The dematerialization of invoices can change paper invoices into electronic ones. But beyond this easy administrative action, dematerialisation of invoices allows for substantial savings and productivity. Not that you need to send an invoice by email. Here are the methods that are currently available on the market to dematerialise your invoices...
The simple, but more risky solution: the electronic signature
The easiest way out is to convert your invoices to PDF format and send them digitally, provided you can verify an audit trail or a digital signature.
In addition to being the easiest approach, this method provides a considerable gain in terms of money and time. You don't have to do the printing and publishing, but it is certainly not the most efficient. Indeed, at the collection, the PDF format does not help to exploit the data. You have to print the invoice before it can be processed.
If you choose this option, you will only need to provide an efficient audit trail or digital signature for your invoices.
The OCR solution for dematerialising your invoices
Invoice OCR is a process that helps to capture data from a PDF invoice using ocular character recognition. OCR Invoice allows you to change any file into a document that is accessible with the software of your choice. When digitisation is done, it becomes easier to search for data in the documents since OCR technology converts an image into a text PDF, which makes it easier to search by text when necessary.
The complete solution: digital invoicing
The electronic signature and the OCR invoice solutions are the best ways of going paperless. However, a complete electronic invoice approach is the most promotional and cost-effective option for a company looking to improve its accounting operations since it utilizes the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system, i.e the technique of sharing proof of payment and invoices between computers. It is a complete solution, as it protects all the accounting steps from invoicing with a quotation, through invoicing to digital reimbursement. When you adopt this kind of technology with your suppliers and consumers, you will be entering a new era of accounting data processing. The choice is now yours!