A Better Way to Pay: The ACH Advantage for Your Business
If you’re a business owner in our community who wants to eliminate traditional checks, secure your payments, and manage your cash flow with more confidence, then using ACH might be the ideal solution for you. We understand that every business, big or small, has unique needs. That’s why we’re dedicated to offering practical, reliable solutions that help you thrive.
As Lyndsay McClung, our Chief Experience Officer, says, “Our team at Points West has seen firsthand how moving to ACH transforms a business’s daily operations – freeing up their employees’ time, making their payments more secure, and even improving their cash flow.”
What is ACH?
The Automated Clearing House (ACH) is a payment process that simplifies electronic fund transfers directly between bank accounts. Think of it like a modernized, digital handshake for money. This system eliminates the need for traditional paper checks, allowing you to transfer funds to accounts at any bank, not just our own.
Beyond these direct transfers, ACH also powers many of the everyday financial interactions we’ve all come to rely on. Person-to-person payment platforms and the automatic deductions for many online subscriptions and streaming services all use the reliable infrastructure of ACH.
Why ACH is Worth It for Your Business
For a hard-working business, every moment and every dollar counts. ACH helps you manage both with greater efficiency and security.
- Speed Advantage: ACH payments typically process faster than traditional check payments, cutting the time needed for mailing and depositing a check in half. With ACH, you can have confidence that once a payment is initiated, it will be processed without the unexpected delays that can come with lost mail or human error.
- Enhanced Safety and Security: Traditional checks are the payment method most susceptible to fraud. By limiting the use of checks, you significantly reduce the opportunity for fraud to happen. ACH offers a more secure, proactive way to protect your funds. For those who still prefer the familiar feel of paper checks, we offer Check Positive Pay, a fraud-prevention add-on that matches checks presented for payment against a list of checks you’ve issued.
- Streamlined Process: Instead of the multi-step process of writing, signing, and mailing checks, an ACH transfer streamlines everything into a few simple digital steps. Tax payments become seamless, and paying employees is simplified with direct deposits. This makes your business more reliable and timely.
How to Reduce Your Business’s Reliance on Checks
Transitioning to ACH is about more than just sending payments—it’s about strengthening your business. Here are a couple of practical steps to help your business reduce its reliance on checks and improve cash flow:
- Promote ACH as a preferred payment method: Make it clear on your invoices and payment instructions that ACH payments are welcomed and encouraged.
- Offer incentives for electronic payments: Consider a small discount or loyalty points for customers who choose to pay electronically.
- Encourage recurring ACH transfers: For regular payments from customers or to vendors, setting up recurring ACH transfers ensures timely and consistent cashflow.
Beyond sending payments, our ACH services also allow you to collect funds directly from your customers’ accounts with their proper authorization. This “pull” technology is a great tool to accelerate your accounts receivable cycle and foster a more solid payment relationship with your customers, reducing payment delays and offering a reliable alternative to waiting for a check.
The ACH Advantage
Transitioning to ACH is an investment in the long-term health of your business. It enhances speed, security, and efficiency while offering practical solutions that give you more control over your operations. As McClung puts it, “Leveraging ACH services creates time savings and efficiency gains allowing business owners to focus on the things that matter most-running and growing their business.”
For businesses looking to leverage these benefits and explore user-friendly ACH services, our team is ready to help you find the right solution. Fill out the form below to get started with our cash management services!