How to Streamline Refunds to Customers

ARTICLE - When there are payments, there are going to be refunds.

A product might not work. A product might have been of lesser quality. The wrong product might have been shipped. A delivery might have been delayed. The wrong price might have been charged.

Whatever the reason, refunds historically have meant more work for accounts payable departments.

Refunds are a big burden for industries such as insurance, healthcare, retail, travel and hospitality, and many others. Businesses in certain industries frequently make mass refunds to customers.

The root of the problem is that most businesses still use paper checks to refund money to customers.

Checks are costly, they can become lost in the mail, and they are vulnerable to fraud. It’s also not uncommon for customers to forget to cash a refund check, resulting in escheatment headaches.

For their part, most customers aren’t big fans of refunds made with paper checks. Checks take a lot longer to arrive than electronic payments, and customers can never be sure when a check payment will come.

A customer might have to make a special trip to a bank branch or an automated teller machine (ATM) machine to deposit a check refund. And checks are one more thing to keep track of.

The stakes are high for businesses to get refunds right.

Customers tend to get very angry when there are problems with their money.

Relieve the burden of customer refunds

Refunding money to customers shouldn’t be so hard.

That’s why more businesses are making refunds with electronic payment solutions that are native in their NetSuite ERP. These solutions enable businesses to effortlessly refund money to customers from directly within the familiar screens of their NetSuite ERP with just a few clicks of the mouse.

Refunds can be made via automated clearinghouse (ACH) or virtual card.

Additionally, electronic refund payments can come from any originating bank account.

And seamless integration between the payments solution and the NetSuite ERP reconciles payments in real-time and provides AP staff with instant visibility into where things stand in the process.

Compared to paper checks, electronic payments for refunds are cheaper, faster, more convenient for the buyer and the supplier, and significantly less likely to result in lost or stolen payments.

Customers will have the peace of mind that refunds will show up directly in their bank account on the day when they were told they would arrive – without the need to take a trip to the bank.

Refunding money electronically also supports corporate green initiatives.

Best of all, businesses of any size and in any industry can use electronic payments for refunds.

If your business is looking for a better way to refund money to customers, iCloudAuthority wants to speak with you.

Contact one of our representatives today to discuss your business needs and schedule a free consultation.