Electronic Bill Presentment & Payment (EBP&P)
Presentment and payment of invoices via the Web - was first presented as a concept in '97. The first production projects began in the following year. This article serves as an introduction into the subject and the associated terminology.
Introduction
EBP&P is based on the existing document printing processes and makes the content suitable for Web-presentation.
The goal of EBP&P is not the conversion to PDF or HTML, but the presentation of the documents content using the interactive possibilities that the Web offers.
Benefits
Depending on the implementation, EBPP can help to realise the following advantages:
- Reduction in costs with relation to the paper version
- Reduction in payment costs
- Reduction in Call Centre costs
- Cross- and up-selling possibilities
- Integration with the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system
How does it work?
EBP&P begins with the existing document processes for paper. The data for Web presentation is extracted from the print files; like line-mode, AFP or Xerox Metacode. The input files for document formatters, such as DOC1, can also be used.
The extracted data is stored in a database during the production run. At the same time an e-mail notifcation is sent to every recipient indicating that the document is ready for retrieval via the Web.
When the user requests to view the document, the data from the database is merged with the apropriate HTML template. Conditions (business logics) can be specified for this process whereby the content and the form of the Web-document can be adjusted to the customer situation. This can be achieved by banner images, marketing messages and additional help functions, which give the user the possibility to answer his/her own questions, e.g.; drill down, sorting and user defined graphs.
If the document is an invoice, a payment button can be included. According to the current model this button links to a Web form, where, for example, the amount and the date can be adjusted (within limits, of course). The form is then sent to the web server an on to the back office for further processing. During the enrolment the customer has agreed to the automatic deduction of the amount on the specified payment date. Both the amount and the payment date are indicated by the customer via the Web.
Which Model?
With the Biller Direct model, the entire EBP&P process lies in the hands of the billing organisation (biller). In the Consolidator model, the data is transferred to an intermediary (consolidator), who attends to the presentation of the information. For this there are two possibilities available:
- Thick client - all of the data is transferred to the consolidator
- Thin client - only the totals are transferred. If the customer wishes to see the details, or wishes to use the additional functions, he/she lands on the biller's web site.
Both models have advantages for the biller and for the customer. In the Biller Direct model the biller has complete control of the presentation and has access to all of the Web statistics. In the Consolidator model, the customer needs only one login password to be able to consult all of his/her documents.
EBP&P and CRM
Documents presented via the Web can include a Call-Me-Now button, whereby the customer can indicate that he/she has questions about the Web document. It is also possible to follow the customer's Web behaviour. Is the invoice paid immediately following the first viewing of the document? Does the customer use the additional functions? To which site does he/she then surf? In addition, the information collected in the Call Centres about the most-asked questions can be used to optimise the Web presentation.
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