“Evernote allows you to easily capture information in any environment using whatever device or platform you find most convenient, and makes this information accessible and searchable at any time, from anywhere.” – The Evernote People.

Lauren Davidson says: Evernote is the open-source equivalent to Microsoft’s OneNote… minus the Microsoft monopoly bugs and glitches, and plus oodles of options and add-ons to expand it’s uses with your Mac, PC, iPhone or other mobile device. Evernote takes the place of note pads, scratch paper, sticky notes and “favorites files”.  En somme, wherever you used to save important ideas, only to lose them in a sea of paper or electronic files.

I use Evernote to jott down blog ideas, products I’d like to research and review, lists of clients to be in touch with, marketing ideas, resources and more.  In the past, I would have used a notebook or (heaven forbid) made a MS Word document for a list or brainstorming project!  Now that’s a guarantee I’ll never look at it again.

With Evernote, I just delete the note when I’m done with it.  A metaphorical crumbling of the sticky-note and tossing of it into the circular file.

Plus, Evernote is good looking. Take a quick tour and see if Evernote is for you!

I just got off a 30-minute live chat with a PIXILY rep to learn more why it’s worth telling you about. Remember, I don’t recommend anything here without fully researching, and many times trying it myself, first.

Here’s what impresses me about Pixily:

1. It’s as easy as you want.At the minimal level, all you have to do is accumulate papers for a month, stick them in the pre-paid USPS envelope or FedEx box, and ship them off to be scanned. If you choose not to name them or download the PDF’s, they will always be search-able from any device (including i-Phone!) online.

2. It’s as safe as you need:Everyone who works at Pixily has been through a thorough background check. Your information is stored on 2 servers, in two separate locations and on physical disks. Not only that, but in the click of a mouse, you can batch download your documents as PDF’s to an external hard-drive, and keep them in a fireproof safe in an armored truck, with guards – if you want. It’s really not necessary, though!

3. It’s perfect for people who want to keep saving records, but have run out of room. If you’re dying to go paperless, but don’t want to get involved in tedious scanning yourself, Pixily is the convenient, safe, low maintenance choice.

4. The customer service is extremely knowledgeable, patient and helpful.  In the course of our chat, I asked several questions about document security and ID fraud that are directly addressed on the Pixily website (which I obviously hadn’t fully explored before asking for help.  Hat’s off to great customer support!

5. It’s a great value, especially when you consider the cost of a new filing cabinet, off site storage, and not least of all, your own time and sanity.

6. It’s risk-free! If you decide Pixily is not for you for any reason, you can stop your subscription.  Pixily will send you a .zip file of all your online documents, which you have 10 days to download.  But, I think once you get started clearing out your paper clutter by sending it away, you won’t ever turn back!

PIXILY is an associate member of the National Association of Professional Organizers, and co-sponsored January’s Get Organized Month.  Frankly, I feel a little behind the times, because just look at the Google results to see all the newspapers, magazines and blogs raving about Pixily.

Leave a comment or question, and I’ll be glad to answer right here on the blog!

PS: I am waiting for the PIXILY envelopes to arrive, so I can start getting rid of my own papers.  I think I’ll start with the kids’ school records…