Going Green with Electronic Invoicing

From the day of its invention, paper has become an important part of our daily activities. Paper is being used and recycled to such an amount that it has lead to deforestation, one of the major causes of ‘global warming’. Every phase of paper’s life cycle contributes to global warming, from cutting of trees to production of pulp and paper and finally disposal.

While we are consciously finding the ways to reduce the impact on the environment, we cannot ignore the number of paper invoices generated each year. According to a study, “Businesses within only the U.S, trade in excess of 13 billion invoices annually, which accounts for more than 25 billion pieces of paper that are floating around offices each year.” It costs about $2.65 to issue one paper invoice (including the cost of printing, envelope and postage).

The serious environmental issues require companies to shift from paper invoices to e-invoices or online invoices. This would benefit environment, in terms of reduced amount of wood used to produce paper and the amount of fuel used to deliver it. By submitting invoices electronically, businesses can now save as much as 90 per cent of the cost for each invoice. All they need is a computer with Internet connectivity to complete their transaction with their customers and other businesses. The online invoicing approach of managing bills and invoices fits in perfectly with the need to cut cost, reduce staff and manage invoicing and accounts payable.

The impact on environment can easily be eliminated by replacing a slow, inaccurate manual process of paper invoicing with a faster and more efficient online invoicing. Not just paper invoices can be replaced, all financial supply chain documents including delivery notes, purchase orders, statements, remittances etc can be sent/received online. Just imagine how much your business can contribute to environment by saving a large amount of energy and resources, and that’s only with online invoicing.

To know more about how paper invoicing is affecting our environment and the extent of damage it has already caused we would recommend reading another intriguing post at bestdesigntuts.com