ALX Group has spent the last 20 years helping Australian businesses systemise and automate their financial processes. While the first step to streamlining processes often starts with moving the books to the right accounting software, it’s not the end of the line, says Amber Guirguis, founder of ALX Group. “Implementing a specific software is not the fix-all solution. Our expertise is in integrating the added tools that we know can help businesses save time, so they can do high-end value work.”
One of ALX Group’s larger clients, a leading member association in its industry, hosts a major trade event each year. It fills four halls with as many as 400 exhibition stands, some large stands selling for as much as $100,000. Their sales team is responsible for both selling the space and collecting payments from exhibitors.
The debtor management challenge
Because the sales team’s priority is to sell the exhibition space, collecting payment can sometimes be overlooked. Deposits are due in September and final payments due before the event 11 months later, with some exhibitors on payment plans. When the accounts team from ALX Group came on board, they found an entirely manual process, with sales staff communicating ineffectively with debtors due to inaccurate information. “They were spending a lot of time chasing debts that had already been paid or letting some invoices age over 90 days,” explains Amber. With some invoices worth tens of thousands of dollars, the business’s cash cycle was suffering as a result.
“They were wasting a lot of time chasing debts that had already been paid, or letting some invoices age over 90 days.”
What ALX Group looked for in a debtor management solution
ALX Group looked for a solution to help its client simplify debtor management and save time:
- Single source of information:
The business needed a single source of data to track every invoice so sales staff could have up-to-date information about outstanding debts. - Save time
ALX Group’s client was chasing debts and losing time from their core job of selling. - Online payments
The business had tried an online payments solution but found it too costly: the credit card fees were too high to absorb or pass on to their exhibitors. - Simple integration
ALX Group had already streamlined the business with MYOB AccountRight – they needed a tool to work with the existing data. - Customisable
With some debtors on payment plans and some debtors needing amended invoices as they upgraded their initial stand space, ALX Group looked for a solution that could handle the unique agreement with every debtor.
The results with ezyCollect
ALX Group’s client has been using ezyCollect for one year. The tool has supported them through their last trade fair and the results speak for themselves:
- Record-breaking sales
ALX Group’s client sold its exhibition space in record-breaking time: half the time it has taken in the previous 27 years. Staff were no longer wasting time on chasing payments and dedicated it to customer relationships instead. - Paid 84% faster
Invoices are now seldom paid later than 90 days overdue, with debtor days reduced by as much as 84 percent. The percentage of debts outstanding by 31-60 days has come down from 91 percent to 65 percent. - Improved profitability
With cash returning to the business faster, it was able to take advantage of early bird discounts for hall hire and other expenses, improving its profit margin. - Online payments
The low credit card fees available with ezyCollect’s online payments solution, Simplypaid, allowed ALX Group’s client to absorb the fees and pass on the convenience to their debtors. Debtors pay faster now because they simply click to pay with a credit card from their invoices and reminders, and automatically receive a receipt. - Saves a day a week
After automating payment reminders, ALX Group’s client reports that their sales team now saves one day per week as they spend less time reminding debtors to pay. - More professional
ALX Group sees an improvement in their client’s professionalism: reminders to debtors are branded with the client’s logo, and the automation software generates consistent communication with real-time information. “We feel the reminders keep our client’s business top of mind for their clients and offers a professional CRM touch point,” says Amber.
“Our client is very happy with their accounts receivables now. They have more time to talk to their clients about the logistics of the event and offer valuable insights. There’s so much you can do with ezyCollect which we haven’t even utilised yet!” – Amber Guirguis, ALX Group.
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