There aren’t many things more frustrating than trying to collect on customers’ late or failed payments. And if you don’t have a ready-to-go software solution that helps you automate the process, you’ll be frustrated more often than not.

That’s why every organization reaches the point where it asks: How can we best manage our collections and payment processes to capture more revenue from our customers? How can we augment our human resources — should we build an in-house collections solution or buy one off-the-shelf? 

In this blog post, we’ll cover some of the main reasons why buying rather than building accounts receivable software is a better option 9 times out of 10.

Understand the case for buying instead of building software.

When shopping around for any software to integrate with your existing technology stack, you primarily want it to enhance your operational efficiency by leveraging the experience and success of an established company that specializes in solving the problem you’re currently facing. This holds for AR software as well, which aims to achieve the goal of capturing as much revenue as possible by:

  • Eliminating the manual work of chasing down payments
  • Automating reminder emails and payment retries
  • Building stronger relationships with your customers

In short, buying automated collections software allows you to capture more revenue without having to spend a significant amount of time and resources building and maintaining your own solution from scratch.

Not convinced? Here are the five top reasons why you should consider purchasing an existing software solution rather than developing your own.

1. Quicker Time To Market

Building in-house software is costly from both a financial and timeline perspective. Constructing front-end interfaces and back-end databases requires a lengthy development process. It might not be the best option for a company with an urgent need to revamp its payment collection process. After all, why recreate the wheel when another company has already spent the time and money to manufacture the wheels used by other top companies in your industry?

Before thinking about building your software solution, ask yourself if you can dedicate enough time and resources to the process. Most software companies take several months or even years to bring their product to market. That’s why 75% of surveyed rapid-growth companies plan to spend more on software in 2024 than last year. 

2. Reduced Maintenance Costs

Payments software vendors will handle the ongoing maintenance and updates to the system as a result of regulations and general business changes and have baked this cost into their fees. That means you can forecast all the costs going forward without having to budget for unpredictable maintenance costs. It also means the additional load of a complex technological infrastructure won’t overburden your existing IT resources.

Overall, this allows you to shift your IT focus from maintaining software to supporting your primary business goals.

3. Predictable Costs

The upfront cost of buying payment collection software will likely be far lower than the cost of developing in-house billing systems for the reasons mentioned above. 

It all comes down to fixed costs vs. unpredictable costs. It can be easy to underestimate the cost of building custom software because it always involves unforeseen events and setbacks that will drain your budget. When you buy from a trusted vendor with a proven record in the industry, you can project a return on investment (ROI) that you can be confident sharing with your stakeholders.

4. Access To Subject Matter Experts

Payment software companies have access to the top talent in the industry and already have years of experience in successfully implementing the latest technology solutions. Working with these companies will give you more confidence as you can take advantage of their expertise and leverage the benefits of their technology.

These companies also have incentives to stay innovative, as competition with other software providers will push them to stay at the forefront of the industry so they can continuously design and deliver solutions that benefit your business.

5. A More Strategic Focus

Don’t overlook the time and attention it takes to oversee software development. Building your specific product requires a different level of strategic alignment that will demand more from people at all levels within your organization. If you decide to go on this path, you must carefully evaluate the cost and complexity of building your custom solution.

On the other hand, purchasing a ready-made solution helps you focus on the key business operations that require the most attention. It allows you to shift the technical aspects of automating your payment collection to the software provider. 

Outsource what makes the most sense for your business, and reserve your resources for strengthening your competitive advantage. It’s a strategy that works for leaders in many industries — 90% of Fortune 500 companies outsource all or part of their software development processes.

Considerations when buying AR software

Buying accounts receivable software has many advantages over investing in the complex, timely, expensive process of building custom billing systems. However, there are some potential drawbacks to purchasing software off the shelf. 

For instance, you may not be able to customize every aspect of the platform, and locking in with a particular vendor may limit flexibility down the road. That’s why it’s essential to choose a software provider that can support both your short-term and long-term business goals (e.g., a tool that allows for API access). You should also have a good understanding of your use cases, business requirements, and processes to ensure you select the right vendor.

Seamless solutions offer competitive advantages.

Faster implementation, lower upfront costs, proven reliability, and industry expertise are valuable advantages for organizations without the desire, time, or resources to embark on the difficult path of technology development. To ensure you’re optimizing your accounts receivable processes when it comes to payment collections, choose a solution that integrates seamlessly with Salesforce. 

Chargent allows you to automate collections and capture more revenue without spending your hard-earned time and resources on software development. Contact our team to learn more about how you can use our software solution to capture more revenue with less effort.