Your printer is out of toner. The contract needs signing in the next 20 minutes. You're calculating whether you can get to the Tesco that sells cartridges before the buyer's deadline.
Or — you sign in the browser in 90 seconds and move on with your day.
Why the print-sign-scan habit persists
Mostly inertia and a vague sense that 'real' signatures need to be on paper. Neither is true. Electronic signatures have been legally binding in most jurisdictions for over 20 years (US ESIGN Act, UK Electronic Communications Act, EU eIDAS).
The other reason people print to sign is that they don't know about browser signing tools. Now you do.
What browser signing actually does
Flint's sign tool lets you place a signature image — typed, drawn or uploaded — onto a PDF, then flattens the result so the signature can't be moved or removed. The output is a signed PDF, indistinguishable from a printed-and-scanned one in legal effect.
In most jurisdictions, the simple electronic signature is sufficient for routine commercial agreements.
The speed difference
Print, walk to printer, retrieve, sign, walk to scanner, scan, walk back, email: 12–20 minutes including printer faff. Browser sign: 90 seconds. For three contracts a week, that's 45 minutes a week back.
This is before counting toner, paper, and printer maintenance.
When you actually need wet ink
Some specific legal contexts still require wet-ink signatures: certain real estate transactions, some wills and powers of attorney, notarised documents, some immigration paperwork. For everything else — and that's 95% of professional life — electronic is fine.
When in doubt for a high-value contract, ask the counterparty. Most prefer electronic anyway.
FAQ
Will counterparties accept browser signatures?
In our experience, yes — over 99% of commercial counterparties accept electronic signatures for routine contracts. The few who don't are usually older institutions you'd specifically be told to wet-sign.
Is browser signing as secure as DocuSign?
For simple electronic signatures (your intent + your mark), yes. For 'qualified electronic signatures' with audit trails and identity verification, dedicated platforms add layers. Choose based on stakes.
What if the counterparty insists on a printed signature?
Sign in the browser, download the signed PDF, then print and re-sign over the digital signature if they really insist. You've still saved time on every step that came before.
How do I save a signature for reuse?
Flint lets you save a signature on first use and reuse it on every subsequent PDF. The first sign takes 30 extra seconds; every one after is instant.
The printer is for things that need paper. Contracts are not those things. Sign your next one in Flint and leave the toner to the brochures.