Sharing PDFs through email is a common practice, but it requires recipients to download and save the file to view its contents. Moreover, disseminating a PDF to a sizable audience (100+) via email can be cumbersome. An alternative and more convenient approach is to share the PDF using a link. By creating a link to the PDF, you can effortlessly distribute it to as many viewers as needed. The linked PDF provides a "hosted" version, allowing viewers to read it directly in their browser without the need for downloading. This not only simplifies sharing with a large audience but also enhances the viewing experience for recipients.
Sharing a PDF link is versatile across various platforms, irrespective of whether they support PDF documents. Whether it's WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, TikTok, YouTube, or others, you can seamlessly share your PDF link. Furthermore, hosting your PDF online ensures that viewers always access the latest version of the document. Each visit to the PDF link presents the most up-to-date version, eliminating the need for recipients to wait for an updated email attachment. Hosting your PDF online streamlines the updating process, requiring only a re-upload to ensure all viewers see the latest document version.
There are a lot of good reasons to use links rather than attachments. Here are the top 6 reasons:
1) Storage Efficiency for Recipients
Have you ever been included in an email with an attachment that doesn't concern you? Numerous email clients automatically download all attachments, and even if you delete the email, it often lingers in the "recycle bin" until you empty it, occupying your storage space. Furthermore, when emails with substantial file attachments are forwarded multiple times within an organization, each instance consumes the complete space of the attachment. In contrast, links to files in emails do not impose any storage burden on the recipient.
2) Unrestricted File Size
While the majority of email service providers currently permit attachments up to 25 MB (e.g. Yahoo, Gmail), some still enforce a 10 MB limit (e.g. Hotmail). Attachment size limits can restrict your communication. Whether you’re trying to send a video or a PDF, these size caps can get in your way. This issue can be particularly frustrating if you’re using email for business. Emails with attachments exceeding these thresholds are either rejected entirely, or the attachments are removed. Additionally, centralized email malware scanners must scale to accommodate numerous users, and the inclusion of large files renders this task excessively costly.
3) Bandwidth Savings and Speed
The average email is 75 kilobytes (except spam, which is about 5 kilobytes). Nevertheless, attachments may reach up to 10 gigabytes, causing emails with sizable file attachments to experience extended delivery times, particularly on broadband connections. In office settings, bandwidth is generally not a concern, but mobile users face potential limitations. Many have data caps or restricted bandwidth, making them appreciative of avoiding the download of large files, especially when forwarding emails to others.
4) Share the Latest Version Effortlessly
Ever sent a file as an attachment only to spot a typo right away? By utilizing links for sharing, you gain the ability to edit the file before the recipient views it. What's more, you can continually make modifications and edits to the file over time, ensuring that the recipient always accesses the most recent version through the provided link. This is particularly beneficial for files undergoing collaborative editing by teams; instead of passing around different versions, everyone can contribute to the same master file.
5) Password protection
For additional security, you can protect your PDF link with a secure password. When you share a PDF file as a link, you upload it to the internet which means anyone with the link can theoretically view the PDF document. This may be undesirable for sensitive documents such as contracts. However, if you password-protect the link then only recipients with the password will be able to view the PDF.
6) Enhanced Security and Governance
Opting for links over attachments becomes particularly compelling for security reasons. When utilizing links, you can identify shared information and enforce Content Safeguard policies, issuing warnings or preventing unauthorized sharing of sensitive data. Achieving this level of protection with email attachments typically requires intricate data loss prevention (DLP) systems.
How to share a file with the email links
Creating a shareable link for PDF is a simple way to allow people to view your document. But, how do I make a PDF a shareable link? While there are multiple ways to create a link to a PDF document (for example, you can use Adobe Acrobat), we like using Tiiny Host. Tiiny Host is built upon AWS, so it provides a very reliable service for sharing your PDF. You cna also choose your own unique and memorable subdomain - the link can be password-protected and anyone who has the link to your PDF can easily mark, print, download or even show the PDF as a presentation. Here is a quick tutorial on how to share a PDF as a link using Tiiny Host.
Summary
Sharing PDFs through email is a common practice, but it can be cumbersome, unsafe and may require recipients to download the file. An alternative and more convenient approach is to share the PDF using a link, allowing viewers to read it directly in their browser without downloading. This method is versatile across various platforms and ensures that viewers always access the latest version of the document.