Posted by Mark Brousseau
Despite its critical role in revenue collection and corporate cash flow, billing has apparently become such a systematic function that it is no longer viewed as strategic – even by billing executives themselves.
In fact, according to a survey from Billtrust, fully two-thirds (67 percent) of billing related executives view billing as a utility, while only a third of those polled (33 percent) see billing as strategic. And yet, one out of every four respondents (25 percent) is not confident their bills will get paid on time. The survey points to the growing number of businesses who are missing opportunities for cost savings, accelerated cash flow, customer relationship building and even revenue generation in the billing process.
Billtrust surveyed nearly 40 executives associated with the billing function across a spectrum of North American businesses. The lack of recognition of billing’s role in customer relationships was apparent, as nearly two thirds of those polled (64 percent) said that billing either hurts, or has no impact, on customer service. At the same time, 59 percent of respondents believe their current billing process supports the building of customer relationships.
When asked their highest billing priority, 81 percent said accuracy and 19 percent said timeliness. None of the respondents pointed to cost savings as their top priority. The findings document conflicting perceptions on the role of billing and confusion on the best methods and outcomes related to the billing function.
“When it comes to billing, most businesses focus on the basics,” said Flint Lane, CEO of Billtrust. “Many of the organizations we speak with are unaware of the opportunities that exist in the billing process and don’t even know when their billing is unhealthy. We have seen the symptoms so often that we named the syndrome Chronic Billing Disorder.”
“With a more strategic approach to billing, companies can create cost savings, build better customer relationships and drive revenue growth,” said Lane.
The survey also revealed several other interesting findings on various aspects of the billing process:
... the overwhelming majority of those polled (84 percent) say their bills are generally delivered on-time or ahead of schedule, while 16 percent say their bills are generally delivered late.
... nearly a third of those polled (31 percent) do not feel their bills match the quality standards of their brand.
... nearly 1 in 5 billing executives say they don’t believe their current billing processes have a positive impact on cash flow.
What do you think?
Showing posts with label online bill pay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online bill pay. Show all posts
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Expect exponential growth for EIPP in 2011
By Michael Lane of Data Impact
In 2010, only 57 percent of business-to-business (B2B) payments were made by check, which is down from 63 percent in 2009 and 74 percent in 2008 (according to the Association for Finance Professionals 2010 Electronic Payment Survey).
This steady decline indicates that businesses are not only looking for, but are finding a more streamlined approach for managing the financial supply chain. As companies become more attuned to the needs of the B2B transaction set, 2011 is expected to be a record breaking year for electronic invoice presentment and payment (EIPP) growth.
Solution providers now recognize that traditional business to consumer models for electronic invoicing and payment cannot accommodate the complex needs of a B2B environment. As a result, the leaders in the EIPP space are providing more robust supporting information at the invoice and payment levels. Documents necessary to support the invoice review and approval process are made available within the platform. Invoice uploads into the customer’s accounts payable platform allow for cost savings and process efficiencies which fosters adoption. More importantly, the lack of remittance details and complexity of reconciliation have been addressed by decoupling the ACH and accounts receivable file information. Auto reconciliation can be achieved with a separate remittance file that is mapped directly into the billing parties accounts receivable platform.
With the past barriers removed, companies of all sizes will more aggressively pursue EIPP platforms in 2011 in order to drive cost savings, accelerate cash and confidently control receivables.
What do you think?
In 2010, only 57 percent of business-to-business (B2B) payments were made by check, which is down from 63 percent in 2009 and 74 percent in 2008 (according to the Association for Finance Professionals 2010 Electronic Payment Survey).
This steady decline indicates that businesses are not only looking for, but are finding a more streamlined approach for managing the financial supply chain. As companies become more attuned to the needs of the B2B transaction set, 2011 is expected to be a record breaking year for electronic invoice presentment and payment (EIPP) growth.
Solution providers now recognize that traditional business to consumer models for electronic invoicing and payment cannot accommodate the complex needs of a B2B environment. As a result, the leaders in the EIPP space are providing more robust supporting information at the invoice and payment levels. Documents necessary to support the invoice review and approval process are made available within the platform. Invoice uploads into the customer’s accounts payable platform allow for cost savings and process efficiencies which fosters adoption. More importantly, the lack of remittance details and complexity of reconciliation have been addressed by decoupling the ACH and accounts receivable file information. Auto reconciliation can be achieved with a separate remittance file that is mapped directly into the billing parties accounts receivable platform.
