Business processes are shifting during the current virtual revolution. Meetings and work are being conducted remotely in ever-increasing volumes. As the shift to virtual conferences and offsite work increases, traditional business processes like in-house check writing are becoming increasingly cumbersome and costly, leading many companies to consider outsource check printing services.
For businesses who are unable to make the switch to remote work, the accounts payable processes are typically still an area of opportunity for improvement. Very few organizations would call payment processes a core competency, and many struggle to maintain the expertise, processes, and systems to ensure the efficient and effective completion of accounts payable tasks.
A business writing an average of 500 checks per month will pay over $24,500 in labor, materials, and bank fees to process checks over the course of a year. While it may be tempting to put in place digital payment processing systems to address these costs and other issues related to paper checks, the implementation costs and learning curve for a new payment processing system make these changes difficult to implement. A much better option is to outsource payment processing. Outsourcing these processes is an affordable, efficient way for businesses to reduce the burden of check processing without restructuring payment processes.
Why Outsource Check Printing and Mailing
Businesses that outsource check printing and mailing processes experience a number of benefits. From labor efficiency and better supplier relationship management to expense reduction and enhanced security, outsourcing these complex processes is a great way to enhance the payment process system in any organization. Let’s take a look at the main benefits of outsourcing check printing.
Outsource Printing Services to Reduce Expenses
When a company chooses to outsource printing services, often the most notable benefit is expense reduction. Check printing companies are experts in processing check payments timely and accurately. Because they focus all their efforts on these tasks, they are able to complete the services more efficiently and affordably than most companies can by keeping these services in house. As a result, employees can refocus their time on more meaningful tasks, increasing productivity and reducing expenses.
Outsourcing allows small and medium-sized businesses to leverage economies of scale that may not be accessible internally. Combining the expertise, efficiency, and scalability of a dedicated printing check company means small business owners can access best practice payment and security models that may otherwise be out of reach.
Check Printing Companies Provide Enhanced Security
Enhanced security is another benefit of an outsourced printing check service. Securing financial information requires complex security protocols, burdening the employees in the process to ensure compliance. Specialized check printing companies can take this burden off companies and ensure the utilization of best practices regarding financial security, compliance, and risk. Trusting an expert in this area reduces the risk of cyber theft and other security issues.
According to a 2019 survey underwritten by J.P. Morgan, 82% of businesses reported payment fraud incidents in 2018. A specialized check printing service has enhanced protocols in place to detect and address fraud attempts.
Outsourced payment processing companies are able to ensure legal compliance in a variety of areas. Advanced security and system protocols ensure HIPAA compliance for organizations that work in healthcare, and protocols exist for financial, legal, and specialized regulatory requirements to deliver peace of mind to business owners.
Outsource Check Printing Services to Improve Supplier Relations
Print outsourcing to a reliable company may also improve your vendor relations. An efficient print outsourcing company processes checks and payments quickly, securely, and accurately. Vendors appreciate quick payments and will be more likely to be flexible with requests from companies with a good payment record. This may also reduce employee time spent resolving aging invoices. Reducing payment processing times may allow companies to negotiate more favorable payment terms with suppliers.
Developing enhanced relationships with suppliers may also result in additional expense reduction. Customers who are able to quickly process supplier payments may be able to negotiate discounts if paid in full in a certain time frame, such as the common payment term of 2% net 10, giving the purchaser a 2% discount if they pay the net invoice in full within 10 days. Further, quick paying customers may be able to negotiate better contracts with suppliers as the relationship improves.
Better Decision Making
A specialized check printing company can provide greater reporting than most companies are able to provide internally. Transparency and knowledge regarding payment status, amounts, dates, and other criteria allow you to see who you are paying when allowing for better visibility into accounts payable processes and providing the information to support better operational decision making.
Many of today’s businesses have accounts in multiple banks, which can create issues with traditional in-house payment processing systems. With an outsourced check printing service, the check writer generates reports across multiple accounts and banks, giving full visibility into the accounts payable process from end to end.
Accounts payable reporting provides the opportunity to identify trends, consolidate vendors, and monitor supplier contracting obligations. Businesses will also be better equipped to track and trend expenses over time to better accomplish budgeting and performance projection tasks.
Print Outsourcing Reduces Errors
Errors can be costly enough on their own, but depending upon the industry, accounting errors can quickly become a compliance or legal issue. Specialized outsourcing firms only do accounts payable processes. This makes them not only more efficient but much more accurate, ensuring fewer errors in your payment processes. In addition to incorporating best practices into their work, AP outsourcing companies typically have incorporated the latest technologies into their processes to identify and correct errors before they become problems.
Other Benefits
Outsourcing check printing may provide other benefits as well. As resources become freer through outsourcing, businesses may find that they are more agile by refocusing those resources to areas of opportunity more quickly. Businesses have more resources to dedicate to leveraging organizational core competencies to create a stronger value proposition for customers instead of managing complex payment processes that often create no additional value to the customer. Real-time tracking of mailed payments provides the ability to see exactly where payments are and delivery times and locations, providing peace of mind regarding payment delivery status.
If you have been wondering about payment options for your business and are curious about how we can help you increase operational efficiency, agility, and value creation, you owe it to yourself to check out all of the benefits of outsourcing with us. Reach out today to find out how we can help you spend your time and resources on the things that matter most to your business.
References
[1]https://www.bill.com/sites/default/files/how%20much%20does%20it%20really%20cost%20to%20pay%20with%20paper%20checks.pdf
[2]https://www.afponline.org/ideas-inspiration/topics/articles/Details/survey-fraud-hits-record-high-impacts-82-of-businesses/
