Who Said Invoice Images Can’t Dance

Good news! In Beanbills you can now rotate, move and delete your images for each invoice. We call it image manipulation for lack of a more creative title. All of it possible from the details view. If an image is in landscape, and you want it portrait. One click and it's portrait. If you need a different page order, select a page, click the arrows up or down until it's in the right place.

You can also delete images. However, as Controllers well know, that's not such a good thing. We thought about this and what appears as delete is really a hide images feature. Select an image, click delete. You're presented with a choice to delete or move the image to scans page or to another transaction. If you delete, a link appears in the view where you can return at any time and add that image back to the invoice.  It's never going to just disappear.

If you move the image to another invoice. Move it back to the scans page. Then go to the intended invoice and click add image, and it directs you to the scans page where you select the image and attach. Obviously this is super handy for images scanned or attached in error, like packaging slips.

This was one of the top feature request list. We listened and we're excited get it out to you. Keep the requests coming.

Join the Revolution! Reduce Your Invoice Processing Costs

Further to the discussion on Accounts Payable processing costs, we thought you might want to know what gets in the way of automation. Paper AP is the necessary evil in many organizations and change is harder than it seems. 

Some might not trust the digital image concept, others like to "feel it" in their hands and yet others have disbelief around the real costs of their manual system versus automation and the potential savings. It is true that reducing the overall costs from $37 to $4 is quantifiable but are those savings really coming off the bottom line and what needs to happen to achieve that? Yes absolutely, opportunity costs and labour costs are real. 

How can an organization find its way to embrace the future rather than fear it?
 
In the last 35 years, computers changed accounting dramatically, gone was the way of the hand written ledger and its manual posting. If any accountant heard of a company NOT using computerized accounting software today, they would assume their clients were in the dark ages! But how did that change occur? To trust the DOS based systems of those early days, must have been very difficult for many. Nevertheless, they adopted and adapted to the faster easier way. Let machines do the repeated work that is mindless.
 
Mo Kelly, from Rockwall Computers says it well in his blog; http://www.accountingsoftware411.com/Press/PressDocView.aspx?docid=11038

"The big changes in accounting seemed to happen when we changed platforms. Major changes happened when we went from paper to computer. Another major change was from mainframe computers to PC's. Then the next big change was from text based user interfaces to graphic user interfaces. Everyone says that someday we will no longer have software to load on our computers. We will only have browsers and servers. That will be a major platform change.

The motivating factor for changing platforms has been to take advantage of new ways to integrate software. The one concept that is responsible for 90% of the time saved with computers? - Integration.

I honestly believe that we are seeing the final revolution in accounting software. Now accounting packages can grow endlessly and never be obsolete. Object oriented software allows us to reuse software for other applications. Development takes less time. There will never again be a need to create new software because of a platform change. Web based software can be integrated with any process anywhere in the world. How can any new concept compete, especially since it is free?

What does this revolution mean to you? If your company is not ready to get rid of an old, obsolete, client-server, proprietary software package, you may experience similar problems to those in the 80's that claimed they did not need a computer in their business. That is what happens in a revolution."

Well, this holds true for automation of AP workflow too. We have entered a new century with a new way to do this work with much less effort and the mindless tasks and delays that go with paper should be gone. The same things that must have interfered with the adoption of modern accounting software (sadly, I am old enough to say I used the one-write system!) are effecting AP automation adoption today. Innovative thinking controllers will lead the way and then the rest will fall or follow.
 
Accounting went relatively unchanged from the time of the Egyptians until the invention of the computer and its realistic application in the 1970's. Now software applications are moving to the web.

The ability (or inability) to implement change is a company's best asset or worse enemy. Early adopters of technology will be the pack to the pot of gold. This is true for AP automation. Money is wasted every day on the paper way. Organizations need to go back in time to remember what was like before computers, and how much time was wasted on manual systems.

Does it really cost $37 to process a vendor invoice?

Many small companies today are still pushing paper invoices through for payment and wasting resources in the process. When I first started researching AP costs I was flabbergasted to find out that an average company spends as much as $37 pushing one invoice through their paper system. How can that be? First, bear in mind an average company in this case is one that is not automated and is average in terms of productivity or how many invoices it can process a month. The cost of $37 comes from a recent AP study done in the US. So where is all that money being spent? Most of it is in the data entry.

