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Customer service isn’t what it used to be—in a good way. The financial world has witnessed rapid technological advancements over the last century, but customer service remains a steadfast priority through it all. Ensuring a good experience for buyers not only gives companies an edge over their competition, but it has practically become a requirement for company growth. With the increasing popularity of information-sharing websites and apps like Facebook or Yelp, reputations can expand or shatter within moments.

Fintechs are in a unique position as the liaison between customers and their suppliers. However, they tend to limit services offered to suppliers in favor of a more customer-oriented focus. As such, supplier support remains a well of untapped potential. How is this important, and why should fintechs care about suppliers?

Redefining “end-to-end”

“End-to-end,” from a B2B payment perspective, defines the customer’s processes from the time they receive an invoice to final reconciliation. Fintechs that prioritize customer-focused solutions risk their reputations by not providing decent supplier support. In reality, suppliers are customers, too. Though they may not be required to pay for the back-end services that fintechs offer, they are just as capable of leaving reviews of their poor experiences on social media.

91����� recognized this long ago and redefined what “support” meant in the B2B payments space by dedicating teams for both customer and supplier assistance. Our daily interactions with suppliers act as a valuable means for us to determine the most beneficial improvements to our solution. It has paid off so far: The services we provide to suppliers who seek payment assistance have earned our support teams a consistent satisfaction rating of 98%. Clearly, the need for AR services within AP solutions is out there.

Suppliers: The new customers

Fintechs often completely disregard supplier support. In some ways, this approach makes sense: customers pay for the service. This often means that suppliers are reduced to a “commodity” status. Tales of suppliers being strong-armed into accepting certain payment types are rampant. To no one’s surprise, this method for supporting customers does not encourage stable, long-term business relationships.

To improve our own services, 91����� has explored ways to make suppliers feel like more than just a cog in their customer’s AP process.

91�����'s vendor enablement services offer a medley of benefits that ease the burden from both AP and AR teams. When a supplier joins our robust network, they become immediately payable by all current and future customers. When the supplier needs to update their information, a single call or email to 91����� covers all bases, thus limiting touchpoints and mispayment risks. Customers aren’t required to maintain extensive payment details for their suppliers—it’s all done in-house by 91�����'s supplier support team.

Making payments is also a breeze. Suppliers who are used to being pressured into specific payment types are pleasantly surprised to be offered alternatives. Credit card—commonly preferred by customers looking to limit their payment file count—can be a hardship for some suppliers. 91�����’s holistic approach enables customers to submit a single payment file for all payment types, letting suppliers choose from credit card, ACH, or check options without extra work on the AP side. This symbiotic process maintains healthy business relationships and improves workflows for all parties involved.

A new industry standard

By choosing a SaaS that treats your suppliers well, you’re getting the whole AP support package. Without supplier services, any payment follow-ups wind up in the laps of your AP team—not exactly the groundbreaking automation you were promised.

While it’s likely not the first thing on your mind when you browse for AP solutions, choosing one that also benefits your suppliers gives you an overlooked advantage, and will leave you with both a happier AP team and satisfied suppliers. Ultimately, a solution without a holistic approach to the “end-to-end” process is no solution at all.

Alyssa Callahan

Alyssa is the Content Strategist at Nvoicepay, a FLEETCOR company. She has six years of experience in the B2B payment industry.

Payments Automation