E-shy companies counting the cost
UK businesses could save themselves almost £7bn a year if they followed the example of the US companies and allowed customers to pay their bills online.
British businesses have fallen far behind their US counterparts, according to a PA News report, with US customers settling more than a quarter of all bills using the Internet.
A recent survey conducted by software company Macro4 estimated that UK companies could stop wasting an estimated £7bn each year by accepting bill payments via the Internet, instead of issuing paper invoices and accepting cheques.
Closer to home, the Irish post office An Post is showing UK companies the way forward. It encourages the payment of bills through its website and believes the common perception that customers suffer from techno-phobia is untrue. The problem, according to An Post, lies with firms who are reluctant to embrace web payments.
An Post claims that as many as seven out of ten web-surfers would prefer to pay via the Internet because it’s easier and more convenient than writing cheques and posting envelopes.
Small businesses in the UK have been slow to embrace the e-commerce revolution
According to Stephen Alambritis of the Federation of Small Businesses: ‘Paying bills online would work for small businesses if they were online themselves.’
Links
Opinion: The rise of e-billing