COVID's Permanent Changes: Digital Payment

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Industries worldwide were forced to change the way they do business in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of those changes were temporary, and as the general societal rules which accompanied the COVID era lift, these protocols will disappear. But other changes dramatically accelerated existing trends, and digital commerce is one of them.

As we emerge from the pandemic, we fi nd the business world has taken a quantum leap forward in the use of digital technology to accomplish a variety of tasks. For an update on how the pandemic has affected payment processing in pool and spa construction companies, AQUA spoke with Brent Meyers, vice president of sales for Comdata, a payment processing company headquartered in Brentwood, Tenn.

AQUA: How did COVID change the way pool construction companies handle payments?

Brent Meyers: : One of the interesting threads of the COVID-19 story is how it pushed businesses to adopt new technology. According to research by McKinsey, the pandemic likely sped up digital transformation by about 10 years. Industries like pool construction, which are generally more comfortable sticking to tried-and-true back-office processes, began searching for ways to complete the same work remotely. But even prior to the start of the pandemic, these companies were beginning to look at alternatives β€” the pandemic simply encouraged the process to happen sooner than it may have otherwise.

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AQ: How has the payment process for the pool construction industry’s back office changed due to working remotely?

BM: COVID-19 has thrown those back offices for a loop. The challenges have included trying to get employees equipped to work securely and efficiently from home; figuring out how to make manual processes work when everyone’s working outside the office; applying for and administering PPE loans to keep paying workers and more.

It’s taken pool construction longer than some industries to find their way to a new normal. The pandemic forced them to digitize and automate sooner rather than later. How can you cut a check remotely? We’ve seen many instances where the only time someone went into the office was to print the physical checks and put them on the signer’s desk. Then, they would text/ email the person and let them know to come in and sign. Talk about an inefficient process!

AQ: What payment trends do you foresee happening in the pool construction industry moving forward?

BM: Check payments are losing their luster. Even with COVID rules lifting, many companies still hesitate to send employees to the office to cut checks. Yes, some people still like a paper transfer, but with companies adopting digital payments at a more significant rate, it feels like we’ve reached the tipping point, and checks are becoming obsolete on a broader scale.

One thing we hear often is that many pool company suppliers don’t want to receive checks, and they’re asking buyers to start making payments electronically by automated clearing house (ACH). Also, it’s becoming old-fashioned to think of buyers and suppliers β€” and AP and AR β€” as separate and independent organizations. Every AP team has a corresponding AR team. All companies are both buyers and suppliers. By looking at all connections between them, you start to see the huge social network of finance professionals behind the constant exchange of funds, POs, invoices, contracts and other documents.

AQ: Can fraud be decreased by automating the payment process?

BM: This may come as a surprise, but there has not been a significant increase in fraud attempts in the last few months. Our own internal tracking shows fraud counts matching the 2019 trends quite closely. There was a 50% spike in April 2020 (compared to April 2019) as people acclimated to remote forms of work, but the months since have less fraud instances. Physical security methods, while touted as a failsafe by some, do nothing to add to the safety of a business.

RELATED: Customer Service in the Digital Age

For example, if your controller took home a folder of unsigned checks for the weekend and left them in the car while they stopped by the gym (a prime spot for car theft), your company information is physically at risk. The best and most surefire way to protect against email threats is to show your team how to identify them. Teach them to exercise suspicion towards unsolicited email communication and react accordingly:

- Do not click on a hyperlink unless you trust it.
- Do not open email attachments unless you trust the sender and are expecting the file (even trusted sender’s emails may be compromised).
- Do not provide your user credentials to anyone over email or phone.
- Lock your computer every time you step away.

AQ: Final thought?

BM: Embracing digital technology in the pool construction industry is one way to work smarter, not harder.


This article first appeared in the August 2021 issue of AQUA Magazine β€” the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.


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