Small and medium sized businesses have always been troubled by late payers, debtors and defaulters. Considering that this particular sub-set of clients continue to make life difficult for entrepreneurs, here are  some tips to keep the cash flowing.

Though there should be more stringent laws in dealing with such clients, this does not mean that small businesses are powerless in the face of the organizations they sell to.

Businesses are most likely to receive late payments from new customers; making them more vulnerable to new clients. Small businesses must be ready to negotiate terms when they receive an order, particularly from new customers.

Following are some tips:

• Send an estimate/quotation before sending the final invoice.

• Understanding and identifying the payment terms – where invoices should be sent, what references or order numbers should be quoted, and whether the customer only accepts online invoices.

• Have effective internal procedures in place: what level of credit checking is required and how frequently credit limits are reviewed.

• If there is a difference between your payment terms and theirs, don’t ignore the issue, negotiate.

• Make sure sales invoices meet the customer’s requirements, send invoices as soon as possible to the correct address and department, ensuring they comply with requirements for VAT invoices, and follow progress.

• Make notes of telephone calls regarding customer payments, including dates and times of conversations, to whom you spoke and the outcome, and take action quickly.

• Establish a policy on how long an invoice is allowed to be outstanding before resorting to debt collection and when supply of goods or services should be stopped.

• Regularly review the debtors’ ledger for customers behind with payment. Get sales staff to visit these customers to seek information and set targets for credit collection.

• Employ professional credit staff.

• Carefully consider potential orders with longer payment terms. Consider the implications for profitability, cash flow, financing and bad debts.

• Consider factoring or invoice discounting to help manage cash flow.

• Use business invoices as an instrument to retain customers by way of mentioning discounts, offers and other schemes at the footer.

Using Online invoicing for the above purposes can be the best remedy. It offers clutter free invoicing and allows businesses to keep track of the payments effortlessly. It takes out the time required to maintain paper files from the equation.

Agreed we arrived on the big stage when most of the online invoicing applications had already established themselves as a brand. Some brands are already a veteran in this sphere and the competition is ever increasing. But this has not dented our confidence and efforts to make our way through the stiff competition. It is said that winners don’t do different things, they just do things differently. With plethora of invoicing applications available and all providing more or less the same service, we like to differentiate ourselves by providing what we promise to our users.

Our team of developers has been working overtime to deliver a robust invoicing application. There has been continuous up gradation, improvements and innovations in Invoicera to deliver nothing but the best. Believe me, this is just a beginning. We have a whole list of luscious features that will be incorporated in the application on a regular basis. To start with, we noticed that the sign-up form was a little long and have, therefore, shortened it. This has been appreciated by many users who have recently signed up with Invoicera. Amongst many others, data back-up feature is incorporated as a latest update.

As a part of our company policy, we are unable to disclose the upcoming features that will be shortly included in the application. Therefore, we request our existing as well as potential customers to be a little more enduring. We would be rolling out the advanced features of Invoicera in the subsequent blog posts, so stay tuned.

Brand management has always been considered a strong goodwill building technique. Creating a strong brand value in customers psyche has the power to drive results. It is vital to any organization success in any economic condition. Sending online invoicing does act as a catalyst in improving your brand image. It reflects the level of professionalism the organization has achieved and instils a sense of trust and faith in customers. During an economic downturn, it is this trust and belief that keep clients and customers glued to that particular organization.

When times are hard and money is in short supply, your clients become more averse to spend their money. As a result, they become a little more circumspect about who receives their business. I am not suggesting that online invoicing is paramount in retaining customers, but it certainly reveals a lot about how a company goes about its business. The level of importance it gives to the clients as well as customers convenience. Though the market is fairly immature about implementing online invoicing, only the enlightened ones have shown positive response.

The fear of recession still looms large and the situation is only expected to become gloomy. Embracing online invoicing does give you a chance to stand in tough times rather than cascade in the fading light.

