Before companies can become fixtures in the U.S. business landscape, they begin as startups. Anyone who’s ever worked for a startup (or launched one themselves) knows how exciting this time can be for companies. Employees tend to wear many hats within the organization, passions run high and everyone has a hand in shaping company culture and reputation.
But startups lack the deep pockets of more established businesses. They often must outsource workflows and keep a close eye on their margins. The startup phase is make-or-break for companies in every sector: healthcare, data, human resources, financial services, transportation, entertainment, etc.
Turns out something as simple as intelligent invoicing can help startups trim fat and simplify accounting. Here are five reasons startups prefer online invoicing these days.
Keeps Clear Track of Consultants
Many startups choose to outsource various functions (marketing, content creation, software development, HR, payroll, etc.) rather than tackling them in house. As one writer notes for Entrepreneur, “Outsourcing can lead to high levels of productivity at relatively reduced costs.” Sometimes there simply aren’t enough hours in the day or dollars in the budget to justify a full-time staff completing certain tasks.
Of course, this means startups must keep track of every contractor, freelancer and consultant they work with. Utilizing online invoicing makes the system simpler for both parties: virtual paper trails stay up to date and outstanding balances are obvious at a glance. This helps startups stay on top of what they owe—or what’s owed to them.
Ensures Timely Payment
Whether your startup is paying freelancers or billing a larger company for services your organization has performed, timely payment is everything. Paying and getting paid within a given window helps everyone avoid payment disputes (and possibly even litigation).
Online invoicing can help startups stay on top of paying their third-party contractors, which is absolutely crucial for maintaining a good reputation on the web. After all, a missed payment or two and suddenly an unhappy contractor is smearing your name all over the internet, causing potential customers and clients to steer clear of your “shady” fledgling operation.
Integrates with Popular Payment Methods
Time is money in the world of startups—after all, most of them exist to make a current process faster, easier or more affordable. If you can shave time off routine tasks, you can channel it into more productive and impactful causes. A major reason to invoice online is because you can integrate electronic payments (via credit card or PayPal) right into your invoicing system with a digital wallet.
Takes Burden Off In-House Staff
It’s somewhat of a cultural cliché that in-house employees at startups routinely work long hours. But it’s often true. Although it’s been well established that a work-life balance is the key to career longevity and health, it simply takes a lot of elbow grease to get startups off the ground. Startups should prioritize smart processes that alleviate their staffs of unnecessary burden so they can do what’s important, but also have time to enjoy away from work.
Luckily, cloud-based invoicing simplifies accounting and recordkeeping so employees can spend less time sending emails, chasing down payments, verifying invoices and compiling records.
Grows with Companies
Scalability is huge with startups. After all, who knows how big the organization will be in six months? A year? Five years? Any technology capable of growing with a startup is worth keeping around, and the right system for online invoicing works for small, medium and large businesses alike. Growth may be the goal, but it’s mighty inconvenient to constantly outgrow your tools. You want to develop processes and precedents for the long haul.
These five reasons startups prefer online invoicing demonstrate how utilizing a cloud-based invoicing system online can save time, hassle and human power—all crucial resources for new businesses.