5 Steps To Automate Your Order To Cash Process With The Right Solution
A/R Automation
The first step in creating an ideal, automated order to cash process is to understand the needs of your organization and its capabilities. This includes considering factors such as the size and scope of your business, the number of customers, the complexity of products and services, cash flow forecasts, and payment security due diligence requirements. It is important to also look at size and location of customers, varying ways of invoice data capture and input, customer authentication methods, customer contact preferences, past processing times and efficiency, customer dispute resolution needs, and which payment methods they accept. All of this information will be helpful in determining the right solution firm.
Step 2: Assess Payment Security Requirements The assessment of payment security is an integral part of the process of finding the right order to cash automation solution. Many payment systems are vulnerable to fraud, with estimates ranging from low double-digits to as high as 60%. It is critical to consider data protection through quality encryption and authentication of customers? payments. Multi-factor authentication is an effective way to authenticate each order and can be major factor in effectively protecting goods and services. Additionally, payment methods should match customer preferences for payment and make it as easy as possible for customers to pay, reducing the risk of payment defaults and avoiding losses in sales.
Step 3: Evaluate Process Efficiency The order to cash process should be as efficient as possible. Processing time from the moment an invoice is issued to the moment the payment is received should be measured so that current performance is known and improvements can be implemented. Automating processes used by customers to authenticate and pay can decrease processing time significantly. Evaluate if the automation solution can provide swift responses and efficient administrative operations. Look at ways to cut down manual data entry and eliminate workflow bottlenecks.
Step 4: Consider Customer Experience The customer experience must not be compromised even when automation has effectively taken over the job of manually processing orders and collections. Collecting payments and providing goods and services to customers should be friction free and efficient, as customers expect an easy and secure payment experience. If the customer experience is compromised in any way, it can result in displeased customers who are reluctant to make future orders. The ideal automated order to cash solution should provide multiple payment method options while also optimizing customer authentication and security without overly impacting the customer experience.
Step 5: Look at Scalability and Integration When the right order to cash automation solution is found, long-term success requires scalability, integration and roadmap of future features. Define key features needed to meet the current and future needs of the organization and analyze the provider’s roadmap. Check the solution provider is equipped to easily integrate with other systems and applications, enabling flexibility and scalability, as well as integration of third-party services.
The order to cash automation process is critical component to the success of any finance organization and must align with the current cash flow and security needs of the company. The right solution should be able to match these requirements, ensuring that streamlined, secure and automated order to cash process is in place to drive the organizations future growth and profitability.
