Beyond convenience for customers, IVR systems also add revenue benefit to companies, simply by providing customers an easier way to pay their bills (over the phone).

I’ve personally used IVR systems to pay some of my bills, and it’s always been an easy way to do it. My other main method is online. The days of sending checks are in the past for me.

The flipside of this issue is the benefit companies get when their customers can more easily pay their bills. Check that…more easily pay their bills on time.

Some companies don’t even offer online systems where customers can access their accounts and manage them on the company’s website.

So far, I haven’t come across an IVR payment system that is a hassle to use. (I’m not saying they’re not out there, I’m just going on my personal experience on this one.)

What I find most convenient about paying over the phone is that it’s instantaneous. Meaning, my payment goes through that day, or is at least recognized by the company as being paid that day.

Back when I used to pay all my bills with checks in the mail, there was always a certain amount of concern over whether the checks would actually get there on time, or if they’d get there at all.

That’s not a knock on the postal system. Sometimes things get lost in the mail. It just happens.

That’s not a problem when paying over the phone, though. So if you get paid on one day and a bill is also due on the same day, you don’t have to predict when a snail mail check will make it to its destination. You just know.

Which, in the end, is better for the customer. But it’s also better for the company, which gets paid on time.