Experts on How Payments Automation Can Aid Middle-Market Businesses

PYMNTS interviews executives from Branch, YellowHeart and Zumiez about how automated payments can benefit companies in several different verticals.

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Payments expectations are getting faster than ever in the digital age. Individuals’ experiences with Amazon, Facebook, Apple Music and a host of other eCommerce and social medial companies have primed them to expect instant satisfaction in all aspects of their lives — even business owners conducting B2B payments. Branch Chief Financial Officer Brian Whalen explained to PYMNTS that businesses are looking to make key strategic partnerships to make their payments as fast as possible.

“In business, the trend is clearly toward getting everyone paid as soon as possible,” Whalen said. “The companies that are moving faster in this direction have also created a real competitive advantage. Once upon a time, they might have said they can build it themselves, but they’re reconsidering that and saying, ‘I know what I’m good at. Let’s go look for a partner who can do the digitization of the payments, because that’s their expertise.’”

This need for faster and easier payments came to a head during the pandemic, when accounts payable (AP) employees working from home needed relief from complex manual processes. Zumiez Rreasurer Graham Merrill noted that payments automation could allow the company to greatly simplify payment procedures that involved royalties, licensing and a host of other complexities.

“At the end of the day, [automated] systems really help transform AP from more of a processing function to a customer service and other analysis functions within the company,” Merrill said.

AP automation is also critical for improving payments transparency, which can, in turn, reduce errors and limit payment delays to an absolute minimum. Improving payments transparency is also valuable for building trust between vendors, buyers and customers, according to YellowHeart CEO Josh Katz.

“Everybody can see everything in real time,” Katz said. “Everyone sees who’s earning what, everyone sees what stakeholders are taking home, and it’s created just absolute efficiencies around all back-end payments.”