Vendor Portal: Teaming Up with Vendors in Real Time
We all like to think we have an excellent relationship with each vendor we work with. We’re happy that they supply what we need, and they’re thrilled to have the business.
But as anyone who’s run into glitches in the supply process can tell you, good relationships can break down fast in the business world. On the purchaser’s end, poorly executed supply fulfillment by a vendor can lead to frustration, especially when it causes holdups with customers down the line. From the vendor’s point of view, on-time payments are critical to paying their own bills.
Unfortunately for the accounts payable department, problems on both sides eventually fall into their lap. Invoices either don’t get paid on time or don’t get paid at all. Frustrated vendors who have no idea what’s going on keep the phones ringing, taking up valuable time.
Like so many other things, the right information often solves these problems before they get out of hand. That’s why InvoiceWorks® from iPayables is the best solution among automated payment systems. InvoiceWorks® is not just an electronic invoicing solution that enables vendors and your company to exchange paperless invoices and payments with minimal effort, it’s a vendor portal that allows each vendor access to their own account. This way, a vendor can see what’s happening with their invoice in real time.
When a vendor logs onto their InvoiceWorks® account, they see the same information that your AP personnel see: if there’s something holding up a payment – for example, a coding error on the invoice – it will become clear at a glance. Fixing any errors is often as simple as a few keyboard strokes.
This is not just true for the vendor, but others in your company. All key personnel that play a part in the approval process have the same access to the invoice process. Communication is streamlined, approvals are much faster than the old paper system, and problems are often solved with the click of a mouse.
Keeping vendors happy is a challenge that goes all the way back to the very first product-for-product exchange. The modern world of accounts payable automation is all about access to information and streamlined communication, and both of these challenges are met.