Are you ready to transform your billing and back office? For fast-growing communications businesses, the decision to upgrade in this area is a no brainer.
But when it comes to researching available telecom billing platforms, the process can sometimes feel anything but straightforward.
The key to making an informed decision is knowing what essential software qualities to look for. Before moving forward, check for these five must-have telecom billing traits.
Usage Rating Capabilities
The ability to rate customer usage accurately is critical for businesses operating in the telecommunications space. A sophisticated billing platform that supports complex consumption models will keep your revenue generation on track for years to come.
As part of your sophisticated billing assessment, make sure the platform supports integrations with major carriers. Additionally, confirm that its rating engine will support most switches and connected devices, and the unique usage formats each device may require. With the ability to rate usage efficiently, your team can offer a variety of versatile billing formats – including one-time and subscription – to accommodate whatever your customers may require.
Taxation Partners
Tax calculation accuracy and compliance can create major roadblocks for growing communications businesses. The prospect of new telecom tax difficulties is often cited as a reason why businesses hesitate to branch off into new markets and launch new products.
To overcome these obstacles, your sophisticated billing platform should support an extensive tax partner ecosystem. This ecosystem should include integrations with trusted tax databases, along with reliable access to tax compliance experts. With these measures in place, taxation can become a dependable component for your customer billing experience, enabling your team to focus on growing the business without restrictions.
Automation Technology
Sophisticated billing software should feature comprehensive automation capabilities to make life easier for your back office team. The ability to fully automate your customer billing process, from quote-to-cash, is a complete game-changer for how your communications business operates day-to-day.
This automation will help you eliminate manual responsibilities, save more time, and allocate additional resources to key initiatives. Most importantly, it will create a seamless billing experience for your clients and their end users. As a result, you can maintain a positive reputation with your customer base, retaining more business over time.
Specifically, your platform’s automation capabilities should extend to:
- Workflows
- Inventory
- Commissions
- Ticketing
- Collections
- Reporting
Data-Driven Insights
The sophisticated billing platform you choose needs data analytics to help you better understand your customers and manage a smarter business. These insights will keep your team proactive in how you interpret real-time data, leading to faster decision-making backed by accurate information.
In terms of analytics, your sophisticated billing and back office platform should provide insight into:
- Revenue and payment flow trends
- Accounts receivable insights
- Customer retention and churn rates
- Usage data trends
- Order data
API Integrations
What systems do you currently rely on to manage your communications business? If these key customer management resources can’t sync with the new billing software you purchase, then a major “swivel-chair effect” may occur.
This process of swiveling to manage multiple systems simultaneously, can create significant issues for your business. These problems may include increased billing errors, poor customer service experiences, and a dip in productivity across your back office team.
But with open REST API support and a fully integrated billing platform, you can streamline how these critical back office systems interact with one another. By consolidating your platform management, you can get work done faster, more effectively, and with fewer mistakes.
Contact Rev.io Today
To explore more of what makes a sophisticated telecom billing platform like Rev.io appealing for communications businesses, contact us today!