Contents tagged with Accounts Receivable Best Practices

  • Can government agencies lead the payment technology revolution?

    August 01, 2014
    Electronic invoicing can help ensure merchants are paid in a timelier manner.

    The government and technological innovation don't always go hand-in-hand. In fact, the public sector has received a reputation for using almost comically slow and aging legacy systems. This is mainly the result of a pressing need to keep expenditures at a minimum. When public money is involved, any spending interpreted as outlandish or unnecessary is heavily scrutinized. However, in a constantly evolving technology landscape, keeping up with innovation may be necessary for an agency to ensure its future viability.

    In an era of eCommerce and mobile payments, invoicing is still slow to evolve. A recent study conducted by the E-Invoicing Platform found that at any given time, approximately $1.2 trillion is owed between businesses, mainly in the private sector. Paper-based invoicing slows& … more

  • Are small and midsize businesses using the right payment technologies?

    July 29, 2014
    Small businesses need to take advantage of the payments and accounting technology at their disposal.

    Technological advancements, in large part, benefit the small and midsize business (SMB) community because they level the playing field and develop common ground between companies of varying sizes. The increasingly blurred lines between consumer and business technologies have allowed small companies to use affordable, yet effective solutions to help run their business. However, small merchants processing B2B payments aren't all taking advantage of this fact. 

    According to a report from e2b teknologies, less than half of SMBS -- 47.9 percent -- are using their ERP systems to manage accounts receivable operations. Perhaps more alarming, 16.5 percent of survey participants are using manual, paper-based solutions to manage collections and other AR practices. 

    "Our study … more

  • Electronic invoicing to grow significantly over next four years

    May 22, 2014
    Sending electronic invoices by email allows for easier and faster payments.

    The increasing shift to digital business practices has transformed virtually every aspect of organization and customer relations, particularly during the transactional process. In addition to the development of online markets and B2B eCommerce solutions, more companies in the B2B sector are invoicing their customers electronically. In fact, new projections suggest substantial growth between now and 2018.

    According to Research and Markets, the global electronic invoicing market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 23.3 percent between 2013 and 2018. This is mainly due to the increasing number of ways electronic invoices can be delivered, in addition to the electronic resources merchants have at their disposal that improve invoicing efficiency and effectiveness.  … more

  • Maintaining solid business partnerships in an uncertain economy

    March 12, 2014
    Reducing paper invoices and implementing recurring billing might help your customers keep their money in order.

    It's no secret that the economy has been in a sate of flux for the past five years or so. This can be challenging, as businesses often are unable to project what they'll be able to spend on a month-to-month basis. Even if they want to allocate certain funding for a particular product or service, they may lack the organization to ensure vendors are paid on time, another result of a complicated and uncertain economic future.

    The real challenge is for the merchants — providers who rely on being paid each month for the products and services they offer their customers. You may have a policy in place that cuts off service when you don't receive payment in the appropriate amount of time, but ultimately, you never want it to come to that. The fact of the matter is, if you are forced … more

  • Recurring payments can help maintain long-term B2B relationships

    February 04, 2014
    Recurring payments can maintain strong, long-term B2B relationships.

    In the B2B sector, obtaining customers isn't about selling one product or service, it's about developing long-lasting business relationships. Ultimately, if your offerings are something businesses can use over the course of the organization's existence, you want to make sure they keep coming back to you. Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen, mainly because merchants don't have solutions in place to facilitate recurring payments. 

    An article in Business 2 Community finds that non-recurring business relationships are fundamentally flawed and are doomed to ultimately fail, or at least not live up to their potential. Short-term relationships—whether they abruptly end once the transaction is complete or they are tied to a limited contract with no future strategy in … more

  • Reduce mistakes with invoice and recurring payments solutions

    January 27, 2014
    Taking advantage of recurring billing and invoice solutions can help you improve customer satisfaction.

    Although an influx of new payment options—spurred by advancements in eCommerce, invoicing and payment technology—should ultimately be good for merchants, they can present challenges as well. Not only do you have to ensure you can accommodate your customers' preferred method, you must reduce the risk of making any billing mistakes, which can be harder than it sounds if your accounting department is not running efficiently. 

    Upholding accounts receivable best practices is crucial. You want to keep your accounts organized and make sure they are being billed correctly and on time. For example, there are often stories of individuals being billed twice (this is particularly prevalent in the health care industry) or of companies charging a customer's card while simultaneously& … more

  • Use proper B2B payment solutions to avoid electronic invoicing risks

    December 20, 2013
    Without following accounts receivable best practices, merchants run the risk of damaging relationships with their customers and, ultimately, their own reputation. As businesses continue to migrate into automated electronic processes, e-invoicing is becoming increasingly popular, but any shortcomings pertaining to the technology or its use could ultimately be more damaging than not using electronic invoicing at all.

    A study conducted in the UK found that 30 percent of polled citizens found an error on their energy bill in 2012. Of those, 28 percent said they were overcharged. As a result, the study concluded that consumer confidence is at an all-time low, a problem that is expected to escalate as UK utility companies switch to electronic invoices.

    "This situation is only set to get worse … more

  • Why your more innovative customers expect you to keep up

    November 01, 2013
    The business environment as a whole has changed dramatically in the 21st century, so it's only natural that the way companies interact with each other—most notably the way B2B payments are facilitated—would change as well. 

    That's the sentiment of a recent Business 2 Community article that suggests advancements in technology have changed customer expectations, particularly among innovative organizations. Businesses with a keen sense of technological trends are utilizing the resources at their disposal to develop more efficient operations, and this includes procurement and accounts payable. As such, they expect their providers to keep up.

    "And the day is not far off when they will be able to leverage cloud-based services that combine the applications and insights … more

  • Why accounts receivable best practices can help small businesses cater to large customers.

    October 17, 2013
    Just because you're a small business doesn't mean you can't set your sights on large clients. Small companies can service some of the biggest enterprises in the world, provided they have the skills and expertise in their respective industries to cater to the need of their customers.

    They must also maximize their resources. A small company of 10 employees isn't going to have the same tools at its disposal as its enterprise-level customers, but that doesn't have to create a divide between the two organizations. Enterprise-level organizations will work with small businesses as long as those companies are able to cater to their needs. Cynthia Kay, head of the video production and communications consulting company Cynthia Kay & Co., covered this idea in her book "Small Business for … more

  • Recurring payments can offer the efficiency your accounting department needs to be successful

    September 30, 2013
    In today's competitive marketplace, efficiency is crucial and must be applied to virtually every part of your business. When people traditionally think about efficient business practices, they think about supply chain management or production, but there are many other processes that need to be streamlined if they can. One such area is accounting.

    Accounting efficiency is crucial because businesses have to ensure their finances are organized. Merchants who can't offer efficient payment processing run the risk of losing business, because all customers want the same thing: a fast and easy way to pay for goods with little risk. Any setback that gets in the way of that could spell trouble for your organization. Following accounts receivable best practices is crucial.

    That's why merchants are … more