South African companies looking for ways to lower their carbon footprint and save money in the process, can score quick wins by digitising their invoices, statements and payslips.
That’s the word from Zane Renou, chief commercial officer at Cellfind, who says that mobile payslips and statements are a simple and effective way to cut large volumes of paper from business procedures. In the process, companies can achieve significant cost savings while improving their green credentials.
According to a 2010 study conducted at the Aalto University School of Economics, moving from paper-based invoicing to electronic invoicing decreases the carbon footprint of one invoice over its lifecycle by 63%. Eliminating paper invoices reduces the carbon footprint by cutting down on paper, printing, transportation, the impact of disposing of all old invoices, and more.
“As a bonus, companies that issue electronic invoices and payslips will significantly reduce the costs of issuing these documents each month,” says Renou. “The savings from postage and distribution each month alone will be significant for most mid-sized and large businesses.”
Renou says that many companies in South Africa understand that they could save a lot of money each month through digital distribution of documents such as invoices, statements and payslips. However, most organisations still have many customers and employees who do not have an e-mail address.
In addition, the prevalence of phishing and spam has made many people mistrustful of e-mailed documents and also means that legitimate business communications sometimes get trapped in spam filters.
“With South Africa’s high mobile penetration, the mobile phone is one of the best ways to reach someone with an important communication,” says Renou. “Mobile statements and payslips offer companies all the benefits associated with online or e-mail billing, along with a wider reach into their customer and employee base.” For companies with geographically dispersed employees or a large segment of customers with no formal address, the mobile is also a perfect solution.
When it comes to statements and invoicing, a good mobile solution like Cellfind’s miStatement makes it simple to track and prove delivery of a statement to a client, says Renou. There is no need to send a registered letter because a delivery confirmation is sent to the company verifying that the statement has been received by the client.
Mobile delivery of statements means that customers are able to receive their statements on the day which they are generated, rather than waiting for them to arrive in the post. This may speed up the payment cycle. Customers are able to access both current and historical statement data from their mobile phones at any time. This adds a level of ease and convenience to the relationship that improves customer satisfaction.
With a mobile payslip solution such as miPayslip, it becomes cost effective and easy to distribute payslips to employees over a wide geographical area. The employer enjoys immediate savings on the logistics associated with printing and distribution of payslips, while allowing the employee the flexibility of requesting printed version when required.
Futuresoft, the leader in the South African debt recovery industry, recently integrated its debt recovery software, Excalibur, with Cellfind’s miStatement solution thereby reducing printing and postage costs and reaching customers with outdated address details.