With the past barriers removed, companies of all sizes will more aggressively pursue EIPP platforms in 2011 in order to drive cost savings, accelerate cash and confidently control receivables.
What do you think?
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Fee to Pay by Mail?
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Some billers are taking more aggressive measures to get customers to pay bills electronically. Take a look at this article from The Beaumont Enterprise in Texas.
Jan. 11--Paying for cable television in Southeast Texas just got more expensive for some customers of Time Warner Cable.
That doesn't refer to just the bill for whatever level of service a customer might have. The act of paying for it by mail is what got more expensive.
Time Warner apparently wants to encourage its customers to pay their bill online, which means people need an Internet connection and have an established online banking capability.
If you don't, as of Jan. 1, your bills will cost 99 cents more to pay.
On the other hand, if you pay online, your bill would be 99 cents less.
"People are moving away from paper bills," said Gary Underwood, Time Warner spokesman. "It's a trend. It's not just our industry."
Jane Walker of Beaumont said she already pays online, but wants the paper statement every month to make certain she's not being charged more than she deserves.
"I pay my bills timely," she said. "For a company the size of Time Warner to charge people 99 cents to send a bill is horrendous."
Walker wrote a letter to The Enterprise in protest of Time Warner's new "Go Green" program, which is how the cable giant is framing the charge. The company said the initiative will reduce paper waste and help to "save the environment."
Walker isn't so certain of Time Warner's motives.
"I would ask them to explain to me why," she said. "They know there are people who can't say no. Isn't it enough to pay our bills timely? It makes me angry that they can do this. Isn't there anyone who oversees this?"
Time Warner enjoys something like an unregulated monopoly in many areas of Southeast Texas, unlike Entergy Texas and AT&T. Neither the electric company nor the telephone company charges customers to send pay by mail.
"Entergy has no plans to charge," spokeswoman Debi Derrick said. "We give our customers a choice. Any new charge would likely require Public Utility Commission approval."
AT&T spokesman Dan Feldstein said: "We do not charge customers who elect to have paper billing."
Wanda Luke of Port Neches said she's been paying her bills online for the last 18 months and she likes the convenience of it.
"It's worked out wonderful for me. Friends had a good level of comfort with online banking. I can look at the complete bill and I can even get more detail, like with my American Express bill," she said.
However, Luke said she didn't realize Time Warner would charge people 99 cents if they still wanted the paper bill in the mail.
"I'm thinking only about how much I can save," she said.
If all of Time Warner's customers in Southeast Texas -- numbering perhaps 100,000 -- paid the 99-cent charge, that's about $99,000 per month just to pay the bill.
Underwood said people also can pay at Time Warner's kiosks, 1420 Calder Ave., Beaumont; and 602 N. U.S. 69, Nederland. To avoid the 99-cent charge, a customer still needs online banking capability.
For those who might want another option, the Yellow Pages -- still available in print version in the free telephone book supplied by AT&T -- has plenty of listings under "satellite and cable TV equipment."
Some billers are taking more aggressive measures to get customers to pay bills electronically. Take a look at this article from The Beaumont Enterprise in Texas.
Jan. 11--Paying for cable television in Southeast Texas just got more expensive for some customers of Time Warner Cable.
That doesn't refer to just the bill for whatever level of service a customer might have. The act of paying for it by mail is what got more expensive.
Time Warner apparently wants to encourage its customers to pay their bill online, which means people need an Internet connection and have an established online banking capability.
If you don't, as of Jan. 1, your bills will cost 99 cents more to pay.
On the other hand, if you pay online, your bill would be 99 cents less.
"People are moving away from paper bills," said Gary Underwood, Time Warner spokesman. "It's a trend. It's not just our industry."
Jane Walker of Beaumont said she already pays online, but wants the paper statement every month to make certain she's not being charged more than she deserves.
"I pay my bills timely," she said. "For a company the size of Time Warner to charge people 99 cents to send a bill is horrendous."
