3 Reasons to Use Paperless Invoices

It is 2024 out there, and machines have already learned to create content that mimics, enhances, and exceeds the work produced by humans. 3D printing technology is no longer a marvel but a necessity for many industries, and blockchain has turned into a vital tool enabling secure and transparent data transactions across various domains, from agriculture and food distribution to healthcare and finance. Despite these impressive technological advancements, some businesses are still wasting their time and effort to print out and mail invoices to their customers manually. Are you one of them? Stop dwelling in the past and embrace the technology-driven present with paperlessinvoices – the electronic alternative to traditional paper documents that allows creating, customizing, and sending digitalpayment requests with a single click of a button! In this post, we will try to understand what exactly it means to go paperless in 2024. We will also look closely at several unique benefits such a transition can have for a small business. Keep reading, and you are guaranteed to discover some very curious facts, stats, and suggestions on how paperless invoicing can optimize your business operations, free up valuable resources, and play a role in preserving the beauty and ecological integrity of our planet.

1. Cost Savings

Any modern business, especially a small one, wants to cut costs wherever it can, and going paperless with invoices is an easy way to do it. Sending invoices to customers in electronic form helps significantly reduce the costs associated with printing, postage, and storage. In addition, it streamlines your business operations by making these documents easier to track and manage.

• Streamlined operational costs: By switching to digital invoices, small business owners can forget about the costly and labor-intensive process of handling paper invoices manually. This includes savings on purchasing paper and envelopes, maintaining the infrastructure necessary for printing payment requests, etc. The financial resources saved can be then redirected toward more productive tasks.
• Reduced storage costs: Physical invoices demand storage space. Depending on the document volume, this can be anything from cabinets and shelves to off-site facilities. The transition to electronic invoicing eliminates the need for physical storage, freeing up the finances that usually go toward storage infrastructure and maintenance.
• Decreased handling expenses: Sending paper invoices requires the use of secure mailing services, which can be expensive. Instead of relying on postage and couriers for manual delivery, e-invoicing enables businesses to send payment requests to customers electronically with one click of a button and rest assured the documents will safely and promptly arrive at their destination.

Another crucial benefit of paperless invoicing is that it not only saves money upfront but also eliminates both direct and indirect costs associated with lost or damaged paper invoices. Lacking a physical component, electronic invoices can’t be damaged, and if anything goes missing, they are easily restored, ensuring a smooth cash flow for your small business.

2. Environmental Impact

Consider this environmental data: a whopping 41M trees are felled daily around the globe, with a large chunk of these going toward supporting the needs of the paper industry. To help slow down deforestation, one of the key contributors to the ill-famed climate change, many businesses choose to go entirely paperless with their documents. There is a big pro of opting for paperless invoices: they are not just good for your business but also benefit our planet. Here is how they do it:

1. Forest preservation:

• Saying “no” to paper-based invoices and other business documents can be a massive contribution toward saving up to 15 billion trees every year;
• The shift to digital invoicing can benefit countries like Brazil, Indonesia, DR Congo, Ecuador, and the Philippines, where deforestation is a real threat to the rich local biodiversity.

1. Carbon reduction:

• Producing a ton of paper leads to the emission of 1.5 tons of carbon dioxide;
• A switch from paper to electronic invoices can potentially reduce harmful emissions by 36%.

1. Paper waste decrease:

• A typical office worker uses an average of 10,000 sheets of paper per year, with a major portion of that becoming waste.
• Paper makes up about 26% of the waste in landfills and 33% in towns and cities.

1. Water and energy consumption:

• The production of 1 ton of paper takes 2,700 liters of water (2-13 liters per sheet).
• The paper industry is responsible for about 1.6% of the world’s total industrial energy use.

Now, if none of the above convinced you to move to digital invoicing, think about this: one tree that gets chopped down could have produced oxygen for 3 people to breathe. If you want your clients to see your brand as eco-conscious, there is just one small change you need to make: swap to electronic invoicing. This simple transition will let you reduce your company’s harmful impact on the environment and demonstrate your commitment to responsible business practices.

3. Efficiency and Accessibility

Your abandoning paper-based documentation in favor of electronic invoices does not only save money, time, and trees – it also allows for smooth and seamless record-keeping and simple management of payment documents. Digital invoices can be stored and organized in the most convenient manner for you, making it easy and quick to retrieve and track them when needed. See how paperless invoices can improve the efficiency and accessibility of your invoice records:

• Instant access and easy organization

With paperless invoices, you get perks like easy access and streamlined organization. There will be no more digging through piles and piles of old papers trying to locate the document you currently need. A big pro of digital invoicing is that all your papers are always just a click away, stored conveniently and securely in one place, where you can access and retrieve them any time and using any device.

• Accelerated creation and sending

Creating digital payment requests, whether regular business invoices,small business invoices, or even restaurant invoices, has also been simplified thanks to specialized invoice template generation software like Invoice Maker by Saldo Apps. This platform allows users to quickly create professional and polished payment documents using one of the many ready-made templates and customize them to meet their business’s unique needs.

• Real-time updates

When creating and sending your invoices electronically, you will immediately know the status of your payment request and monitor any changes in real time. No more waiting or guessing whether the intended recipient received a document from you – you will be able to track the bills you send online and get instant notifications the moment your client opens the document.

• Improved team collaboration

Where paper documents can get misplaced or confuse the reader with their tricky handwriting, digital invoices become your true collaboration-promoting allies. These documents can be easily and safely shared with other stakeholders, fostering seamless cooperation between team members and various departments and ensuring everyone stays on the same page.

• Enhanced data security

Digital invoicing keeps your data secure and well-protected. You do not have to worry about sensitive information getting lost in transit or ending up in the wrong hands, which is usually considered a major con of handling such documents manually. Digital invoicing ensures proper encryption, secure storage, and protected transmission of such information. Finally, physical invoices have another big con associated with them – if they get lost in the mail, your business won’t receive its payment on time, which can be detrimental to its cash flow. With digital invoices, delays are minimized, and the risk of losing a request is almost nonexistent. Besides, by using specialized software that lets you create and track invoices, you can take advantage of features like follow-up requests for payment to speed up transactions.

Paperless Invoicing: Your Smart Way of Doing Business in 2024

As we enter 2024, choosing paperless invoicing is more than just a savvy business move – it is a way for your company to embrace a future that is efficient, organized, cost-conscious, and eco-friendly. So, leave the paper hurdles in the past, go all in for e-invoicing, and let your business thrive, saving money, working smarter, and doing good for the planet! In the meantime, Invoice Maker by Saldo Apps will be here to support your transition and witness your success!