By: Jon Gage
When it comes to traditional AR functions, the end result of posting payments and depositing checks hasn’t changed. You bring your customers’ accounts up-to-date, and you get your money into the bank.
As simple as it sounds these two goals can come with a lot of heavy lifting up front. You’ve got mail to open, extract, sort, image & process. Over the last decade and a half many organizations have invested in automation solutions that include large check transports to help process high volumes of work. Fast forward to 2017 and most of the hardware devices used by these solutions are approaching end-of-life (or have already been retired), leaving AR managers asking, “what now?”
The bad news
Large, dedicated check transports have gone the way of 8-Tracks and audio cassettes – and unlike vinyl LPs they are not coming back. You’ve got options, but both of them will change the way your AR team looks in the coming years.
The good news
There are a host of inexpensive, reliable check scanners out on the market today. They won’t hold as many items as the old “big iron” transports did but their price point and ongoing maintenance cost reflects this. These scanners can represent a quick “win” and (for the most part) let your AR team continue doing what it does today. As consumer-to-business check volumes decline these devices will offer scalable capabilities to meet your demands. Now that’s the good news….
The great news
…but the really good news, the great news, is that the retirement of the old scanning hardware represents an opportunity for you. More and more organizations are looking to turn the scanning piece of their AR activities into a shared service offering, going well beyond the walls of the typical receivables group. By implementing a solution capable of capturing not only checks but a myriad of other full-page documents you can give your “check capture” team a new lease on life! Instead of simply scanning checks and remittances, you can offer the capability to begin imaging licensing forms, new policy applications, legal documents, mortgage correspondence and more. With a carefully selected imaging solution you can transform one simple element of the AR process into a centralized service bureau shared by your entire organization!
If you’d like to hear more about how to take your AR process to the next level, reach out to your Creditron rep, or contact me directly at jgage@creditron.com.
Reminder: In case you missed it, take a moment to view Creditron’s webinar on hardware options available here: https://www.creditron.com/webinar/payment-imaging-whats-right-hardware/