Walker wrote a letter to The Enterprise in protest of Time Warner's new "Go Green" program, which is how the cable giant is framing the charge. The company said the initiative will reduce paper waste and help to "save the environment."
Walker isn't so certain of Time Warner's motives.
"I would ask them to explain to me why," she said. "They know there are people who can't say no. Isn't it enough to pay our bills timely? It makes me angry that they can do this. Isn't there anyone who oversees this?"
Time Warner enjoys something like an unregulated monopoly in many areas of Southeast Texas, unlike Entergy Texas and AT&T. Neither the electric company nor the telephone company charges customers to send pay by mail.
"Entergy has no plans to charge," spokeswoman Debi Derrick said. "We give our customers a choice. Any new charge would likely require Public Utility Commission approval."
AT&T spokesman Dan Feldstein said: "We do not charge customers who elect to have paper billing."
Wanda Luke of Port Neches said she's been paying her bills online for the last 18 months and she likes the convenience of it.
"It's worked out wonderful for me. Friends had a good level of comfort with online banking. I can look at the complete bill and I can even get more detail, like with my American Express bill," she said.
However, Luke said she didn't realize Time Warner would charge people 99 cents if they still wanted the paper bill in the mail.
"I'm thinking only about how much I can save," she said.
If all of Time Warner's customers in Southeast Texas -- numbering perhaps 100,000 -- paid the 99-cent charge, that's about $99,000 per month just to pay the bill.
Underwood said people also can pay at Time Warner's kiosks, 1420 Calder Ave., Beaumont; and 602 N. U.S. 69, Nederland. To avoid the 99-cent charge, a customer still needs online banking capability.
For those who might want another option, the Yellow Pages -- still available in print version in the free telephone book supplied by AT&T -- has plenty of listings under "satellite and cable TV equipment."
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Coopetition in the Payments World
By Mark Brousseau
According to the results of the Federal Reserve’s last two Payments Studies, electronic payments have risen from 43 percent of all non-cash payments to 66 percent of such payments over the period of 2000 to 2006. Conversely, checks have gone from 67 percent to 34 percent during this same period.
The message is clear: electronic payments are replacing check payments at a very rapid rate. So, it may surprise you to learn that one of the most common questions heard by providers of electronic payment solutions is, “do you have any capabilities for handling our paper-based payments?”
Why the continued interest in paper? Larry Jones of Cash Management Solutions, Inc. (larry.jones@cashmgmt.com) says the answer is simple: Although there are literally billions of payments that have migrated to electronic methods, the majority of high dollar and business-to-business payments are still made by check. This means that paper-based payment processing continues to be of great importance to many of the financial industry’s most prized clients, their corporate customers, Jones said.
Jones believes payments service providers must maintain their paper-based capabilities as they add alternative electronic channels. And, it is a well-known fact, he adds, that there is no system so efficient that it can overcome the inefficiencies of having to run it separately from, and simultaneously with, the system it is replacing.
“Until the landscape changes to the point where electronics replace all paper-payments, billers will continue to ask for methods and technologies that can affect a seamless convergence of these two distinct payment types,” Jones predicts. “Any payments service provider who is currently offering only paper processing should definitely be looking for the ability to offer on-line, direct to biller, bill payment services to their customers in a seamlessly merged deliverable.”
Likewise, any company that makes their living providing on-line bill payment systems or services should be looking for capabilities or partners who process paper payments and provide outputs that can be merged and delivered in a similarly seamless fashion, Jones adds.
What do you think? Post your comment below.
According to the results of the Federal Reserve’s last two Payments Studies, electronic payments have risen from 43 percent of all non-cash payments to 66 percent of such payments over the period of 2000 to 2006. Conversely, checks have gone from 67 percent to 34 percent during this same period.
The message is clear: electronic payments are replacing check payments at a very rapid rate. So, it may surprise you to learn that one of the most common questions heard by providers of electronic payment solutions is, “do you have any capabilities for handling our paper-based payments?”
