Digital Certificates - How are they better than Physical Certificates?

Digital Certificates - How are they better than Physical Certificates?

Tags
Physical Certificates
Digital Certificates
Comparison
Credentials
Published
Published July 1, 2021
Author
Raj Rathod

Introduction

In today's shifting landscape, which is dominated by automation, organizations must digitalize their core activities to avoid falling behind. The issuance of certificates is a fundamental activity for all universities, educational institutions, training academies, and numerous organizations that require a digital transition.
The certification process comprises all of the steps that an organization takes to provide certificates, including certificate designing, generation, issuance, and verification. Additionally, the organization must digitize all of these operations to obtain a digital certificate.

What exactly are certificates?

Certificate illustration
Certificate illustration
Certificates primarily serve as evidence of an individual's accomplishments and proficiency in a particular sector. They are awarded for a variety of purposes, including education and training, ranging from high school diplomas to training courses, tertiary and postgraduate degrees and certificates. Several of the most popular certifications include the following:
  • Certificate of Graduation - a document issued by universities upon successful completion of a particular degree.
  • Certificate of Achievement - presented to the honoree upon attainment of a significant milestone.
  • Certificate of Attendance - to acknowledge a person's attendance at any event.
  • Certificate of Completion of Course / Internship / Work Experience - awarded upon successful completion of a course / internship / training.
  • Certificate of Appreciation - awarded to employees / students for their excellence in the assigned task
  • Medical certificates - issued by medical officer confirming the state of someone's health.
  • And many other miscellaneous certificate types.
 
Each of these credentials is critical to an individual's success because they are essential for official and public recognition as well as favorable career possibilities. Almost many organizations, however, use a paper-based certification procedure, which has several flaws that jeopardize the certificate's purpose. This necessitates the use of a digital certificate, which is not only a preferable alternative for resolving all of the issues connected with physical certifications but also aligns with the organization's purpose of staying up to date with technological advancements.

Digital certificates:

Digital certificates, as the name implies, are electronic representations of physical (paper-based) certificates. Everything on digital certificates is digitally branded, from the organization's insignia to the signature of the issuing authority, and they are delivered and stored on hard drives or email accounts indefinitely. Due to the digitalization of the certification process, organizations can now issue digital certificates.

Benefits of digital certificates:

1. Efficient

A well-designed time management strategy is necessary for an organization to improve its efficiency. However, the certification procedure comprises printing, signing, badging, packaging, and shipping, and accomplishing these tasks might easily take at least one full day, and thus one full day of labor performed by the individuals doing the activities adds minimal value to an organization. Digital certificates eliminate these hassles and are generated in the following manner:
  • In record time
  • With numerous template options
  • There is no sunk cost fallacy, as all digital certificates may be updated at any moment with a single click. Keeping in mind the adjustment request so that it may be completed quickly
All of this improves the organization's efficiency by not only saving time but also by allowing employees previously assigned to such mundane tasks to be assigned to more strategic jobs, hence increasing productivity and employee happiness.

2. Minimal overheads

Digital certificates enable organizations to save a large amount of money on certificate issuance. Printing, shipping, and packing are significant components of these costs; other elements include physical storage space for paper records, labor costs, physical document management, and other unique requirements and responsibilities associated with Physical Certificates. These costs can soon add up to five figures for many organizations. Whereas the cost of digitizing certificates only comprises of subscription fee for a platform that assists with digital certificate management.
Organizations bear no additional expenditures, and the money saved can be used to expand the organization.

3. Easy delivery/distribution

Unlike physical certificates that are dispatched, which might take days to reach recipients and have no guarantee of arriving on time or at all, digital certificates are provided in the shortest amount of time feasible since they are:
  • Directly mailed to the recipient.
  • Sent in bulk with a single click
Since the certificates are not posted, any associated risks like tampering, theft, or loss in transit are eliminated.

4. Convenient

Unlike physical certificates, digital certificates are:
More accessible since no physical storage is required, eliminating the time to locate it.
  • More accessible since no physical storage is required, eliminating the time to locate it.
  • Simple to share; includes choices for mailing, issuing within the app, and posting to social media sites like LinkedIn.
  • Portable since they are in digital form and accessed from anywhere.
  • Less stiff, With no sunk cost fallacy since updates may be made to all digital certificates at any time with a simple click.

5. Environmentally friendly

Despite significant technological advancements and advancements in automation, a paperless university may sound like a utopian dream, but with the majority of activities occurring virtually, it is becoming a requirement. The digitalization of the certificate will radically reduce universities paper dependence as issuing certificates is one of the major causes that entails tons and tons of paper for some large universities. Additionally, plastic is utilized for premium physical certificates that are no longer necessary. As a result, digital certificates can assist businesses in reducing their carbon footprints.

6. Secure and verifiable

Certopus incorporates this feature into digital certificates since ordinary digital certificates are insecure and unverifiable, much like physical certificates. Certificate's security and verifiability are inextricably linked; the more secure the certificate, the more verifiable it is. Physical certificates, as we all know, are incredibly insecure, complicating the verification procedure. Employers may require official documentation from the receiver to verify the certificate or may need to contact the issuer for verification, complicating and lengthening the verification process. As a result, Certopus resolves these concerns, benefiting a large number of people, the issuer, the recipient, and the employer, by:
  • Uploading the certificate file on the verification portal and getting results within seconds.
  • Scanning the badge on the certificate that comprises a QR Code and data for which we validate the integrity
Our verification procedure ensures that your certificates are tamper-resistant, so you never have to worry about their legitimacy being compromised.

In Summary

The digitization of the certification process helps both the issuer and the recipient. Universities, educational institutions, and all other bodies that provide certificates profit from this since it allows them to:
  • Minimize economic cost.
  • With a single click, you can generate a large number of certificates and send them in record time through Certopus.
  • Keep and deliver recipient certificates in a safe, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly manner.
  • Rectify the certificate content without any effort.
  • Eliminate the risk of identity fraud.
As a recipient, it allows you to:
  • Receive your certificates in secure digital format
  • Access all of your certifications with a single click.
  • Share certificates to employers without worrying about the verification procedure.
  • Own all of your certificates in perpetuity and never request or pay for a transcript from your university again.
  • Compile and organize credentials from various organizations.
 
Certopus enables organizations and recipients to reap these and several other benefits.
 

Do you want to find out more?

Schedule a demo to learn more about Certopus for business, or if you have any questions, please contact us. We would be delighted to assist you. Finally, if you're on social media, follow us to remain informed about our latest developments and to learn more about digital certificates.