3 hidden costs of manual invoice processing

Manual invoice processing has a lot of direct and indirect costs ‒ supplies, wages, time, etc. However, there are larger costs involved as well, but because they don’t show up on the bottom line, companies sometimes aren’t aware of them, even though they can have a huge impact on your business.

1. Poor cash flow. If your company is like most companies, it probably processes most of its invoices by hand. This is not only slow, but it also leaves you vulnerable to error. In short, the more steps it takes you to generate an invoice, the more likely it is that someone on your team will make a mistake. Vague descriptions, inaccurate numbers, wrong addresses, incorrect payment details ‒ mistakes like these can delay payments. Going back to sort them out significantly increases your time to cash. 
2. Poor customer experience. Overworked staff and a disorganized workflow make it hard to get invoices out the door on time, which frustrates customers. They are working hard to plan their budget. Delivering an invoice close to your deadline upsets their process and forces them to scramble. Invoices are an important touchpoint with your customers. If their payment experience is slow and frustrating, eventually it’s going to discourage them from doing business with you.
3. Staff burnout. One aspect of manual invoicing that is not often talked about is how much staff members hate processing invoices by hand. Dealing with the same dull, repetitive tasks every day saps the morale of your team. It increases the number of mistakes they make and leads to higher turnover. Poorly written invoices cause endless headaches for you and your customers. Constantly training new employees is a major drain in your time as well. 

Manual invoice processing increases pain points that, in the long run, make it harder for you to do business. The worst part, so many business owners are so absorbed in the day-to-day struggles of running their companies, they’re never able to address the root of the problem.

How automation cuts the cost of manual invoice processing

Invoicing is full of repeatable tasks that clog your workflow. Automation takes them off your plate, simplifying the entire process.  With Chargezoom, tasks that normally take hours can be completed in seconds. Free from the constant grind of manual data entry, you finally have the time to root out errors and optimize your accounting.