Electronic Document Distribution and your Phone Bill

Electronic document distribution ensures invoices and statements arrive on time.

When your electronic phone bill arrives it has been sent to you using electronic document distribution. This is the automated electronic sending of invoices or statements to customers when they are due. This is possible using a document management program which ensures documents arrive with you on time, and will send dunning letters pursuing overdue phone bill payments.

How a Document Management System gets your Phone Bill to you on time

Document management systems are used to provide smooth electronic document distribution. Some documents, such as your phone bill, need to be sent out on a set date every month, with a request of payment by another date. Document management uses mail merging and a customer database to compile statements of this nature. This means that the same electronic documents (such as invoices or statements) will have the same layout, but be customer specific.

Document management of items which are sent in response to a sale or service use are controlled in a different way. Electronic document distribution of these invoices will not occur on a set day each month, so they require the document management system to respond to sales data with which it is provided. The document management system can then commence electronic document distribution.

Electronic Document Distribution of Dunning Letters

If you have ever failed to pay your phone bill by a certain date, you will be familiar with dunning letters. Some believe that now document management happens electronically that it would be easier to ignore dunning letters. If fact, this could not be more wrong; electronic document distribution makes record of all the invoices and statements it sends out, along with being able to tell whether you have viewed your phone bill by following the internet link in your e-mail. If a customer has not viewed their invoice then the document management system will send a reminder and alert the phone company. If a customer has viewed their invoice yet failed to pay, the electronic document distribution system will be alerted by document management to send dunning letters at regular intervals until payment is received. After a set time, the document management system will inform the phone company and legal action will be taken.

How do such Electronic Document Distribution systems come to exist?

Electronic document distribution is something which is constantly being worked on and improved. A company such as Corcentric, that specializes in document management, would be a place for other companies to turn when wishing to upgrade their own electronic document distribution.