Payments Mythbusters: Thanksgiving Edition

Myth: Turkey's can't fly.

Fact: Sure they can! They’re just not great at it.

It’s the same with checks and ACH. Can these payment methods get the job done? Of course. There’s just a better way.

Not long ago, the traditional payments establishment and many merchants were downright skeptical about the ability of digitization to streamline and simplify B2B payments. While digital payments have had a transformational impact on the B2B payments landscape, misconceptions linger.

“There definitely remains a knowledge gap with those who perceive payments using ACH or checks as being less costly than digital models,” said Dean Leavitt, CEO & Founder of Boost Payments. “The misperception is that ACH and checks are free, but credit cards cost a lot,” he said.

Finexio aims to stuff that knowledge gap and shed light on truths that will improve your payment process and your bottom line with our series, Payments Mythbusters. In this Thanksgiving-themed edition, let’s set the record straight around digital and card payments vs checks and ACH (the turkeys of the B2B payments world).

Myth: Digital payments carry a high barrier to entry

Fact: Digital payments actually offer improved cash flow and efficiencies related to third-party processors you can hire like Boost and Finexio. One example of this reality, according to Leavitt, is the boom in digital B2B usage during the pandemic. “There’s been lots of businesses going into digital payments driven by the pandemic. People tend not to go back to checks and less efficient payment methods, once they’re hooked on the benefits of digital payments and specifically card products where they are getting that working capital.”

Digital payments allows companies to fill in gaps and continue moving their capital in the right direction, despite shortages of in-person time and interaction to process ACH and checks. Finexio has a dedicated onboarding and customer success team that shortens onboarding times and eliminates implementation and training headaches, allowing companies to focus on doing their business instead of shuffling paper and waiting for payments to clear.

Myth: Digital payments lack ROI

Fact: Finexio cuts costs associated with manual paper-based processes and the opportunity for cash back via early payment discounts and virtual card interchange. By streamlining the payment process with digital payment methods, companies can guarantee not only savings but returns through usage rewards. In addition, the security offered by digital payments will actually create the potential for transaction volume to increase. “Someone is willing to pay that fee instead of just getting a piece of paper sent to them”, Leavitt said, adding, “I see the fees associated with B2B transactions coming down significantly.”

This positions digital and commercial cards as the future of B2B payments, because as more transactions are happening, the price for executing the payments will actually decrease, resulting in an increasingly favorable environment for even more digital transactions.

Myth: Digital payments require expensive technology

Despite the beliefs of organizations and merchants that digital payments mean they have to acquire expensive technology, FinTech companies like Finexio and Boost build the technology capabilities in their back offices so that organizations and merchants can benefit from automation and technology without having to acquire or maintain it.

“The concept of embedded finance with software-enabled platforms that leads distribution for payments products, services and cash management tools, creates a powerful environment for B2B digital payments,” noted Finexio CEO & Founder, Ernest Rolfson. Because large financial institutions can afford to wait on ACH and checks due to their internal funds, they have no motivation to create the next generation of efficiencies.

“Fintech companies can move much quicker in terms of accommodating the needs of the marketplace,” Leavitt said. “You know, the large financial institutions, even the very best of them, the smartest of them, they just can’t move as quickly as a fintech can. And that’s a huge advantage in the marketplace.”

Myth: Digital Payments are Inefficient

This myth is particularly egregious, because, “Digital payments not only [extends] the working capital, the days payable outstanding for the buyer, but they reduce the days sales outstanding for the supplier, thereby increasing their working capital. That’s really the perfect win”, according to Leavitt. By using digital payment methods, companies can quite literally capitalize on new, frictionless efficiencies and keep themselves agile in a developing space, instead of waiting around for ACH and paper checks, and exposing themselves to fraud.

If you’ve bought into any of these myths, hopefully we’ve convinced you to toss them in the trash along with that turkey carcass.

Speaking of that bird….

‍Myth: Those plastic pop-up thermometers tell you when your turkey is cooked.

Fact: They let you know when the turkey is overcooked.

From all of us at Finexio, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Do you have a payments-related myth you want busted? Tell us about it on Twitter — @finexiopayments #paymentsmythbusters.

Learn more about Finexio and how digitizing accounts payable can be an easy win. Contact our team for a consultation.

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