Out of tragedy, sometimes good things can result

Everyone remembers where they were that fateful day 6 years ago-how the horror of the September 11th terrorist attacks affected each of us personally: our emotions, our fears, our nascent feeling of patriotism, and the effect it had on our business and the economy as a whole.

It took a while, but as a direct result of the planes not flying for nearly a week, Congress enacted the Check 21 regulations allowing banks to submit electronic images of business and personal checks, rather than the archaic method of shipping the paper checks themselves as air cargo from bank to bank for final clearing.

This is a benefit for you in that it speeds your cash flow and reduces the work involved in presenting a deposit. Now check images from your desk can be batched and cleared electronically. It is not perfect for everyone, but for those with limited staff and higher volumes (anywhere above 100 checks a week), this is something worth looking into. We have it, just ask us how.

Wishing you a safe and introspective September 11th. Think of the many attributes of our society that are worth fighting for, in words, actions and good deeds, despite those who wish to dismantle our way of life.

It's easier now being "green"

Poor Kermit the Frog. He thought it wasn't easy being green. Now we all strive to be "greener" by saving gasoline or adjusting our thermostats to run less air conditioning, especially at peak demand times.

Have you thought how to make your business or nonprofit greener by using new payment technologies?

Here are a few observations:
1) stop mailing invoices. It takes gasoline and electricity to process the mail and it takes days (sometimes a week) for delivery; use electronic invoice presentation with a link to your web page to accept the payment far faster.

2) start accepting credit card and/or checks by phone, by fax or on your website; easy to implement in your office and makes your staff far more efficient. No more running to the bank (eats gas) by 2pm to make a deposit.

3) if you must process checks, do so electronically by feeding them through a specialized check reader and converting them to a data file. Then let your computer send them to a processor for clearing. It's called Remote Deposit Capture. No more adding machine tapes, deposit slips or trips to the bank, saving electricity and gas as well.

That's just three ideas. Let me know if we can help you think and act more green.