One company I worked with briefly had the equivalent of one full time AP clerk that cost $42K annually and could only push through 250 invoices a month; that works out to be 38% of the cost right there. The rest is harder to "see" but think about what is required both in time and utilities when handling the invoice; opening and routing the mail, photocopying for back up, stamping, coding, approving, mailing, printing the cheque for payment, filing the invoices, storage costs, answering inquires on missing or unpaid invoices, data entry errors and the cost of duplicate payments, missed discounts etc. and it all adds up.

And what about companies that must re-bill costs to clients like property management or construction companies. There is a lengthy process of standing by the copier and having separate files etc. What is you could do it all with a click of a mouse and in a few seconds email if off?

Automation of your accounts payable system from invoice arrival through to electronic payments can reduce that $37 per invoice to as little as $4. Imagine if your company processes a few as 300 invoices a month that is over $100,000 in savings annually. So why isn't everyone doing it and doing it now?

Stayed tuned........

Bring on the AP Automation for Timberline

We're pleased to announce that beanbills is now fully integrated with Timberline Office. Thanks to our friends at Constructive Solutions who helped implement the solution. Our customers using Timberline can now take advantage of all the benefits of Accounts Payable Automation by exchanging data directly with their Timberline software.

KISS applies to Accounts Payable

Accounts payable is not rocket science. However complexities in the process seem to be common place.  Complexities cost mucho time and effort ultimately taking a big bite out of the bottom-line.

 

Most organizations payables processes grow organically or through acquisition along with the needs of the business. Over time, with added volume and locations, those processes often become cumbersome and unmanageable.  By this time, they review their options and either turn to a pricey accounting system upgrade or live with the current setup.  It’s up for debate on which ultimately costs more, however it’s usually the later as resistance to change is generally the road most travelled.

 

Let’s take another look at these home grown complexities. The belief that each company runs their ap differently “we are unique” is standard fair amongst operations. Sure there is uniqueness to industries, or how business is conducted. But the objective and outcomes are always the same, place an order, receive a bill, code and approve it, and pay it.  Really companies are running the same process in slightly different and mostly manual ways.

 

When the Ford model T was introduced to world through standardized production, it made a huge amount of sense and continues to be a massive factor in everything we serve and produce today.  Are the benefits of standardization not available to the ap process? If the objectives are the same, and the outcome is the same, why are businesses not looking to standardize and take advantage of the same efficiencies and economies.

 

Truth is most are not… yet. Most companies are not in the accounting business, nor should they be. It’s a necessary evil. They don’t have time to focus in on process improvement while running their business.

 

Incorporating accounting best practices right from company inception is ideal but hardly realistic, at least not until recently.  Today, there are solutions that expand the functionality of conventional accounting applications and many of them are web-based and affordable to the small and medium sized businesses.  These solutions offer built-in best practices to help businesses with compliance and efficiency to allow them to concentrating on the core competencies of the business rather than the paperwork involved with running the business.

 

Creating efficiencies on your own, without the expertise and tools is impossible. Standardizing and incorporating best practices right from company inception is ideal but hardly realistic, at least not until recently. Today, there are solutions that expand the functionality of conventional accounting applications. Many of them are web-based and affordable to the small and medium sized businesses. These solutions offer built-in best practices which help standardize processing, boost efficiency, and focus businesses on their core instead of the time consuming paperwork that surrounds their core.

 

Standardization is becoming essential to create efficiencies in business process. As my beloved marketing prof repeatedly broadcasted, "KISS, Keep It Simple Stupid" in other words don't get caught up in the complex when there are proven simple ways to process your ap.

Bean Declares War on Paper-Based Invoices

We've just launched the new version of Beanbills (press release). Plus the new website is up! Exciting times!!

Lots of hard work has gone into this latest version and I wanted to thank the entire team for all their over and above contributions.

You're not supposed to hoot your own horn on blog, but we have something to be proud of and wanted to share this moment. So go check it out! 

The Bean story continues to grow!