Why the continued interest in paper? Larry Jones of Cash Management Solutions, Inc. (larry.jones@cashmgmt.com) says the answer is simple: Although there are literally billions of payments that have migrated to electronic methods, the majority of high dollar and business-to-business payments are still made by check. This means that paper-based payment processing continues to be of great importance to many of the financial industry’s most prized clients, their corporate customers, Jones said.
Jones believes payments service providers must maintain their paper-based capabilities as they add alternative electronic channels. And, it is a well-known fact, he adds, that there is no system so efficient that it can overcome the inefficiencies of having to run it separately from, and simultaneously with, the system it is replacing.
“Until the landscape changes to the point where electronics replace all paper-payments, billers will continue to ask for methods and technologies that can affect a seamless convergence of these two distinct payment types,” Jones predicts. “Any payments service provider who is currently offering only paper processing should definitely be looking for the ability to offer on-line, direct to biller, bill payment services to their customers in a seamlessly merged deliverable.”
Likewise, any company that makes their living providing on-line bill payment systems or services should be looking for capabilities or partners who process paper payments and provide outputs that can be merged and delivered in a similarly seamless fashion, Jones adds.
What do you think? Post your comment below.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
More B2B Transactions Go Electronic
By Mark Brousseau
More signs that paper checks are losing their grip on business-to-business transactions. Some 56 percent of treasurers, CFOs and other senior finance executives say they use p-cards and see reducing administrative costs and time as top benefits, according to Treasury & Risk’s annual cash management survey. Meantime, 55 percent of respondents to the survey said they handled more than 80 percent of their business online.
What's happening at your organization?
Post your comments below.
More signs that paper checks are losing their grip on business-to-business transactions. Some 56 percent of treasurers, CFOs and other senior finance executives say they use p-cards and see reducing administrative costs and time as top benefits, according to Treasury & Risk’s annual cash management survey. Meantime, 55 percent of respondents to the survey said they handled more than 80 percent of their business online.
What's happening at your organization?
Post your comments below.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Online Card Processing
Posted by Mark Brousseau
An informative video from HSBC on online card processing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSmcG7bP5EY
An informative video from HSBC on online card processing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSmcG7bP5EY
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Thrivent Plans Online Bill Pay
Posted by Mark Brousseau
If you’re among the nearly 75 percent of Thrivent Financial members who mail in account payments, a new payment features may change the way you pay your premiums.
According to the most recent issue of Thrivent magazine, Thrivent Financial is introducing a feature that allows members to make online payments for their traditional, universal and variable universal life contracts; fixed and variable annuities; and disability income, long-term care and Medicare supplement contracts. Members also can make a purchase into their existing mutual fund accounts.
As an added benefit, the system allows members to quickly submit a payment in a “just in time” situation to avoid the potential lapse of a contract due to nonpayment.
The online payment feature will be available this summer and can be accessed through www.thrivent.com.
If you’re among the nearly 75 percent of Thrivent Financial members who mail in account payments, a new payment features may change the way you pay your premiums.
According to the most recent issue of Thrivent magazine, Thrivent Financial is introducing a feature that allows members to make online payments for their traditional, universal and variable universal life contracts; fixed and variable annuities; and disability income, long-term care and Medicare supplement contracts. Members also can make a purchase into their existing mutual fund accounts.
As an added benefit, the system allows members to quickly submit a payment in a “just in time” situation to avoid the potential lapse of a contract due to nonpayment.
The online payment feature will be available this summer and can be accessed through www.thrivent.com.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Online Bill Pay Concerns Reporter
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Below is an article from today's Baltimore Sun that illustrates the lingering FUD factor (fear, uncertainty and doubt) surrounding online bill pay:
Paying online can weave a web of problems
Dan Thanh Dang
Consuming Interests
May 4, 2008
My friends tell me it's quick and painless. They say doing it makes life feel so much easier. They also swear that once you start, you won't be able to live without it.
It sounds so enticing. But I still refuse to bank online or pay my bills online. I do feel like an oddball whenever I sit down a couple times a month to write checks. I still lick the envelopes, press a stamp on each and then walk all of it to a mailbox or post office that I trust to get my bills where they need to go, on time.
Scoff if you will, but I'm not really sure it's more secure to click a few buttons on a computer to digitally send a payment in bits to some numerical account somewhere.
