of what documents you have outstanding, what has been returned and approved.
Don’t rush your customer to sign something they may not understand. Make sure they have enough time to read over the document and reach out to an attorney if they need assistance.
Documenting Turnaround Tips
There are many ways to improve your document turnaround times. Here are a few tips that can help you get started.
- Have standard templates that you can use for all of your customers. Make sure that it is up to date and reviewed by a professional if necessary.
- Have someone designated to send out documents and make sure they are being completed.
- Know what documents you need from your customer and who will be signing them. Do you need any witnesses or will it need to be notarized?
- Follow up on your documents before they are due. This can help if you need to resend any missing pages or reach out to your customer if they are unavailable.
- Store your documents somewhere safe and secure. Only allow those who need to see the documents to have access to them.
These are some of the steps you can take to speed up your document turnaround time. Remember to not collect any unnecessary information from your customers. Only ask for what you need and keep that information secure.
Track Your Results
You want to make sure that you are improving your document turnaround times for a reason. Pick one type of document that you send out frequently and keep track of when you send it out and when you receive a usable copy back.
Keep notes of what you may be missing when it comes back to you. After a couple of weeks see if you are noticing any patterns with your documents coming back to you.
Maybe your customers are not understanding what you need from them or one step is taking longer than the others. Fix your biggest issue first and see if that helps with your process.
Perhaps adding a check list to your documents can help reduce the amount of time you spend correcting them. If your customer continues to make the same mistake it may be best to change your document or information you provide them with.
Remember you want to reduce your turnaround time but still receive a usable document from your customer.
Final Thoughts
There will always be things that you need from your customers or suppliers to complete tasks. By allowing yourself to get documents to them quicker and having them complete it in a timely manner will benefit your business.
Give your customer clear instructions and make sure you are following up on any documents you have sent out.
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