The intersection where internal processes meet payments can prove to be an organizational boon or a challenging roadblock – and it all depends on your payment capabilities.

One of the biggest challenges for insurance organizations today is maintaining a competitive edge in a crowded, fast-moving industry. To keep policyholders happy and customer churn low, insurance carriers must be prepared to meet the changing needs of insureds – a task made more difficult when your organization opts for traditional payment methods over the online payment options true SaaS software applications can provide.

The insurance space is a highly competitive one, where the expectations for innovative payment options have been steadily growing for years. Large competitors in the industry recognize that digital payment offerings are now an essential aspect of a positive payment experience, which insures satisfied customers. Part of this is shifting demographics. The Millennial population has officially surpassed the Baby Boomer generation, and Millennials complete payments through their insurance carrier’s website or mobile platform at extremely high rates. However, even the Baby Boomers are turning to digital payments in unprecedented numbers, which just goes to show the universal need for e-payment options.

For most organizations, customer satisfaction levels are an area of constant focus. That's because customer needs and expectations are constantly changing, and keeping up can be a challenge. It's important, though, to always keep customer satisfaction and experience top of mind at your organization. A poor customer experience can lead to other organizational challenges down the line, such as increased staff workloads and slowed collections.

One of the most common challenges currently faced by water utility companies is the issue of rising water rates. In many areas throughout the United States, water utilities are dealing with aging water infrastructures and increasing treatment costs. This creates both collections and revenue issues for the utility, as increasing water rates usually result in delayed payments and, in some cases, customers who are unable to pay their bills at all. Since water utilities are responsible for the costs associated with maintaining and treating water regardless of the revenue they collect, these collection issues lead to disruption in business services and higher bills across the broader customer base. One way that utilities can effectively manage these challenges is by utilizing an online payment platform that engages customers and drives higher self-service rates.

For many utility companies, billing customers and collecting payments can be a challenge. Specifically, organizations struggle with keeping costs down and improving efficiencies as a result of:

• High costs associated with printing and mailing a large number of paper bills
• Significant amounts of time spent manually collecting and processing payments

Creating a positive user experience is about more than your customers – it’s about driving quantifiable business results for your organization. When it comes to online payment systems or Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) platforms, the user experience is one of the most important factors in encouraging customer engagement. And when an EBPP solution is not designed to deliver a positive user experience, the negative results of this can be widespread.