Monthly Archives: May 2023

30/05/2023

eInvoicing benefits

Electronic innovation is becoming more and more prominent in recent times as we see businesses look for ways to reduce costs and improve efficiency. One of the innovations with prominence at the moment is eInvoicing. Here's how eInvoicing works: It involves sending and receiving invoices electronically, directly to and from their software. It removes the need for unnecessary data entry and inaccurate OCR scanning.

Benefits for buyers

Most businesses think eInvoicing only benefits the seller, but that’s not true. There’s a lot of good stuff for buyers too:
  • Time and cost savings eInvoicing eliminates the need for manual data entry because invoices pop straight into your software. This also reduces the likelihood of errors, which can lead to further costs and delays.
  • Improved accuracy eInvoicing helps ensure invoices are accurate and complete , reducing the likelihood of disputes between buyers and suppliers. How? Well, eInvoices go straight into your software, so there’s no need to manually enter them in. Not only is it harder to make errors, you reduce the risk of fraudulent invoices too! Anyone who sends an eInvoice via the Peppol network needs to be registered.
  • Increased visibility eInvoicing makes it easier for businesses to keep track of invoices and reduces the chance of losing invoices, which can delay payment and impact your supplier relationships . This is because your software keeps your invoice activity and purchase orders all in the one place.
  • Reduced environmental impact eInvoicing reduces paper usage and helps to lower carbon emissions associated with paper-based invoicing, which can be important for buyers looking to reduce their environmental impact.

Benefits for sellers

In the current economic climate, efficiency is key so here are some of the main benefits eInvoicing can bring:
  • Faster payment processing eInvoicing allows sellers to send invoices to their customers quickly and easily, which can lead to faster payment processing and improved cash flow.
  • Reduced manual processing eInvoicing reduces a lot of manual processing by using your software to create and instantly send invoices to your buyers. No need to create invoices in your software then download a PDF and then put together an email. The other good thing is that eInvoicing shows the status of an invoice so the need for your customers to follow up with you is reduced.
  • Increased visibility eInvoicing provides sellers with real-time access to invoice status and payment information, like when an invoice has been approved and when it has been paid.

Steps to get started

  1. Find out if your existing software is eInvoicing-capable
  2. If not, talk to an eInvoicing service provider like MessageXchange
    • Fill in a form with your business details and choose which products works best for you
    • Get connected to MessageXchange
    • Start exchanging eInvoices
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26/05/2023

EDI for small business

It’s common for people to think electronic data interchange (EDI) is used by big businesses only. But small business can actually benefit from EDI without heavy investment too.

The benefits of EDI to small businesses

Let’s get down to brass tacks. There are a few things you can get out of EDI as a small business. Here are just a few:

  • Cost savings
    The cost to process a paper invoice is estimated to be $30.87, $27.67 to process a PDF invoice, and only $9.18 to process an electronic invoice.
  • Shortened procure-to-pay cycle
    EDI can speed up your business cycles by 61%. EDI can reduce the order-to-cash cycle time by more than 20%.
  • Better data accuracy
    EDI improves data quality, delivering at least a 30-40% reduction in transactions with errors by eliminating manual data entry errors.
  • Less manual handling
    75% of businesses are confident they can process most inbound EDI/XML connections without a human touch.
  • Better visibility into your supply chain
    A study showed that 63% of businesses surveyed reported increased collaboration and visibility with suppliers after implementing EDI.
  • Better customer service
    60% of businesses say data integration has improved their customer service levels.
  • Increase your potential business with EDI ready organisations
    EDI ready businesses are more willing to work with each knowing they can benefit from their existing EDI setup.
  • Reduce paper use and digitise your business operations
    According to research, implementing EDI can lead to a 75% reduction in paper usage for transactional documents.

How does it work?

As the orders coming in increases, so does your business. But so does manual data entry, increasing workload and the risk of mistakes and errors. By using a EDI with your suppliers, you can raise orders and other messages as usual and they would be sent directly to your supplier’s software or EDI portal.

There, they respond to the order with a purchase order response, to let you know what they can supply, and can even let you know if your prices are incorrect, when they estimate the delivery to arrive and more. This information can be input into your software so your team can plan ahead. And if your software doesn’t support this data, you could take a hybrid approach and view this information in an EDI portal, like Colladium.

Your supplier can also issue you advanced shipping notices, which tell you exactly how the goods are being packed. Your supplier can even give you information like the best before or expiry dates, the batch numbers of the goods and more. This is especially useful if you have stock management or warehousing software. Again, once your supplier sends the information, it goes directly into your software – no need to re-key it. It also ensures your team have full visibility of the supply chain.

And finally, your accounts payable team will be happy about this – supplier invoices go directly into your software. There’s no receiving invoices attached to shipments, which your team need to enter, and no OCR scanning PDFs. The right data gets into your invoicing software straight away, where you may be able to automate the approval and payment of the invoice.

So what if your partners don’t use EDI? Easy, our web portal solution, Colladium, allows your suppliers and logistics provider to send you EDI messages directly to your software. Did I mention it’s free for them to use?!

Process for implementing EDI

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Let us know what you want to achieve and we'll suggest the best solution

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Start our partnership

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Connect to MessageXchange and test connectivity and messaging

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Go live!

Want to learn more about how EDI could help solve your business issues? Ask our experts by getting in touch below.

Request a call

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Just fill out your details below and we'll be in touch within one business day.

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