Software that Saves Cash

The economy is big news these days, with companies downsizing,
slashing budgets and looking for any way possible to cut costs, improve
efficiency and maybe even turn a profit. While the situation is
certainly tough, it’s far from dire.

Solution providers
can make inroads with both new and existing customers by helping cut
costs from within, using a variety of innovative business optimization
solutions, including e-invoicing, wireless communications auditing and
software license tracking and renewals.

The most common
document used in B2B transactions is the invoice, often created, sent,
received, processed and filed manually using paper and personnel
resources. Reducing the amount of paper, time and manual labor involved
in the process is a no-brainer when it comes to helping customers save
money, says Shan Haq, vice president of marketing and product
development for e-invoicing solution provider Transcepta.

“We’re finding
customers with companies looking for technologies that can not only
help them cut costs from their budgets and personnel, but also with
companies who are looking to keep their personnel and budgets the same
and simply optimize their processes,” Haq says.

Transcepta’s
e-invoicing solution eliminates the waste and expensive manual
processes that often go hand-in-hand with paper-based invoicing.
Transcepta’s solution moves customers to an electronic invoicing system
so they can send and receive invoices electronically for speed,
accuracy and cost savings. Haq says many customers are seeing a 50
percent cost reduction within six months of implementing Transcepta’s
solution.

“If [customers] can
eliminate paper, and put the invoice electronically, directly into
their systems without having to touch paper or use personnel resources
to manually input and track those invoices, they save an incredible
amount of money,” he says.

Transcepta will also
approach customers’ suppliers to develop an e-invoicing solution that
further streamlines the invoicing process, since customers can both
send and receive invoices electronically. Haq says there’s an added
cost-savings bonus if Transcepta’s customers and their suppliers are
both using e-invoicing systems – early payment discounts.

Many suppliers extend
discounts or special pricing to customers who process and pay invoices
within a specific time frame, for example, within 15 or 30 days. An
e-invoicing solution takes the guesswork out of the equation for the
purchasing department, who know exactly how long an e-invoice will take
to receive, process and pay, thus qualifying the customer for early
payment discounts and cutting costs further.

Haq says the
Transcepta solution is a great fit for other solution providers selling
complementary technology such as accounts payable automation or expense
management software. Transcepta plans to include payment functionality
in its e-invoicing product to increase the value and to “close the loop
to electronically deliver payment back to suppliers,” he says.

“We expect to see a renaissance in e-invoicing because the fact is, this is a constant pain point,” says Haq.