Many Notaries are cautious about remote online notarization (RON) because it’s strange and unfamiliar — but you may not know RON is bringing some surprising benefits to Notaries as well. We asked remote online Notaries how RON helped their business, and here are 3 examples:

1. RON prevents the spread of COVID-19 during notarizations.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are concerned about catching the disease from in-person meetings — including notarizations. Because remote online notarizations allow signers and Notaries to communicate remotely without physical proximity, RON eliminates any risk of the virus spreading during a notarization appointment. Herb Guinup, a remote online Notary in Tampa, Florida, said requests for his RON services have increased dramatically since the COVID-19 crisis started.

“I get 3 to 5 calls per day from people asking for RON services,” Guinup said. “Because of COVID, people are concerned about going out and being exposed to the elements.”

RON has enabled Guinup to perform urgently needed notarizations safely for signers with high-risk health issues. For example, he has been contacted by signers in nursing homes who need insurance or Medicaid documents notarized. Bringing a Notary into the facility to physically notarize carries a risk of COVID-19 exposure, but thanks to RON, Guinup has been able to notarize for these customers without any danger of spreading illness.

2. RON helps Notaries work more efficiently and reduces expenses.

Another benefit is that RON eliminates many time-consuming and costly requirements for traditional mobile Notary and NSA assignments, such as travel time, fuel purchases, and having to print documents for loan signing assignments.

Removing the need for Notaries to drive to appointments saves time and allows them to schedule more assignments per day, which in turn means more income, said Tracee Jordan, a remote online Notary in Houston, Texas.

“I’m in the fourth largest city in the U.S. Being able to service more customers and being able to stay at home and earn more income is the biggest benefit for me,” Jordan said. “I can see more clients remotely in a day than I could in person.”

Before he started offering RON services, Guinup estimates he typically performed 6 traditional notarizations per day, earning around $85 per assignment. Thanks to RON, he says he can now comfortably complete twice that number of assignments each daily with no additional hardship.

“Most RON assignments I perform are done within 15 minutes,” he said. “I used to have to schedule my appointments 2 hours apart to allow for travel and arranging a meeting place with the customer. RON has simplified that. Time management is much easier.”

3. RON is more convenient for Notaries and customers because notarizations can be completed at home.

Guinup and Jordan agreed that RON is much more convenient for them and for customers, because all participants can now schedule and complete notarizations without needing to leave their homes.

“Right now in Florida, the temperature has been 105 degrees outside. But it doesn’t affect me at all, because I’m in my own home when I perform RONs and I can still do several notarizations during the day,” Guinup said.

“Since April 1, I’ve performed 105 notarizations in 3 ½ months, all of them RON,” Jordan said. “Some of my older customers were apprehensive about the technology at first, but they’ve told me that RON turned out to be a lot easier for them than they anticipated.”

While he says he was unsure about RON at first, now that he’s had experience offering the service, Guinup said he’s very glad to be able to offer this new kind of service. “RON has turned out to be a very beneficial way to serve the public,” he said.

David Thun is an Associate Editor at the National Notary Association.