Electronic signature in the digital customer experience

Signature is no longer a formality: it’s part of the customer journey

For years, electronic signature was treated as a purely legal or technical element. It was “one more step” at the end of an onboarding process, a contract, or an acceptance. But in today’s environment —where digital competes directly with in-person and where every second of friction reduces conversion— electronic signature has become an essential piece of the customer experience.

Today, the customer doesn’t distinguish between a legal validation, an onboarding flow, or an administrative step. They only perceive one thing: their experience. And electronic signature is part, for better or worse, of the feeling of fluidity, trust, and transparency that a brand conveys.

The most delicate moment of the entire process

If we think about it, signature usually occurs at the critical moment of the commercial process:

• when the customer is about to make a financial commitment,
• when they validate their identity,
• when they must read (or at least perceive) the terms of the agreement,
• when they are most sensitive to any obstacle.

A poor experience here —a link that doesn’t open, an OTP that doesn’t arrive, an unreadable PDF on mobile— destroys conversions, no matter how well the previous process worked.

Companies that understand this stop seeing signature as an obligation and start seeing it as a moment of truth. The customer decides, at that exact point, whether the organization is reliable, serious, and respectful of their time.

The security paradox: robust can also be fluid

For a long time, security and experience seemed like two opposing forces: the more robust the process, the less usable it was. Today, fortunately, this has changed.

An advanced electronic signature can be perfectly fluid if designed with care:

• certified email notifications that don’t surprise or confuse,
• OTP via certified SMS that arrives in seconds and always works,
• signature screens optimized for mobile,
• clear documents, without downloading heavy files,
• guided flows that don’t require technical knowledge from the user.

Technology allows the customer to perceive a comfortable process, while the company obtains cryptographic evidence, timestamps, complete traceability, and eIDAS compliance.

There’s no contradiction: security can be invisible, as long as it’s well designed.

The importance of the channel: how the request is received influences trust

A signature experience starts before the act of signing. It starts in how the request is delivered. This is where channels like certified email add value that, although technical, translates into a perception of trust:

• the message arrives without errors,
• it doesn’t end up in spam,
• it includes the verifiable identity of the sender,
• it allows sending reminders without losing traceability,
• it gives coherence to the flow when the customer returns later to complete their signature.

When a company combines certified delivery with a clear signature process, the user feels they are interacting with a serious, organized, and transparent entity. This, in CX, makes the difference.

The experience doesn’t end when signing

Another common mistake is thinking that the customer experience concludes with the signature. In reality, the moment after is equally critical:

• receiving the signed document immediately,
• being able to verify it without installing anything,
• having access to clear evidence if any doubt arises,
• feeling that everything has been closed with security and transparency.

Signature is not the end: it’s the beginning of the contractual relationship. And the user’s perception of that closure conditions future trust.

Towards a culture of signatures designed for people

Digital transformation has led companies to automate processes, but sometimes that automation forgets the person on the other side. Electronic signature must evolve not only technically, but humanly.

Organizations leading this change understand that:

• a clear signature generates more trust than a sophisticated one,
• a fast signature is worth more than an aesthetically perfect one,
• a transparent signature beats excessive digital formalisms.

Technology is the means. Experience is the purpose.

In a world where everything competes for the user’s attention, electronic signature cannot be an obstacle. It must be a moment of trust, clarity, and simplicity. Its legal strength is indispensable; its experience, decisive.

And when both converge —as happens with well-implemented certified delivery and advanced signature systems— signature stops being a formality and becomes an act of trust between people.