In the traditional business model, invoices are created at the end of each billing period. Then they’re printed, put in an envelope and mailed to the customer.
Many companies still do business this way, but it’s inefficient. It takes time to create the invoice, and for it to reach the customer – assuming it doesn’t get lost in the mail. It also takes time for the customer to process it and most importantly, pay the invoice.
There are other problems with this method too. For example, you have to create and reuse templates for different customers and enter their billing information twice: once in your accounts and once in each invoice. Also, keeping track of bills and payments can be time consuming – especially if you keep them on your desktop or in a folder. Even sending your invoices by email won’t reduce the workload by much.
Online or ‘e-invoicing’ solves these problems, making it fast and easy to send out invoices and track them. Switching to online billing can reduce your costs and speed up payments. Here are some of the ways it can benefit your business.