Can Payment Automation Help Drive Business Growth? Yes, it Can!

January 17th 2023 11:00:00 AM

When you started your business, you envisioned it as something that would grow over time. The accounting department may not be an immediate priority when you are building your business because you don’t see its activities as generating income. The sales department is crucial to keeping the business running; however, the accounting department also plays a key role in making sure your operation runs smoothly.

Payment automation is a modern solution where your payment management system handles multiple transactions quickly and efficiently. It is more convenient than continuing to use a manual payment system.

How Payment Automation Helps your Business Grow

Payment automation helps your business grow in several ways, including the following:

1. Automation lowers the cost of invoicing.

Any time you automate a task, you save money over the cost of performing it manually. Automating invoicing saves on the labor costs of data entry for invoicing and the cost of having employees deal with discrepancies. The company saves money on the costs associated with storing paper invoices, printing checks, purchasing envelopes, and postage.

2. It lowers the risk of billing errors.

An automated payment system greatly reduces the likelihood of billing errors. If a worker in your accounting department has to prepare invoices manually, there is a risk of numbers being transposed or typed incorrectly. Automated billing statements are generated electronically, which means they don’t need to be recalculated by an employee to correct errors or omissions.

3. Payment automation shortens processing time.

One of the most significant benefits of automating your payment processes is that the invoice approval process becomes much quicker. Your employees spend much less time forwarding invoices to one or more managers for their approval before they can be paid.

4. Your company saves money by taking advantage of early payment discounts.

If your company has an automated payment system in place, your accounting department can potentially get supplier invoices paid more quickly. Make a point of paying vendors offering early payment discounts first; these can result in significant savings and increased cash flow for your business.

5. The number of discrepancies and supplier disputes is reduced.

When your accounting department has to take time dealing with disputes from suppliers and invoice discrepancies, it can be quite time-consuming. Reducing the number of discrepancies means your accounting department operates more efficiently and suppliers get paid more quickly.

6. Payment automation gives you increased cash flow visibility.

With a digitized payment system, your accounting team can have a complete view of all processed invoices. It will also indicate the outstanding ones. Your accounting department can then take appropriate steps to pay these bills before they become overdue.

Your automated payment platform can provide your team with insights about how much your company is spending in different categories. It’s much easier to see patterns in your company spending, such as whether the company is dealing with more than one vendor supplying the similar products or raw materials, or if the business is suddenly spending a lot more in a specific area.

7. It helps your business avoid fake invoices or fraudulent payment requests.

Unfortunately, payment fraud is all too common for business owners. According to the 2022 Association for Financial Professionals Payments Fraud and Control Report, 71% of survey respondents said their organizations were the victims of payment fraud attacks in 2021. If your company is using a manual process for your accounts payable, it can be challenging to discern fake invoices from genuine ones or identify fraudulent email requests for payment.

Automated systems identify and flag any irregular requests before they are approved by a manager. As your business grows, you can limit the number of people who can approve payments. Taking this step reduces the risk your business will be targeted by fraudsters.

8. Payment automation improves your suppliers’ and your customers’ experience.

An automated payment system is convenient for your customers and your suppliers. It makes keeping track of invoices, purchase orders, and payments much easier.

Your accounting team will spend less time processing invoices. They will be able to direct more of their time toward other, more interesting activities.

Scanco Payments Automation for Sage ERP Software Helps You Pay Suppliers and Process Payments Faster

AP Payments Automation for Sage 100 is a secure and cloud-based solution for paying suppliers. You can say goodbye to paper checks and use virtual payment cards, eChecks, and ACH Plus instead.

With AP Payments Automation, manual processes are a thing of the past. Reconciliation is streamlined when you introduce this lower-cost solution to your business.

Download reports showing batches and individual payments, so you always know exactly how your cash flow is sitting.

Do you need more working capital for a big purchase? Payments Automation gives you access to purchase order lines of credit. The FastPay feature means you can get paid quickly on outstanding invoices, without factoring, in as little as 24 hours (up to 120 days before the due date).

This solution integrates seamlessly with Sage and other Scanco products, including Scanco Warehouse 100, Scanco Property Manager 2000, and more.

Scanco AR Payment Automation function is simple. It helps your company get paid faster. Your customers and your sales representatives can take charge of the payment process, which means invoices can be paid directly without your Accounts Receivable Department having to become involved. This solution also integrates seamlessly with Sage 100; there is no additional data entry required. Your invoices and payment data are always kept up to date.

For even greater convenience, give your customers a self-service portal. Your customers will be kept up to date with an emailed receipt that includes their sales order and invoice number.

Your company gets the benefit of secure payments through EMV card transactions, chargeback protection, and advanced settlement reporting.

Scanco’s payment automation solutions can help your business succeed by taking charge of finances. To learn more, contact us online or call (330) 645-9959 to make an appointment with a Scanco Solutions Expert today.