Digitizing accounts receivable is key to business success

1. It improves cash flow

We know it sounds weird, but using a digital AR tool can actually help you get paid faster, giving your cash flow a nice boost.

Online payment tools encourage your customers to pay sooner by letting them choose whatever payment method is convenient for them, without affecting how you get your money.

So, if they want to use a credit card, for example, to put off the payment until their next billing cycle, they can do that for a small fee, that’s usually tax deductible too. They also get to collect card perks and miles on business transactions that would otherwise get unrewarded, while you get paid immediately, according to your own preferences.

Also, instead of waiting for checks to arrive in the mail, which can take days or weeks, and then having to deposit them and wait for several more days for processing, you just get the money directly into your account, within 1-3 business days.

And, since every invoice and transaction is listed and accounted for in a single dashboard, you’re less likely to forget to collect on a payment that is owed to you.

2. It saves time

Receiving all your payments through an online platform takes the guesswork out of the time-consuming and inefficient reconciliation process. That’s because each incoming sum is automatically associated with the relevant invoice, which is then marked as paid.

You also don’t need to waste time alternating between platforms and apps, because everything is done in one place: sending out payment requests and reminders, as well as tracking the status of each payment.

These benefits mean you can spend less time chasing customers who just forgot to pay or didn’t get to the bank yet (now they don’t have to) and focus only on those customers who have a real issue with the payment.

The time you save can be spent on growing your business and gaining new customers.

3. It’s cost-effective

You shouldn’t have to pay to get paid. Melio offers its accounts receivable tool completely free of charge, without requiring a paid subscription or charging any fees for incoming ACH bank transfers.

Your customers also don’t need to pay any fees if they choose ACH as their payment method and are only charged if they choose to pay by card or other select options.

In other words, you’re saving money (for you and your customers) just by getting money.

4. It’s secure

Money is a sensitive issue for anyone, especially small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). So, it’s important to make sure you’re using secure methods to send and receive payments for your business.

Unlike checks or cash, digital payments can’t be stolen or lost en route, so you don’t have to worry about them falling into the wrong hands.

Also, your private bank and payment information, as well as that of your customers, is kept safe and encrypted when using a reliable payment tool like Melio. This helps protect both businesses from cyberattacks, identity theft, and fraud that could have a serious negative impact.