Paper Checks: Where did they go?

Twenty years ago, every business and individual consumer paid their bills by pulling out a checkbook, writing a check, attaching the bill stub and putting it in the mail with an envelope and stamp. This six step process was common practice because there was really no other way to securely pay bills without going to the service provider’s location and paying in person. Checks were the only convenient means of bill payment.

Since then, the check industry has experienced quite a downturn in demand due to the many new bill payment options available to businesses and consumers. Service providers are working tirelessly to find new and more convenient ways for people to pay their bills. This does not bode well for the check printing industry, but certainly does make life a lot easier for the rest of us.

So, now that most Americans are no longer using checks and “snailmail” to pay our bills, what are we using? Over the last decade, there has been an onslaught of new bill payment options made available online. These range from payment by credit card online to automated bank transfers. They can include robust bill management systems or simply bill payment online. The differences are vast but they all lead to the same end result, easier bill processing and payment for everyone involved.

However, these vast differences do make a substantial impact. Many businesses are utilizing the bill management systems offered by their service providers to enhance efficiency and improve resource management. Business are also using the automated analytics tools offered by many service providers to do their allocation management and trend reporting for them – rather than having an internal resource dedicated to that activity. Long gone are the days of 200 page paper bills and excel spreadsheet analysis. More robust tools are now available.

Many of these programs provide feature rich functionality that empowers business customers from large SMEs to multi-national businesses to produce the reports they need to conduct business, increasing customer satisfaction. Some of these programs even provide sophisticated levels of functionality that allow users to design customized reports that can be stored and run on demand. Reports are quickly generated and can be easily exported for distribution or use in other packages. Structures, reflecting that of the organization, enable users to allocate costs easily to account codes. The ability to allow the individual user to identify their personal and business costs is also available in many of the top of the line eBilling solutions.

The bill payment options available today are endless. Some people are only concerned about making a simple online payment, while others are looking for more. Regardless of your needs, the solution is out there for you. Luckily, you no longer have to turn to the checkbook and postal service to fill your bill payment needs. The potential cost savings available by using a robust eBilling system are endless: improving efficiency, maximizing accuracy, timely reporting and allocation. Talk to your service providers today to discuss how they can provide you with the bill payment options that best suit your needs.