Startups Toolkit Cuts Late Invoice Pain
The new Startups Business Toolkit offers free invoicing with built-in payment links to help small businesses get paid faster.
A new free toolkit from Startups.co.uk aims to solve the chronic problem of late payments for small businesses by embedding payment links directly into invoices. The platform, which uses Stripe for processing, allows clients to pay by card in a couple of taps, removing the friction of manual bank transfers.
According to research by Sage, 44% of all small business invoices were paid late last year. The Office of the Small Business Commissioner states that late payments cost the UK economy approximately £11 billion annually. The primary issue is often not refusal to pay, but the minor hassle the payment process creates for customers.
Make Paying You the Easy Option
Including a built-in 'pay now' link transforms settling an invoice from a chore into a quick action. Stripe reports that 87% of invoices sent through its system are paid within 24 hours when such options are available. Customers pay roughly three times faster when offered one-tap payments like Apple Pay or Google Pay.
Accountancy platform Xero has found similar results. Its research indicates businesses that add online payment options to their invoices get paid up to twice as fast compared to those using traditional methods.
Give People the Way They Want to Pay
There is a significant gap between customer preference and business offering. Xero states that 86% of customers prefer to pay by card, yet only about 55% of small businesses provide this option. Simply offering card payments can make a one-person operation feel as easy to deal with as a larger company.
The new Get Paid feature within the Startups Business Toolkit is designed to bridge this gap. Users can create a branded, professional invoice in about sixty seconds with a payment link already embedded.
Look Professional, Chase Less, Get Paid Sooner
The toolkit automates the follow-up process for overdue invoices. If a payment is late, the system sends automatic reminders on the user's behalf. A central dashboard provides a clear overview of all invoices, showing what has been settled and what remains outstanding, helping business owners track their fixtures and financial standings.
All invoicing and payment tools in the Startups Business Toolkit are free to use. Payments are handled securely by Stripe, a financial conduct authority-regulated payments processor. The platform's goal is to ensure the next invoice a small business sends is the last one they have to manually chase for payment.
