In today's global business environment, email may be the most critical communication tool for a company. Countless messages are fired off worldwide everyday, and while the emails containing just text usually find their destination, things aren't so certain for emails carrying attachments. File-size caps, server hiccups, spam filters – all of these can derail an email as it tries to reach its destination.

For the casual home user, the occasional email problem might be acceptable. For business, however, the delivery of time-sensitive files is absolutely critical for both meeting deadlines and maintaining day-to-day operations .

Part of the problem is that it's so easy to attach a file to an email - just point, click, and hit send. Most users don't understand the problems that can occur when sending files as attachments, but IT departments know it well: file- size problems, security issues, lack of tracking and reliability, etc. That's why email issues take up so much time for help desks in companies worldwide.

The need to transfer business files will never go away; in fact, it will only become more critical. What does that mean for the use of email attachments as a primary file-transfer method? If a company wants to ensure safe and timely delivery of critical files, then perhaps it's time to look for an alternative to email for transferring files. Here are the top five reasons why email shouldn’t be used for file transfer.

#1:   Email can’t support large file attachments
#2:   Updating email infrastructure can wreck IT budgets
#3:   Large files mean slow systems
#4:   Email systems aren’t secure enough
#5:   Email transfer is unreliable, untraceable, and can’t be guaranteed

Reason #1: Email can't support large file attachments

The following scenario has played out in offices around the world countless times. At the end of the day, a dedicated employee finishes a large document or presentation, attaches the file in an email, and hits send. The file whisks away into cyberspace and the relieved employee goes home for the day -- only to see a bounce-back email in his inbox the next morning, along with frenetic messages asking where the file is. One company’s email server might have a different attachment size limit from the destination server; thus, even though an internal email server will accept a file, it could still bounce back due to target restrictions. That unknown variable can be a great risk to business, especially during crunch time.

Even if they make it through, large files suck up significant storage space in several ways: in the recipient’s inbox, in the sender’s Sent folder, and in Trash/Deleted folders. This leads to over-quota problems, creating a chain reaction of logistical problems:

• Once an inbox is over quota, it will bounce back any messages sent to it, thus preventing critical communication.
• During this time, frantic IT support calls spike.
• The removal of old messages to free up storage space can result in the deletion of messages/files needed later on. When that happens, more calls are made to IT support.

From bounced-back emails to storage issues, just about everyone in the company is affected when large files are emailed. In the end, this winds up hurting the bottom line and costing staff productivity – something no business can afford to lose.

Please stay tuned for future posts on other reasons why you shouldn't use email for file transfer.