How FinTechs Encourage Suppliers To Tap Into ePayments

In business, ePayments not only simplify and streamline the way companies make payments, they also speed up the way suppliers are paid. But businesses are often reluctant to adopt a new way of working — even if the right tools are readily available. Many companies are still accustomed to using paper checks in the business world. To help suppliers benefit from different options, FinTechs are educating them on the types of payments that are available to them.

But AvidXChange SVP Supplier Services Denise Leleux noted that companies are used to payment methods like Venmo and PayPal in their personal lives. To help bridge the gap, firms like AvidXChange are aiming to create awareness of the fact that ePayments are “as useful and as likely in the business environment and even more helpful sometimes than in your personal life,” Leleux told PYMNTS in an interview. The FinTech is also seeing education flow from the buyer to the supplier.

When it signs a buyer up for its platform, a buyer sends a letter to all of its suppliers, introducing the FinTech to them. The letter says that the buyer is trying to automate its back office, that the supplier will hear from the firm, and that the supplier will also be able to learn about the FinTech’s different payment methods.

But not all suppliers have the same level of education or awareness of ePayments. Many enterprise suppliers already have integrated back offices and integrated accounts receivables.

In AvidXChange’s experience, these companies are more likely “to take electronic payment and be early adopters of electronic payment,” Leleux says. As a result, FinTechs don’t need to devote the same effort educating them. In the mid-market, however, firms may have reconciliation challenges, or they might have standard processes with very few people. As a result, Leleux says the FinTech has to meet them on simplicity and efficiency. Smaller firms may still be more apt to take checks, and that is where the FinTech has “did you know” kinds of conversations.

When it comes to customer satisfaction, the company’s suppliers who take ePayments give it higher scores. Leleux thinks those ratings have to do with the timeliness of payments and the accuracy of the data. Suppliers, after all, never get a check lost in the mail with ePayments. And, as the company puts a spotlight on this payment innovation, Leleux says it aims to make every form of payment match what a customer needs when they need it.