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Paper receipt becomes digital receipt
The electronic invoice has made considerable headway in recent years. In business, the paper invoice has already almost disappeared. People are already used to companies sending electronic invoices or digital receipts. The till sometimes still lags behind. But here, too, the digital receipt is slowly making its appearance.
❯ Electronic operations
❯ The digital invoice and voucher
❯ Advantages of a digital receipt
❯ A receipt by e-mail
❯ The receipt is a treasure trove of information
Electronic operations
The abbreviation for Universal Business Language (UBL) represents the standard of electronic business operations. Think, for example, of digital invoices. Financial systems can create and process receipts automatically through UBL.
This form of invoicing has gained considerable momentum in recent years. In fact, the central government requires suppliers to invoice this way for all new contracts. It is therefore a must for companies to digitise.
The electronic invoice and voucher
As organisations are increasingly digitising, they will more often send invoices by e-mail, text message or mobile application. Partly to consume less paper, but also because a digital repository for receipts is more secure.
When someone makes a purchase, the customer chooses which type of receipt they want. If you choose a digital receipt, you will often receive a pdf version by e-mail. The e-mail address is entered into the system and within seconds you receive the receipt electronically. Increasingly, this is also done by SMS or in an application.
An electronic receipt usually shows the date and time, method of payment and other details of the sale. Just like on a paper receipt.
When you make purchases online, for office supplies, for example, in 99% of cases in 2022 you will already receive a digital invoice.
If it can be done for office supplies, it can also be done for a business lunch, or coffee appointment. It would also be a godsend for daily grocery shopping at the supermarket. And indeed, British supermarket chain Tesco has already launched a sample with an electronic voucher.
In collaboration with an IT company, the supermarket chain has developed a smartphone app that allows customers to receive a digital receipt at checkout.
In the Netherlands too, more and more supermarket chains the option of using the paper receipt in the mobile app view. Like the example of Albert Heijn below.
A receipt by e-mail
According to Friso de Jong, founder of the Platform E-Invoicing, UBL could also be fine in shops. “I have not yet come across a receipt that could not be processed in UBL,” he said.”
He is also already seeing the first steps. One example is office supplies supplier Staples. “You can indicate there that you don't want a paper receipt. You then get a receipt e-mailed to you. That is still a PDF, but I have a party that converts my PDFs to UBL. If I buy something from Staples, I get the receipt directly into my accounting package that way.”
What are the advantages of a digital receipt?
The advantages of this approach are quite clear. There is less chance of making mistakes and processing is faster. And then there is the positive effect on the environment, as less paper, ink or energy is needed.
As mentioned, in the B2B environment, this digitisation drive is in full swing. But what about physical transactions in shops? After all, there, paper receipts are still the norm. Or, receipts that need to be properly preserved when it comes to business payments?
More and more receipts are also already collected in a shop's app. This eliminates the need to give out paper receipts. More importantly, you never lose a receipt with them.
With a solution like SimpledCard's, you easily upload such a (digital) receipt into a claims app. Of course, this is only necessary if it is a business payment.
The receipt is a treasure trove of information
There is an additional reason for suppliers and retailers to want it and that is the opportunities for marketing. Besides an additional digital touchpoint, the electronic receipt can also provide a wealth of information about the customer.
So it is actually quite clear which way it will go. The question is not if, but when the electronic receipt will be the norm. De Jong ventures a cautious prediction.
Do you still have questions about the electronic receipt? Or would you also like to take the digital plunge and store all employee receipts digitally? Then contact our team of experts. They will be happy to advise you on digitising your administration.
