Cash flow is the lifeblood of any business, and it’s even morevital for small businesses that don’t have infinite reservesbacking them up. But it often seems that, with every billing cycle,some invoices go unpaid.

In an economy where small businesses are struggling to stayvital, delayed payments are more than just bothersome – they canput your business in jeopardy. That’s why many small businessowners are turning from paper-based accounts receivable systems andseeking new, paperless ways of accepting payments that make theprocess easier from start to finish.

Going paperless does much more than eliminate stacks of invoicesand overstuffed files of receipts. By taking your billing processesonline, you can easily manage accounts in one location, making itfaster to find information that you need, like payment history,invoice status or customer data. Other simplifying steps, likesetting up recurring billing, e-mail invoices and automatic tracking, cutdown on your workload and make it easier to track where yourpayments are.

For small business owners who want the benefits of goingpaperless, using an online payment acceptance and invoicing toollike AcceptPay, from American Express OPEN, makes it easier to doall these things. But perhaps even more importantly, it makes iteasier for your customers to pay you by making a number ofdifferent online payment options available.

A recent study by Javelin Strategies shows that receiving billsand paying them online translates to happier customers who are moresatisfied with the companies they’re paying. By offering a widevariety of payment options, including the ability to pay by creditcard, e-check, automated clearing house (ACH) transfer orbank-to-bank transfer, AcceptPay can help keep your clients happyand allow them to pay from anywhere.

Because AcceptPay cuts out the waiting period for payments toarrive or for checks to clear, your business can get paid faster. As soon as your client makes an electronicpayment, the cash your business needs is deposited directly intoyour checking account.

Small-business owners have to juggle a lot of duties: managingstaff, overseeing day-to-day functions, collecting payments and,most importantly, doing everything you can to grow your businessfor the future. Finding paperless solutions that make those taskssimpler and more efficient is easier than ever before, thanks tosolutions like online invoicing and payment systems. And when allyour work is streamlined, you can focus on keeping your businessbooming.