This is how online invoicing is beneficial in countering recession:

Online invoice has definitely been an advantage to service providers as it reduces the expense of paper bills and brings down customer service calls to the customer support centre of the service provider, thus saving lot of money. Online billing also facilitates the customer to pay his dues easily through online features after seeing his bill thus allowing easy cash flow to the Service provider when compared to traditional payment processing methods. Other benefits can be as follows:

1)  Instant cash can be made available as payments can be made instantly.
2)  Working capital can be increased as you are never short of cash even though the sales may dip.
3)  Eliminate bad debts as the chances of invoices not reaching the   concerned person are minimal and also the invoices don’t get misplaced.
4)  Early payment discounts since the company has enough liquidity to pay for its rent, raw materials, etc.

From the customer’s point of view the advantages are:

1)  To view invoice at the click of a button and pay instantly.
2)  24/7 access to billing records, both the service provider and the customer can access their billing records and manage their payments.
3)  Payments history can be viewed from the database, outstanding payments can be tracked and customers can be reminded of their dues online.
4)  As online billing system runs on third party payment gateway integration, it get rids of all the potential threats.
5)  The most important, customers can see online the discounts offers based on the invoice amount or service used and thus make the best use/choices of the services offered.

The amount of time and money that can be saved through online invoicing can be staggering. The financial matters and receivables are taken care of and thus help in sustaining through tough times.

Yes, this is what we had strive to achieve and deliver to our customers – ‘Convenient Invoicing’. It was a promise made by us to all our registered users spread across the globe. But for ‘Team Invoicera’ it was more than just a promise, it was a pledge. A pledge to deliver an invoicing and billing application that would change the way online invoicing is done; to take online invoicing to a level where invoicing inconveniences and concerns are addressed with utmost ease. We believe every business has potential and efficient invoicing helps in realizing it.

We would again like to remind our users that we had received overwhelming response through numerous registrations just before the launch. As a result we decided to send the confirmation mails in batches. For the moment we have some exciting and important news for our users. The process of sending confirmation mails that we initiated has been completed. Henceforth, all the new invoicera users will promptly receive auto generated login details as and when the sign up form is filled and submitted. So no holding back, just fill in a simple sign-up form and start convenient invoicing.

And of course, the application is currently in the beta phase. Therefore, we request all the users to drop in their valuable feedbacks and suggestions. Invoicera is our application and your views. Our objective is to provide the best-in-class online invoicing application that will partner you in your pursuit of business excellence.

So did you think invoices can only be used to collect receivables? Well think again! Still can’t figure out? Ok, here is the disclosure – You can use your business invoice as an effective promotional instrument with your clients.

By using invoices as a promotional tool you can open new avenues for your business and also fasten the receivables cycle. Prompt payments are a definite advantage but you can also harness the potential clients for your business.

By following few simple suggestions which are mentioned below, you can use invoicing as a powerful and effective promotional tool.

• Add a note/footer on the invoice stating, “15% off on your next deal/purchase with us” and support it with a call to action by mentioning, “The offer expires after 10 days,” etc.

• To add a coupon is a very good idea. This coupon can be made available in two ways. First, by adding at the bottom of an invoice in a manner that it can be tore. Second, as a separate coupon. The advantage of a separate coupon is that it can easily be circulated and existing clients can give it to someone who can become your potential customer.

• You can also improve client loyalty by advertising your client’s exclusive product/service specials on the coupon.

• Don’t forget to use the power of referrals. Use your client referrals with a “refer-a-friend” promo and reward one or both of them with a discount. It is said that the cost of attracting a new customer is six times more than retaining the old customers. With referrals you save cost as well as obtain new customers.

Grab the marketing opportunity with your invoicing and see the results coming your way. After all this is what marketing is all about- finding new avenues of business. Promotion through invoicing is certainly one of them and it costs you nothing, well almost!

New business plans, constant upgradations, continuous improvements, product launches, stringent deadlines, etc., form just a small part of the business framework. This list is endless and amidst all this, generating and sending invoices is perhaps the most unwieldy process. In the never ending list of business activities, invoicing drops down the rankings (one can only wonder why?). There is a need to keep the finances intact and without efficient invoicing this is just not possible.

I am sure that the above mentioned list of frenzy activities is familiar to you. If so, it’s high time you invest in online invoicing application that integrates with your business requirements. Don’t expect it to be a magic wand or a miracle drug but will certainly help you get more organized. Be rest assured that managing accounts will be least of your worries.

