Your payment process impacts more than just your end customers. A more efficient and transparent outbound payment process can foster greater trust and loyalty with suppliers and lead to better overall operations and brand perception. We’ve laid out three ways transparent payments can boost supply chain trust.
One of the biggest pain points involving international payments has to do with lack of transparency into the payment process. APIs have remedied this by providing platform users with insight into a payment’s status and expected processing time. Customer and supplier satisfaction and trust in your brand relies on such visibility. Much like tracking a UPS parcel or waiting for food delivery, the more frequent and accurate status updates you receive, the more likely you are to be satisfied and feel that your expectations were fulfilled — even in the event of unexpected delays. Customers these days expect this level of transparency from digital payments. They want to know if their payment has “left” their account, where it currently sits in the transfer process, and when it has been received by the beneficiary. By offering the same transparency in your outbound payment process as with inbound payments, you’ll earn more brand integrity and foster stronger relationships with suppliers. In addition, you can assure that all outbound payments are on track to reach suppliers by the intended pay date and remedy any issues before they become full-fledged delays.
In addition to providing status updates, third-party payment platforms leverage APIs to provide users with real-time exchange rates and competitive transfer fees for cross-border payments. When sending international wire transfers through a bank, the total cost to process the payment is often unknown until the funds land in the beneficiary’s bank account. This inevitably causes international payments to arrive short of your intended amount more often than not — something which can damage your ability to maintain the trust and cooperation of an international supply chain. With greater transparency into cross-border payments, you can guarantee that all outbound payments account for these fees so that transfers arrive to suppliers on time and in full, regardless of country or currency type.
The ability to view exchange rates and transfer fees prior to initiating a payment can aid with more than just payment delivery. Anticipating the cost of a payment can also help you manage international payouts in a more optimal way. By leveraging a third-party payment provider like Currencycloud, you can maintain local accounts in a variety of countries without incurring a markup or upkeep fees. This allows you to keep balances in different currencies and make exchanges and transfers when FX rates are ideal. In addition to saving you money on exchanges, having liquidity in a few different currencies gives you the option to initiate quick and seamless local payments to international suppliers. Greater control and visibility into the international payment process will also help you more accurately forecast what funds will be available and when — so you can better deliver service and make more accurate growth projections.
To learn more about how a third-party payment platform can help you nurture stronger customer and supplier relationships while expanding your international footprint, check out our blog or contact us to learn how Currencycloud can help you scale.