It’s an essential KPI that enables you to analyze the operational costs of all collections management activities. These may include the costs of all AR software and communication channels. Meaning the AR team collected all money owed by clients at a certain period. On the other hand, high DSO means customers take longer to pay, and your money remains a receivable balance in your accounts. This may be a cue to adjust your collection strategies to speed up collections. Providing various payment choices, like credit/debit cards or ACH drafts, enhances customer convenience.
It’s important for business owners to manage their accounts receivable properly, from initial credit application to collection of the accounts receivable balance. If you’re concerned about how quickly your customers are paying, calculating your accounts receivable turnover ratio can provide some insight. Accountants and auditors also find the aging of accounts to determine a reasonable amount to be reported as bad debt expense and to establish a sufficient balance in the allowance for doubtful accounts. Accounts receivable management is the process of managing and monitoring the amounts owed to a company by its customers for goods or services sold on credit. It includes essential functions like invoice management, collecting payments, assessing credit risks, and resolving disputes.
Automating cash application through machine learning enables companies to match any payment type with an open receivable, capture and reconcile payment data, eliminate manual entry, and speed up cash flow. Payment reports are essential for tracking customer payments and keeping accurate records of the payments received. By monitoring these payment reports, businesses can stay on top of customer payments and maximise their accounts receivable management. AR management refers to the set of practices, procedures, and policies used by a company to manage the money it is owed by its customers. This includes invoice creation, payment tracking, reminder systems, and strategies to motivate timely payments, such as early payment discounts or late payment penalties. These software simplifies the accounts receivable management process, providing real-time insight into customer payment behavior, tracking invoices, and automating follow-ups.
HighRadius offers a range of AI-powered solutions that cater to companies of all sizes across various industries. Our RadiusOne AR Suite is specifically designed for mid-market CFOs, providing a comprehensive suite of features such as collections, cash reconciliation, credit management, and e-invoicing applications. At HighRadius, our team of fintech experts collaborates with companies to comprehend their unique requirements and provide tailored solutions to simplify accounts receivable management. Our comprehensive suite of solutions covers every aspect of AR management, including credit assessment and onboarding, invoicing and collections, cash application, and deductions management. Keep in mind that if you think that outsourcing your AR management will solve the issue of collecting unpaid invoices then you are wrong.
The key takeaway here is that cash collection needs to be collaborative. What this really means is that each stakeholder from different departments plays a key role in the process and that no one team is responsible for the entire process. You can use an electronic invoicing system that delivers invoice information and links directly within an email to avoid triggering spam filters with an attachment. Set up easy electronic payment portals with different online payment options that let clients pay online (by using a credit card for instance) as soon as they read your invoice. Taking these steps can foster good customer relationships and avoid the non-payment of customer invoices.
Now, the question can arise, how to do accounts receivable management? Ultimately, you should be able to ensure accuracy and efficiency throughout our entire accounts receivable process. Automation offers fewer errors, more accurate billing, and faster billing, which help you facilitate better relationships with vendors. Vendors, like customers, will receive accurate, quickly generated invoices that can be accessed in a single, up-to-date portal. The tool you choose should automate the process of examining the customer’s creditworthiness to determine if your company will extend credit to them or not.
Drive visibility, accountability, and control across every accounting checklist. The best source of information for all things subscriptions, growth, and revenue success. Clear billing procedures define expectations internally and externally. Perhaps even more important than the initial definitions is consistent adherence across the AR team.
Unlock full control and visibility of disputes and provide better insight into how they impact KPIs, such as DSO and aged debt provisions. A good accounting system with tools for managing invoice accounts receivable can help you get paid faster, so you can focus on running your business. AR Automation is no longer a “nice-to-have” for high-growth SaaS businesses. A manual accounts receivable process can leak ~3% of your revenue even with an ERP or accounting system in place.
Companies get paid faster when customers can have transparent access to their account, view invoice statuses, and easily make online payments. Organizations that still rely on manual invoicing techniques—and subsequently maintain poorer AR management processes—limit their cash flow and growth. Good accounts receivable management policies can increase cash flow, improve collection processes, and get your company paid faster. Businesses use accounts receivable reports to monitor their customers’ payment activities. These reports give businesses a better understanding of their customer’s payment patterns and help them manage cash flow more effectively.
Poor management, however, can lead to wasted staff time, accounting errors, lost revenue, and poor cash flow. One of the essential elements of effective AR management are the steps you take to extend credit to your customers. Having a detailed and well-conceived process for approving customer credit will ensure that you are extending credit to reliable customers who are more likely to pay on time. This minimizes both the risk that your business is exposed to and the demands that may be placed on your AR teams by having too many accounts that are in arrears.
BlackLine and our ecosystem of software and cloud partners work together to transform our joint customers’ finance and accounting processes. Together, we provide innovative solutions that help F&A teams achieve shorter close cycles and better controls, enabling them to drive better decision-making across the company. Transaction reports may be used to track the transaction history of your customers’ invoices. As such, transaction reports will often play a crucial role in the accounts receivable transactions auditing trail. Typically, these AR reports will include the billed amount, any payments that apply to the invoice, and the current balance that is due. A high DSO may strain your cash flow, complicating your ability to meet financial obligations.
This financial process is where accounts receivable management takes center stage. Accounts receivable staff work closely with sales and finance teams and are typically responsible for collecting revenue, recording transactions, verifying payments, and resolving discrepancies on accounts. These teams should be involved in this process not only because the definition and basic types of credit line getting paid is central from a business perspective but because it is a strong indicator of the quality of goods or services your company is providing. It is a qualitative approach, as each stakeholder will have a different and unique relationship with your customer and will be able to tailor their approach accordingly to get paid on time.