It's not that I haven't seen the writing on the wall.
A recent report from the Federal Reserve showed that more than two-thirds of noncash payments are now done electronically. Studies have shown that the chances of someone stealing my data online are no greater than the chances of someone swiping my mail. I know most banks use some sort of encryption and cryptography to safeguard my transactions. I know online banking scored 82 out of 100 on the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index this year. And, yes, I would likely save some money since I wouldn't have to buy stamps anymore.
And yet, I'm still leery about taking the electronic plunge.
Why? Because once every couple of weeks, I hear from someone I know or get a call or e-mail from someone like Laurie Hansen who scares the bejesus out of me about how some company withdrew two electronic payments in one month or how a payment never made it to a designated recipient.
And don't even get me started about automatic bill pay, which is the equivalent of giving someone else license to steal straight out of my bank account whenever they want.
In Hansen's case, the 46-year-old Catonsville lawyer signed up for online bill payment in 2003 when she bought her Dodge Durango. Her online payments to Chrysler were trouble-free for five years until last February and March, when she discovered that two $460 payments didn't make it. It was sent to some mortgage company.Stories like that make me cringe.
The fact of the matter is I'm a bit of a control freak about paying my bills. I don't like relying on anyone - be it my bank or the company I owe money to - to make sure I pay a bill on time.
When I write a check and mail it, I know I've done all I can to make sure my bill gets paid.
When I click a button, I'm relying on my bank to make sure that transaction goes through on time. What if the system crashes and my payment does not get sent? What if my bank sends two payments instead of one to my mortgage company?
I'd get whacked with late fees and overage penalties, which would ding my credit, and bad credit would make my interest rates go up, high interest rates would make it harder for me to pay my bills, and before you know it, my dog and I would end up living on a bench in Patterson Park.
OK, I exaggerate. But only a little.In Hansen's dilemma, butterfingers did her in. Someone typed in some wrong keys, and her money was sent to some company she didn't owe money to."
When I signed up for online bill payment, I didn't have to type in an address," Hansen said. "Bank of America said it already had a relationship with Chrysler Financial, so all I had to do was fill in my account number. Things went fine until my payments went missing. When I called Chrysler, they told me they changed their billing address recently."
When Bank of America went back to look at what happened, they found that an incorrect ZIP code was entered from their merchant list. It resulted in my money being sent to the wrong company. The biggest problem for me was not knowing when they would put my money back."
Hansen said one customer service rep told her it would take three to five days to resolve the case, another said five to seven, and a third told her seven to 10 days. Banks have 10 days to conduct an investigation, and if they can't come up with a determination in your case, they must provide you with a provisional credit, according to Craig Stone, deputy ombudsman for customer assistance for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates all national banks.
Bank of America declined to comment on Hansen's personal account because of privacy concerns, but spokesman Tara Burke said, "We capture payments by using P.O. boxes and ZIP codes. You have to enter both correctly in order for the payment to go through accurately. If one is wrong, the payment can be diverted to the wrong place." But, in any case, Burke said, "If a mistake or a late payment is made on our end, our customers are protected under zero percent liability guarantee."
True, but it could still take 10 days to correct the problem. That's a long time for some people living from paycheck to paycheck.
Whether it was Hansen's fault, the bank's fault or both, the whole situation was resolved in one day after Hansen called the OCC, which put her in touch with Bank of America's executive office.
The $920 owed to her was placed back into her account on April 1 - less than 10 business days after she called the bank on March 19."
If someone had explained to me that the money would be returned in 10 days, I would have felt a lot better," Hansen said. "I'm definitely going to pay closer attention to everything in the future and double-check that my payments are going through. I've only ever had one other problem come up in the eight years that I've been using it. I use online bill paying all the time, so I'm not sure I could live without it now."
I remain unconvinced.
Below is an article from today's Baltimore Sun that illustrates the lingering FUD factor (fear, uncertainty and doubt) surrounding online bill pay:
Paying online can weave a web of problems
Dan Thanh Dang
Consuming Interests
May 4, 2008
My friends tell me it's quick and painless. They say doing it makes life feel so much easier. They also swear that once you start, you won't be able to live without it.
