Paper vs. eInvoicing? What Will Best Work for Your Business
One of the biggest questions for businesses in today’s rapidly advancing digital world is whether to stick with paper invoicing system or convert to an automated eInvoicing system? When examining the trends in the U.S. and the world, this question become easily answered.
Australia’s Move Toward eInvoicing Standardization
A recent article on PYMNTS.com called: “Australia Moves To Standardize eInvoicing”, posted on October 22nd, 2018, explains how this question is being answered with the government’s help, as it explains,
“…Treasury discussion paper released this week outlines a plan that would have Australia and New Zealand creating a cross-Tasman body that will oversee digital invoices across both countries.
…the Australian Taxation Office is creating a centralized look-up facility for businesses in both countries so they can find the ‘digital address’ of suppliers and send invoices to them directly. In addition, the Treasury paper supports the creation of ‘an industry-led, not-for-profit body to oversee eInvoicing…”
The article goes on to explain the main reasons for the move are to save businesses a significant amount of money ($27.97 paper invoices vs. $9.18 electronic invoices) and to decrease error and fraud (costing businesses more than $3.5 million in 2018 alone).
This move by two major countries in the world is an indication of the growing practice of businesses going digital with their invoicing processes. The inevitable conclusion is that this practice will continue to grow not only in Australia and New Zealand, but also in Europe, the U.S., and the entire world.
Even with the growing practice of eInvoicing being standardized by governments, small and large businesses must still ask themselves if making the transition is helpful for them specifically. Basically, even with undeniable benefits making the switch to automated electronic payments is a decision each business must make for themselves.
The Future of Invoicing Processes
According to FinancesOnline,
“…the EU had mandated that member states’ Public Administrators will be required to adopt e-invoicing by November 2018. The US Office of Management and Budget has also recommended that all government agencies adopt e-invoicing by the end of 2018.”
As we can see, governments around the world are leading the adoption of e-invoicing, as they strive to save money, cut down on fraud, and streamline payment processes. This is a good indication of what the future of invoicing processes will be for both the government and private industries.Yet, even with the clear benefits around half of U.S. businesses still choose to use paper invoicing processes.
An article on PYMNTS.com called: “The Oddity Of US Businesses That Still Use Paper Invoices”, written on December 21, 2017, explains:
“The U.S. seems to have a paper problem. In B2B transactions, paper checks and paper invoices continue to dominate, leading to friction in invoice processing, data management and payments.
The problem seems even more stark when compared against other jurisdictions across the world. Europe is among the leaders of eInvoice adoption…”
It seems that for many businesses in the U.S. the question of paper vs. electronic invoicing is still up in the air. Yet, with all the benefits, one must conclude that electronic invoicing will grow to be a standard business practice.
Conclusion
Clearly, the adoption of digital solutions with invoicing processes is swinging towards automated electronic payments. The main question small and large businesses must ask themselves is if switching to eInvoicing is right for them.
After considering eInvoice, the next step is to find a vendor that knows how to help your business. By contacting a premier eInvoicing service like iPayables, you can be assured a smooth and profitable transition takes place.