Top Tips for AR Managers

Accounts Receivable (AR) Managers juggle numerous responsibilities, including managing teams, maintaining ledgers and spreadsheets of important information, and optimizing the business’s cash flow. All these facets of the job work toward the ultimate goal of collecting all payments from the client and maintaining a positive cash flow.

Accounts Receivable management is a stressful job that needs skill and efficacy. By following a few simple tips and strategies, AR managers and their teams can work efficiently.

Top AR tips for faster payments

Tips to manage your AR Team

Technology advancement has undoubtedly taken a lot of workloads off our shoulders. But the critical factor that still influences the success of efficient AR management is the human workers behind it. It is then imperative to uplift and motivates your team to generate better output.

• Reward and recognition

Recognizing and rewarding your team’s hard work and effort in successfully finishing a project is an excellent way to motivate them. Recognition lets your team know that you value their hard work. You can also discuss your team members’ salaries based on their skills and expertise, ensuring that they are always on par with roles in your industry. You can also give them perks and bonuses for exemplary work.

• Identify strengths and weaknesses

Each member of your team will have different capabilities and strong points. Identifying them and allocating work based on their skills will improve the entire team’s efficiency and reduce internal conflicts.

• Practice exemplary leadership

The most effective method to manage people is to lead by example. You can set a good example by doing excellent work and maintaining a good work-life balance. Maintaining this balance is crucial to the physical and mental well-being of the team members and affects the team’s overall productivity.

Tips to enhance your team’s productivity

AR management is repetitive work involving mundane tasks like sending invoices and tracking payments. However, integrating accounts receivables automation software with Acumatica has changed the larger picture. Now you can constantly use technology-backed data to improve your work efficiency.

• Customize communications

Every client has its unique requirements. It is crucial for AR teams to understand the client, especially when taking on an advisory role. You can use the help of technology to customize client communication to meet the requirements of each client.

• Be consistent with your messaging

Constant communication between you and your client is important to avoid unnecessary disputes and establish a good understanding. You should be clear about the terms and conditions on which you are willing to enter into a business agreement with your client. Furthermore, you can use online credit application forms to expedite B2B credit payments.

• Maintain data integrity at all times

All information concerning your clients should be updated regularly to ensure accurate data in transactions and maintain effective communication with the client. You can use client onboarding systems like Acumatica to check the accuracy of the client data and reduce errors.

Tips to increase cash flow

A steady and healthy cash flow is essential for the long-term success of any business. Clients satisfied with doing business with your company are more likely to make timely payments. So, it is imperative to work on improving customer satisfaction. Empathize with your customers to understand their problems and help them to get a clearer picture of the situation. Suggest solutions that are easy and effective to help improve their payment behaviors.

• Provide multiple payment methods

To get paid on time, you can provide different payment options to your clients so that they can choose the one they are most comfortable with. Offering digital payment facilities with a 24/7 payment option can make payment convenient for clients.

• Mitigate risks with effective client onboarding

Using applications like digital credit and risk management tools, you can assess customers’ risks and suggest plans accordingly. Using these tools will help you to avoid bad credit without losing clients.

• Consider credit card payments and absorbing fees

In recent years, more customers have preferred to pay using credit cards. You can tap into this customer base by offering credit card payments without card fees.

• Communicate with delinquent customers

Clients will always be interested in keeping good relations with their suppliers, and in most cases, late payments may be due to some unforeseen circumstance. Talk sincerely with your client and solve the problem together effectively.

Get started with AR automation

Leverage the power of AR automation with your Acumatica software. Book a demo and see how it works to put you in control of your receivables.