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Construction supplier Bowens says the system is a boon but many remain unaware of it.
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Hardware firm gives e-invoicing huge thumbs up
22 August 2022
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10 minute read
Victorian construction supplier Bowens believes it is one of the first private companies to install e-invoicing and said its success should inspire other businesses.
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E-commerce manager Yash Desai said it started small with the system just six weeks ago but as Bowens started to rely on it, other firms were increasingly curious.
“We are getting at least a couple of hits on the live chat or on email saying I didn’t realise you do e-invoicing, can you please set me up and switch it on for us,” said Mr Desai.
“Not a lot of customers understand what e-invoicing is, so that’s probably on the ATO, us, and on accountants to explain why it is so good.”
Mr Desai hoped the ATO would do a better job of showcasing e-invoicing to promote greater uptake, particularly among small to medium businesses that would adapt to it quicker.
“We really wish the ATO did more explaining of the benefits of e-invoicing to the smaller businesses because that’s where I think the benefits are,” he said. “It is probably one of the best things the ATO has done.
“But it falls on to businesses like us to then try to pass on the good word I guess because it is the right thing for the customer.”
Last week, the ATO put on e-invoicing events every day in an attempt to promote its advantages online, via podcasts and social media.
Mr Desai said that small businesses would be the main winners from e-invoicing as it would reduce administration time and costs. Bowens said on an information video that it could cut administration by 70 per cent.
“The smaller builders we work with are really small operations, often the bloke who owns the business is working on the site with some of his people and the spouse is the one doing the accounts on the side, so they don’t necessarily have a dedicated bookkeeper or full time bookkeeper,” he said.
“If they’re just taking all our email invoices and getting that person to retype them in and put them in order, they’re being charged for a service that they could save on.
“Instead of that it just appears there magically, not adding any complication.”
Mr Desai said that his company had adopted e-invoicing only shortly after setting up an e-commerce site.
“Prior to that we did some focus groups with our customers and asked what would you like to see, and we thought it would be price and product but a lot of them actually wanted integration with their accounting software,” said Mr Desai.
He said that e-invoicing reduced lost invoices and inquiry levels about payment details.
The director and chief investment officer at Bowens, Andy Bowen, said it was always striving to provide a better system for clients and this was one example.
“Our e-commerce team is driving true innovation in the ways we integrate technology to better service the building industry, the early adoption of e-invoicing being a true demonstration of our commitment,” he said.
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