It sounds so enticing. But I still refuse to bank online or pay my bills online. I do feel like an oddball whenever I sit down a couple times a month to write checks. I still lick the envelopes, press a stamp on each and then walk all of it to a mailbox or post office that I trust to get my bills where they need to go, on time.
Scoff if you will, but I'm not really sure it's more secure to click a few buttons on a computer to digitally send a payment in bits to some numerical account somewhere.
It's not that I haven't seen the writing on the wall.
A recent report from the Federal Reserve showed that more than two-thirds of noncash payments are now done electronically. Studies have shown that the chances of someone stealing my data online are no greater than the chances of someone swiping my mail. I know most banks use some sort of encryption and cryptography to safeguard my transactions. I know online banking scored 82 out of 100 on the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index this year. And, yes, I would likely save some money since I wouldn't have to buy stamps anymore.
And yet, I'm still leery about taking the electronic plunge.
Why? Because once every couple of weeks, I hear from someone I know or get a call or e-mail from someone like Laurie Hansen who scares the bejesus out of me about how some company withdrew two electronic payments in one month or how a payment never made it to a designated recipient.
And don't even get me started about automatic bill pay, which is the equivalent of giving someone else license to steal straight out of my bank account whenever they want.
In Hansen's case, the 46-year-old Catonsville lawyer signed up for online bill payment in 2003 when she bought her Dodge Durango. Her online payments to Chrysler were trouble-free for five years until last February and March, when she discovered that two $460 payments didn't make it. It was sent to some mortgage company.Stories like that make me cringe.
The fact of the matter is I'm a bit of a control freak about paying my bills. I don't like relying on anyone - be it my bank or the company I owe money to - to make sure I pay a bill on time.
When I write a check and mail it, I know I've done all I can to make sure my bill gets paid.
When I click a button, I'm relying on my bank to make sure that transaction goes through on time. What if the system crashes and my payment does not get sent? What if my bank sends two payments instead of one to my mortgage company?
I'd get whacked with late fees and overage penalties, which would ding my credit, and bad credit would make my interest rates go up, high interest rates would make it harder for me to pay my bills, and before you know it, my dog and I would end up living on a bench in Patterson Park.
OK, I exaggerate. But only a little.In Hansen's dilemma, butterfingers did her in. Someone typed in some wrong keys, and her money was sent to some company she didn't owe money to."
When I signed up for online bill payment, I didn't have to type in an address," Hansen said. "Bank of America said it already had a relationship with Chrysler Financial, so all I had to do was fill in my account number. Things went fine until my payments went missing. When I called Chrysler, they told me they changed their billing address recently."
When Bank of America went back to look at what happened, they found that an incorrect ZIP code was entered from their merchant list. It resulted in my money being sent to the wrong company. The biggest problem for me was not knowing when they would put my money back."
Hansen said one customer service rep told her it would take three to five days to resolve the case, another said five to seven, and a third told her seven to 10 days. Banks have 10 days to conduct an investigation, and if they can't come up with a determination in your case, they must provide you with a provisional credit, according to Craig Stone, deputy ombudsman for customer assistance for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates all national banks.
Bank of America declined to comment on Hansen's personal account because of privacy concerns, but spokesman Tara Burke said, "We capture payments by using P.O. boxes and ZIP codes. You have to enter both correctly in order for the payment to go through accurately. If one is wrong, the payment can be diverted to the wrong place." But, in any case, Burke said, "If a mistake or a late payment is made on our end, our customers are protected under zero percent liability guarantee."
True, but it could still take 10 days to correct the problem. That's a long time for some people living from paycheck to paycheck.
Whether it was Hansen's fault, the bank's fault or both, the whole situation was resolved in one day after Hansen called the OCC, which put her in touch with Bank of America's executive office.
The $920 owed to her was placed back into her account on April 1 - less than 10 business days after she called the bank on March 19."
If someone had explained to me that the money would be returned in 10 days, I would have felt a lot better," Hansen said. "I'm definitely going to pay closer attention to everything in the future and double-check that my payments are going through. I've only ever had one other problem come up in the eight years that I've been using it. I use online bill paying all the time, so I'm not sure I could live without it now."
I remain unconvinced.
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