Why your business benefits from an end-to-end billing solution
Inefficient invoice and payment processes not only incur high administrative costs here and now, but they are also obstacles to your future growth. Learn what you gain by having a holistic approach to the issue, and how to take the easiest path from rigid silos to seamless flows.
Do you compare apples and oranges when evaluating payment solutions?
Which suppliers does your company depend on for your invoicing to work? In a traditional setup, three aspects are typically externally outsourced: distribution, payment, and debt collection. Therefore, when you scan the market for different options, you probably compare print partners to print partners, debt collection companies to collection companies, and so on.
But today there are other ways to manage your payment and invoice flows, along with new operators, who do not always fall neatly into the classic categories. This means you risk comparing apples and oranges.
Do you earn on the swings, but lose on the carousels?
To know what will be the best and most cost-effective solution for your business – both in the short and long terms – you need to look at the big picture and consider the whole.
“What big picture?” you may be asking yourself. If so, you probably have not read the article about factors that make receiving payments unnecessarily expensive and what affects your total invoicing cost, in addition to what you usually factor in. For example, the potential revenue from late fees is often offset in the form of increased pressure on your customer service department – and ultimately leading to churn.
Fortunately, positive action also creates a ripple effect. For example, if you optimize the payment experience for your customers, you will simultaneously streamline your internal administration.
But let’s go back to the apples and oranges awhile. Because if you’re trying to make a tasty fruit salad – i.e., an invoice and payment process that takes the whole into account – you need a partner that enables this. So what is the alternative to the complex supplier structure that is still too common today?
What do we mean by end-to-end – and how does it benefit you?
By having all your invoice management in a single, clear platform, you avoid much of the administrative costs that result from maintaining a multi-operator solution. These savings are naturally positive in and of themselves. But an end-to-end solution – like the one we offer at Billogram – also presents new opportunities that lower your overall costs in the longer term.
Tom Hedman, Director of Strategic Sales at Billogram, explains:
“Billogram’s solution does everything the traditional setups can, but in a smarter and more transparent way. With our platform, you do not manage the different parts of the billing process in separate silos. Instead, you orchestrate the whole into smart flows that you can tailor according to your company’s objectives and based on your customers’ history, behavior, and preferences.”
For example, this means you can:
- Nudge your customers toward digital invoices and direct debit to reduce costs and environmental impact from paper distribution
- Make it easier for customers to pay on time through dynamic and automated reminder flows
- Draw lessons from data to personalize the customer journey and ensure that the invoice and payment process strengthens customer loyalty
The importance of a partner who shares your objective
According to Tom, an important factor that makes Billogram a suitable partner for this is that our interests align with yours:
“We don’t earn anything extra from late payments; instead, our business model is based on recurring invoicing. That’s why it’s as positive for us as it is for your company that your customers remain loyal for a long time. And we know that a convenient payment option is an important parameter in achieving this. Especially for so-called ‘silent’ products where the payment is the main naturally recurring interface between customer and provider."
Scalability and future-proofing with a ‘ready to go’ billing solution
As we wrote about in the article on hidden costs, an inflexible billing solution risks putting the brakes on your international growth. In contrast, Tom highlights the scalability you get with Billogram as a partner:
“Our platform is quick to implement in new markets. You don’t need to seek out local suppliers and build up parallel infrastructures – you can work the same way internally and offer the same seamless customer experience in each country. And as a PSP-licensed operator, we update our processes continuously as regulations change. It’s not something you need to spend time monitoring.”
4 benefits in brief
Let’s sum up the benefits of an end-to-end invoice and payment solution:
- Reduced supplier complexity = reduced internal administration
- Simpler customer experience = reduces the risk of churn (and pressure on your customer service department)
- Scalable platform = easier international growth
- Data-driven insights = enable continuous optimization and synergies
All of this means reduced costs for your business in the short term, but the biggest gain lies in what you can achieve in the long term, as Tom points out:
“You get a modern and future-proof solution that helps you build long-term customer relationships in a cost-effective way, while you can focus fully on your core business."
Want to know more about Billogram’s platform and how a partnership with us can benefit your business? Contact us today!