Is a lack of payment visibility damaging your customer relationships?

For accounts payable (AP) providers and platforms, delivering a seamless customer experience is crucial. Yet, a significant pain point for many users is the lack of payment visibility. When customers don’t have clear insights into their payment statuses, it can negatively impact cash flow management, budgeting, and reconciliation. Addressing this issue isn’t just a matter of convenience – it’s essential for fostering trust and loyalty.

Why payment visibility matters

Payment visibility ensures that businesses can see the status of their transactions at every step – from purchase orders (POs) to invoicing and final payments. Here are three ways a lack of visibility can harm customer relationships:

1. Cash flow and budget management challenges: Without real-time payment insights, businesses struggle to track when expenses are due or when accounts receivable (AR) payments will be credited. For example, a company operating on net 30 terms might face a shortfall if it cannot predict incoming and outgoing payments. This uncertainty can lead to unnecessary credit usage and an imbalance in the P&L (Profit & Loss) statement.
2. Reconciliation inefficiencies: Manual reconciliation often becomes a bottleneck in AP workflows. Imagine a retailer using multiple purchase orders (POs) and invoices for suppliers. Without automated invoicing matching, they spend hours aligning payments to the general ledger (GL), increasing days payable outstanding (DPO) and risking errors that could inflate operational costs.
3. Decreased trust and satisfaction: Transparency is vital for maintaining customer loyalty. If clients repeatedly encounter delays or discrepancies in payments, they may start looking for more reliable alternatives. For example, a logistics company might switch AP platforms if it cannot verify payments to contractors promptly, directly impacting service delivery.

How visibility enhances service levels

Enhancing payment visibility allows AP providers to address inefficiencies and deliver a higher level of service. Key benefits include:

• Streamlined validation and approvals: By integrating submitter-approver workflows, businesses can eliminate bottlenecks in the payment process. A tech company using a multi-account access feature, for instance, can validate expenses across departments without duplicating efforts.
• Improved cash flow forecasting: With automated insights into net 15, 30, or 90 terms, customers can make informed budgeting decisions. For example, a manufacturer can avoid penalties by predicting when payment in advance (PIA) will clear.
• Simplified reconciliation: Leveraging tools like Xero, customers can reconcile payments against their balance sheets with minimal effort. A construction firm, for instance, can easily track project expenses and ensure the accuracy of its GL entries.

Real-world application: The power of transparent payment processes

Consider a mid-sized professional services firm that manages numerous client projects with varying payment schedules. Before switching to an integrated AP platform, the company’s finance team relied on manual reconciliation, leading to frequent errors and delayed payments.

After implementing automated invoicing matching and a transparent PO system, they experienced:

• A reduction in reconciliation time.
• Enhanced accuracy in AR tracking, enabling better cash flow management.
• Increased satisfaction from suppliers, leading to improved relationships and favourable payment terms.

Take the next step toward better payment visibility

For AP providers, improving payment visibility is more than a competitive advantage – it’s a necessity. By addressing inefficiencies and offering customers real-time insights, you can build trust, reduce operational risks, and deliver unmatched service.

Talk to an expert today and discover how enhanced payment visibility can elevate your platform’s value.