Using an online proofing tool can help you speed up your review and approval process and improve the way you collaborate on digital content. To ensure that your online proofing software delivers what you need, here are five critical features to look for:

1. Collaboration & Commenting Features

Excellent proofing tools allow you to work with multiple team members or stakeholders, so they can provide feedback directly on what they view. An online proofing tool that incorporates threaded comments on top of markups and annotations, plus quickly tag users will allow for a real-time discussion. Available features to look for in online proofing software are color-coded comments to distinguish between who said what and status indicators, such as red, yellow or green, on the comments suggesting whether they've been dealt with or not.

2. Version Control

Every creation, regardless of the process, will evolve. Every piece of content will go through revisions and updates – and you'll need a tool to track different versions. With a good system for version control, you can compare different versions of a file piece by piece. This way no changes are left unnoticed and no feedback is missed. Make sure that your online proofing tool offers features that give you a quick way of switching between previous versions, and even a visual analysis.

3. Integration with Existing Tools

Online proofing software should be easy to use because it works with the software you're already using. Does your team use tools like Google Drive or Dropbox to store files in the cloud? Maybe you've been working with Adobe solutions to design your product collateral. All of these should seamlessly integrate with your proofing tool. Everyone stays in the same workflow saving time. You avoid having to duplicate work across many different tools.

4. Approval Workflows

A well-organized and clearly defined approval workflow is paramount in ensuring that your projects progress forward in a timely manner. Customizable workflows provided by digital proofing tools enable you to set up multiple approval stages, determine reviewers for each stage, and set deadlines. Other features include automated reminders for task accountability and the ability to approve or reject each change with just one click. This makes it clear what has been approved at what stage and keeps everyone accountable.

5. Support for Multiple File Types

There are photo images, videos, interactive media, documents, and more. A great online proofing tool will support a variety of file formats (PDFs and MP4s, of course, but also GIFs, JPGs, and even a live website!). Your team can review and comment on anything because the tool supports multiple content types. 

Using the right online proofing software can make life easier for you and your reviewers. Concentrate on these five features—collaboration, version control, integrations, approval workflows and file format support—to help you pick a tool for your team that will improve your creative workflows.