Why You Should Offer AP/AR Services To Your Clients

Key takeaways

• Add AP/AR services to create a new revenue stream and retain clients longer.
• Recognize that most small business owners want to hand off bill pay and will pay for it.
• Use online bill pay tools to manage AP/AR for multiple clients in a fraction of the time.
• Position your firm as a full-service partner by covering both sides of your clients’ cash flow.

What are AP/AR services?

AP/AR services are the accounts payable and receivable tasks a firm handles for its clients. On the payable side, that means receiving bills, scheduling and making payments, and keeping vendor records tidy. On the receivable side, it means sending invoices, following up on what clients are owed, and reconciling payments once they arrive.

Offering these services lets your firm manage both sides of a client’s cash flow in one place. It is a natural extension of bookkeeping, and it gives clients one trusted partner for paying bills and getting paid.

Your clients want you to take it off their hands and are willing to pay for it

It’s as simple as that: if there’s a demand for a service, why not offer it?

Small business owners want to spend their time running their business. Most don’t have the time or interest to manage bill pay, so they’re glad to hand it off.

Many small business owners also get confused and ask whether accounts payable is an expense or just an obligation—highlighting how much they rely on expert guidance.

A holistic service will give you a competitive advantage and boost your growth

In a competitive market, you need to harness every opportunity to offer more value to existing and potential clients. If you are already providing bookkeeping services for your clients, expanding to AP/AR management is the next logical step.

In fact, 37% of small businesses expect their accountant to help with accounts payable and receivable, according to OnPay’s small business survey.

This growing need shows that owners want streamlined processes and practical guidance on how to organize accounts payable invoices.

Understanding accounts payable vs accounts receivable helps clients see how you’re supporting both sides of their cash flow. By establishing yourself as a one-stop shop, covering all your clients’ financial needs, and exempting them from the hassle of AP/AR, you will be able to offer more comprehensive service packages.

If you’re not offering AP/AR as part of your services, you’re missing out on an opportunity to draw more clients and boost your firm’s growth.

An opportunity to demonstrate your expertise

Small businesses can be inefficient in handling their bill pay. Not only in the time it takes them to perform the tasks, but also in paying bills too soon, or too late, forgetting to ensure they were paid on time, and not following up on payments.

Ineffective bill pay management directly affects a business’ cash flow. Helping clients tackle accounts payable problems and solutions proves your expertise and highlights the value of structured AP/AR management.

Well-run AP/AR keeps a client’s cash flow steady, so they pay bills on time and get paid faster, which directly supports their survival and growth. You can drastically improve your clients’ cash flow, and provide them with financial insights on how to better manage their business.

No longer the hassle that you think it is

Manual bill pay means repeating the same steps for every payment:

• Print the check
• Sign it
• Stuff and mail the envelope
• Confirm it was delivered
• Start over for the next bill

No wonder accounting professionals are reluctant to take on this tedious task.

The right online tool lets you manage and track AP/AR for multiple clients in a fraction of the time. Once it’s in your workflow, the technology does the heavy lifting.

By introducing clients to modern bill pay tools, you can also explain what online payments are and why they’re faster, safer, and easier to track than paper checks.

Modern accounts payable software for small businesses removes the bottlenecks of manual bill pay and reduces errors dramatically. Some tools even leverage AI in accounts payable to flag duplicate bills, detect fraud, and speed up approvals.

Take David Perry, the owner of Latitude Bookkeeping, as an example: It used to take him anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour and a half to pay 10 bills per client. Now, with Melio, it takes him just 5–10 minutes overall to handle the same scope.

The time you invest on bill pay is the time you save on data entry

You’re already spending time entering your clients’ transactions into the accounting software. Melio’s bill pay solution integrates with QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, and Xero, so bills scheduled or paid via Melio are automatically updated on the accounting software side.

Charge a premium for work you already do: because you’re already entering client transactions, offering AP/AR lets you bill for that time. Even if you decide to outsource accounts payable services rather than manage them internally, you can still position your firm as a full-service partner.

Grow your firm with AP/AR services

Adding AP/AR services is one of the simplest ways to bring in more revenue, keep clients longer, and stand out from other firms. You already understand your clients’ finances, so managing their bill pay and invoicing is a natural next step.

Melio helps you provide AP/AR services to your clients with maximum efficiency, so you can grow your practice without growing your workload.

Accounts payable and receivable services FAQs