5 reasons it pays to ditch your legacy billing practices

For most public sector and higher education

institutions, there is never enough budget and

finding ways to stretch every dollar is essential.

One way to make the most of your limited

resources is by switching to a digital payment

solution. After all, if your organization is still

relying on paper billing, you’re missing

out on the opportunity to save time and

money while offering better service to

constituents and students.

Today, a whopping 75% of U.S.

bill payments flow through digital

channels – approximately $3

trillion. Make a smart move

by replacing your old-school

paper billing with a current

eBilling solution.

Digital payment solutions

Connect with people where they spend time.

The most recent figures show nine out of every 10 Americans are online. This means people expect to be able to do virtually everything online, including pay for things – whether it’s a new pair of running shoes, a speeding ticket or their child’s college tuition.

In fact, 54% of U.S. citizens say they expect the same level of digital services from their governments as they do from the private sector, while nearly three-quarters say their overall willingness to engage with their governments would change positively if government digital services improved. When digital government transactions are offered, 85% of constituents are either very or somewhat satisfied.

Digitizing the payment experience requires minimal investment to yield maximum results. Transitioning to digital allows the people you serve to pay where and how they want – on their computer, laptops, tablet, smartphone or in person, and with a credit card, debit card or eCheck. Research shows this translates to improved collection. According to a recent survey, 46% of consumers pay bills late, but 72% of these same consumers say they are very likely to pay on time if given the option to pay with a credit or debit card.

43% of consumers went to a biller website to look up parking

fees or court fees/fines

38% of consumers went to a biller website to look up water

and sewer bills

42% of consumers went to a biller website to look up university,

college or trade school bills

36% of consumers went to a biller website to look up vehicle registration fees

1

https://www.aitegroup.com/report/sizing-consumer-e-bill-adoption-united-states

Engage citizens for better outcomes.

Even the most responsible of citizens can get caught up in the day-to-day grind and miss a payment. But when you switch to an eBilling solution like Paycentric from Elavon, you can deliver personalized communications effortlessly via phone, email or text. This is useful for everyone, as 58% of consumers who receive reminders and pay their bills on time report finding the reminder helpful, and 46% of consumers feel that they would be more likely to pay their bills on time more often if they did receive reminders.

For example, an organization like a higher education institution can let their students know when it’s time to pay for their dorm room, and municipalities are able to remind residents to pay for their license plate renewal before it expires. Users can even set up automatic payments and securely keep cards on file – offering the “set it and forget it” convenience the public has come to expect and appreciate.

Another way to engage citizens is by speaking their language – literally. More than one in five people in America speak a language other than English at home, while more than one in 10 speak Spanish. With digital payments you can offer multi-lingual service and support, making it easier for people whose preferred language isn’t English to participate and pay.

2

a p ro d u c t o f E l a v o n

3Enhance your sustainability efforts.

As we become increasingly aware of the effects of pollution, citizens and students are striving to be green and lead eco-friendly lifestyles. Show them their government or educational institution also prioritizes the environment and makes sustainable choices by adopting environmentally friendly policies and practices. An easy way to take a step in this direction is by switching from paper to digital billing.

Research suggests that 75% of government technology budgets is spent on maintaining legacy systems, including paper billing practices. Not only will your organization save the time and money involved in billing paperwork – and the related expenses on printing, postage and labor – your citizens will also enjoy online access to statements, account information and payment history.

This ease of digital access will satisfy the 50% of consumer who prefer digital payments and the 72% who want access to government digital resources through their mobile devices.

71% of Americans are worried about having their personal or financial

information hacked

Boost security – and your reputation.

One of the main reasons organizations hesitate to switch to eBilling is security. And with good reason – in the last year alone, nearly 60 million Americans were affected by identity theft.

Government agencies need to be especially careful. Not only is maintaining public trust essential, but a recent survey shows 51% of respondents feel government entities are prime targets for opportunistic hackers.

Fortunately, a reputable and proven payment provider will assist with and reduce your organization’s security burden. It will also make it easier to comply with PCI data security standards – the security standards anyone who accepts card payments must follow.

To protect the people who rely on your services and keep their payment data secure, look for an eBilling provider that maintains a Level 1 PCI DSS certification with breach assistance for your institution. The solution should be fully hosted on the provider’s network and deploy state-of-the-art security technologies, like encryption and tokenization.

4

5Free up resources while reducing errors.

Simply offering an online payment portal can mean saving time and resources spent following up on late payments or dealing with exasperated customers, so more can be allocated to higher-priority initiatives. According to recent research, 44% of consumers say they would be more likely to use a portal first before calling a biller if the biller offered a secure payment portal. With an eBilling platform that supports digital payment and communication channels like online and mobile as well as more traditional channels like kiosk and IVR, the public can automate as much or as little of their payment experience as they are comfortable doing.

But a dynamic and integrated digital payment solution can go a step further, giving you a unique view into your organization with data and information that’s not readily available with paper billing. By leveraging insights into real-time payment patterns and trends from a solution like Paycentric, you can generate standard and custom reports that eliminate hours of manual work for your staff while giving you a better understanding of your payers. Plus, reducing reliance on manual data entry means fewer errors and simplified reconciliation practices.

To be successful with an eBilling solution, it’s important to engage with people who use your services and clearly communicate the opportunity to use the digital solution. Staff hours saved with digital payments can initially be put towards this user education, and eventually used to deliver more and better public services.

Adopting an electronic bill payments and

presentment solution is the way forward for

contemporary higher education institutions and

public sector organizations. Not only can you

save time, money and staff resources by

going digital, your citizens and students will

thank you for a quicker, easier and more

convenient way to pay. With so many

advantages, securing organizational

support is straightforward and making

the switch is simple with Elavon. Your

citizens, students and staff will be

glad you did.

www.elavon.com/government

publicsectorsales@elavon.com

What’s next?

Learn more about the benefits of switching to digital payments by visiting

www.elavon.com/government

© 2019 Elavon, Inc. All rights reserved. Elavon is a trademark in the United States and/or other countries. All rights reserved. All features and specifications are subject to change without notice. This document is prepared by Elavon as a service for its customers. The information discussed is general in nature and may not apply to your specific situation. US-Aug19