To support this argument, I have listed down various surveys and reports which suggest that electronic invoicing is increasingly becoming indispensable for businesses of all sizes.
TowerGroup, a market research company, have said, “…the rise of digital invoicing during the economy’s decline may not be mere coincidence. It fits into the business climate that we are in…”

The benefits of sending and receiving digital invoices are many and have been practically witnessed. Not only does it slash invoice processing costs, it helps companies mitigate billing errors, increase cash flow, bolster customer service and reduces the debt collection turnaround time.

Another survey conducted by MasterCard, Ariba Survey reports – “Two out of three companies with annual revenues in excess of $500 million have implemented some form of electronic invoicing.”

An analyst at research firm Celent Communications believes that electronic B2B payments will grow from 20% today to almost 50% by 2010.

The results based on a comparative study by Finland post’s Itella group on e-invoicing shows: majority of consumers in Finland, Sweden and Norway are ready to implement electronic invoices and believe this is the best invoicing channel. Also, SMEs take a positive view of electronic invoicing. Most Finnish and Swedish SMEs are ready to implement it even if they have never tried it.

E-invoicing can dramatically reduce invoicing costs compared to manual or traditional invoicing. On a national scale, savings represent some EUR 2.7 billion a year. E-invoicing also addresses environmental issues because it is a practically paperless system and thereby eco-friendly as well.

The year 2008 will be remembered for the world wide ‘economic recession’. It has taken a toll on each and everyone of us in some way or the other. Nobody has been spared, be it individuals, corporates, SME’s, etc. But hang on, are the ripple effects really that negative? Till recently my answer would have been, yes they have been terrible. It is only a few days back that I came across some surveys and reports that suggest that companies have actually switched to practices that can shield them from potential economic adversities. One of them has been the transition from traditional invoicing to electronic invoicing presentment and payment.

According to new research from Giga Information Group, companies that opt to implement electronic invoicing can achieve a positive ROI with as little as 12-15 per cent adoption rate by suppliers. The reports reveal that companies have been proactive in implementing electronic invoicing because of improved efficiency for cash flows, accounts receivable and marketing.

International Accounts Payable Professionals Association demonstrates that enterprises and organizations can save staggering amount ranging between anything from £60,000 to £1.2 million a year. A whooping 69% compared to manual invoicing.

Credit Research Foundation of U.S conducted a recent survey to suggest top three reasons for implementing electronic invoicing. The survey gathered 267 responses across 50 industries. 54% of the survey population cited improved cash flow as the reason. 44% respondents said lower invoicing processing cost as result of improved data; 45% believed enhanced customer service for billing and remittance.

These facts prove that electronic invoicing is effective, efficient and effectual. It can dramatically reduce invoicing cost and helps you save both time and money. Two things which we are all short of.

It is said that positivity and negativity are two facet of the same coin. Though, the economic downturn has had a deep hurting wound, there is something to cheer about. At least, we know of one way to counter this recession and how to face it the coming years.

If coffee can be made instantly, then why not invoices and bills. Perhaps the comparison is too hypothetical. But the point here is not to argue about whether the comparison is worth mentioning or not. The larger point that is being put across is that even generating invoices can be as instantaneous as making a coffee.

By following just a few easy steps, the entire unwieldy process of generating invoices is compressed into a simple and easily interpreted process. Unlike for many other online billing and invoicing softwares, one does not need any accounting experience to use Invoicera 7.0. The application has been kept simple on purpose and deliberately, so you can get organized and get the desired job done faster. On one side of the table, online softwares boast of being efficient and effectual but on the other hand are governed by complexity and head scratching steps. With our billing solution, you can easily create and send invoices while being able to see the customers that have paid and those who still owe you money.

Our detailed dashboard (which I will be talking about in the next post) allows every businessman, consultant, freelancer, etc to remain on top of their payment tracking. Spending less time on calculating down payments and accounts receivables enables you to spend more time virtually on every aspect of your business, which would ultimately result in overall development and expansion.

If you are still skeptical about the instantaneity of generating invoices, then what better way to try it yourself? Register for the free beta version on the homepage and experience the difference.