68% of Companies See One-Stop Online Bill Payment as Priority

More companies are adding one-stop online bill payment to address dissatisfaction with their invoicing ecosystems.

This, according to PYMNTS and Mastercard’s new study, “The One-Stop Bill Pay Playbook: Executive Views On Third-Party Bill Payment Solutions,” which surveyed 400 billing and collections executives and found 30% said they were only somewhat satisfied with current digital bill pay capabilities.

As the study states, “fueling the uninspired sentiment among bill payment executives are complaints from bill-payers. The top recurring complaint points to a lack of payment options, followed closely by complaints highlighting confusing or absent interface features.”

The One-Stop Bill Pay Playbook: Executive Views On Third-Party Bill Payment Solutions

Results vary between verticals, but frustration with existing online bill pay is widespread.

For example, the study notes, “On average, 41% of firms with less than $10 million in annual revenue identify a lack of payment options as the top recurring complaint received from bill-payers, versus 25% of companies with revenue over $500 million that say the same. The largest firms instead point to interface shortcomings as their most frequent complaint, at 32%. Security represents another area with notable differences by revenue level. Just 3.7% of the smallest companies cited security as a top pain point, versus 16% of the largest firms we surveyed.”

Consumer finance is where complaints about payment options are most likely to occur, coming in at 38%. Government services are the most likely to receive complaints about bill pay interface features, at 41%.

Addressing the issue with new digital tools, our research found that 68% of surveyed executives “project that their firms will implement payments-related innovations in the next 12 months. More highly digitized firms are somewhat more likely to innovate within this time frame, than less digitized companies, at 73% versus 64%.”

The One-Stop Bill Pay Playbook: Executive Views On Third-Party Bill Payment Solutions

In general, commercial third-party bill payment solutions can be a useful tool for businesses that have a lot of bills to pay or that want to streamline their billing and payment processes. These types of solutions can help businesses save time and reduce the risk of missed or late payments, which can result in late fees and negative impacts on their credit scores.

It is important for businesses to carefully research and compare different commercial third-party bill payment solutions to find the one that best meets their needs and budget. Factors to consider may include the fees charged, the payment methods accepted, and the level of security and customer support offered by the service.