ACH Bill Pay

We are conducting a confidential survey for NACHA, a leading payments industry association, to gather Billers’ Perspectives and Satisfaction with Direct Payment via ACH, Benchmark Adoption and Identify Best Practices.

o Participants will receive a summary of the research findings with peer group results at no cost.

o If you need assistance, please contact Ed Bachelder at (781) 662-8584 or email ed.bachelder@bflame.com.

All responses will be held in confidence and report data will be averaged or aggregated to conceal individual responses. Neither participants nor sponsors will receive access to any data containing information linking specific results to a participant.

To begin the survey simply click on the 'next' button below. You can also print the survey questions and save your responses as needed.

Part A: Background Information about your Organization

Please provide information about your organization which can be used for industry benchmarking purposes.

1.	Please share a brief description of your background and responsibilities with regard to billing and/or receivables collections of payments at your organization.

	If Other, please specify

What is the annual revenue of your organization? Estimates are acceptable - indicate below.

Up to $1 million

$1 - $4.9 million

$5- $9.9 million

$10 - $49.9 million

$50 - $499.9 million

$500 - $999.9 million

Over $1 billion

Don't Know

4.	Approximately how many customers does your organization currently serve? Please enter whole numbers
		Consumer or Residential
		Business or Non-Residential (if applicable)
		Total Customers

Part B - Electronic Payment Programs and Goals

Do you offer electronic payment options for your customers?

Yes

Which types? (Mark all)

ACH

Credit Card

Debit Card

Other (e.g., PayPal, BillFloat, etc.)

Does your organization have electronic payment goals?
For example, percent of electronic bill payers, increasing payment options, or increasing a certain payment types

Yes

8.	Please explain your goal(s):

9.	If your organization offers a recurring payment program for your customers, what name(s) do you call it? (e.g., Bank Draft, EasyPay, Autopay) If no program offered enter "NA"

10.

Does your Company track or maintain separate data for recurring and one-time payments?
Recurring Payments allow for the biller to collect funds automatically from a designated account on a monthly or regular basis after a customer enrolls.
In contrast, One-time payments requires that the consumer authorize each transaction individually.

Yes

11.	Approximately, how many or what percent of your consumer payments are received by ACH in a typical month? If percent, please add a percent sign.
	Recurring ACH Payments i.e., automatic bank draft
	One-Time ACH Payments e.g., TEL, or WEB

12.	What are the top “Positives” and “Negatives” of your organization’s electronic payments program? (Include both One-Time and Recurring/Automatic payments)
	Positives: 1.
	2.
	3.
	Negatives: 1.
	2.
	3.

13.

In general, does your company prefer to receive payments via ACH or Cards?

ACH

Credit Cards

Debit Cards

No Preference

Are there specific benefits and/or pain points influencing your organizations choice of which payment options to offer customers?

14.

Do you try to steer/encourage consumers to a particular type of payment (ACH or Cards, recurring or one-time) over another?

Yes

What type of payment, why and how do you do that?

Part C. Your Organization’s Business Practices by Channel

In this section, we just want to understand if there are any differences in your perspectives by payment type across various payment channels.

15.

Turning to specific payment channels, what payment methods do you accept for your Biller Direct Website?

One Time ACH

PINless Debit

Recurring ACH

Alternative

Credit Card

We do not accept payments through a Biller Direct Website

Debit or Prepaid Card

16.

If you charge a fee for payments initiated through your Website (Biller Direct Channel), please specify the amount.
($ or % per transactions, if % please add a % sign)

No Fees

		One Time ACH
		Recurring ACH
		Credit Cards
		Debit or Prepaid Card
		PINless Debit
		Alternative

17.

What payment methods do you accept for IVR/Call Center live operator ?

One-time ACH

PINless Debit

Recurring ACH

Alternative, e.g., Paypal

Credit Cards

We do not accept payments through our call center

Debit or Prepaid Card

18.

If you charge a fee for payments initiated through your IVR/Call Center live operator, please specify the amount.
($ or % per transaction. if %, please add % sign)

No Fees for IVR

No Fees for Live Operator

	One-Time ACH
	Recurring ACH
	Credit Cards
	Debit or Prepaid Card
	PINless Debit
	Alternative

19.

What payment methods do you accept for Walk-In payment centers/offices ?

Checks/Money Orders

Debit or Prepaid Card

One-Time ACH

Alternative e.g., Paypal

Cash

We do not have a walk-in payment center

Credit Cards

20.

If you charge a fee for payments initiated through your Walk-in payment centers/offices, please specify the amount.
($ or % per transaction. If %, please add % sign)

No Fees

		Checks/Money Orders
		One-Time ACH
		Cash
		Credit Cards
		Debit or Prepaid Card
		Alternative

21.

What payment methods do you acccept for Mail or Lockbox?

Checks/Money Orders

Credit Cards

ACH (ARC)

Debit or Prepaid Card

Cash

22.

If you charge a fee for payments received through mail or your lockbox, please specify the amount.
($ or % per transaction. If %, please add % sign)

No Fees

		Checks/Money Orders
		ACH - ARC
		Cash
		Credit Cards
		Debit or Prepaid Card

	Please Comment Why

	Please Comment Why

	Please Comment Why

	Please Comment Why

	Please Comment Why

	Please Comment Why

On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 = Very Dissatisfied, 5 = Neutral and 10 = Very Satisfied,
please rate your satisfaction with ACH payments and, if applicable, Credit or Debit Card payments
received from customers with respect to the following processes or activities:

29.	Authorization/Enrollment for payment by the following methods
29.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

30.	Account Verification (Customer's Bank Account or Card Number)
30.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

31.	Posting Payment to Account
31.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

32.	Payment Exceptions including Returns or Charge-backs
32.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

33.	Fraud/ Risk Management
33.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

34.	Integration/Reporting with your Accounting and/or ERP systems
34.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

35.	Customer Service (Ability to easiily answer customers' inquiries)
35.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

36.	Ease of Use (for your organization)
36.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

37.	Changes and Maintenance of Bank Account Numbers
37.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

38.	Funds Availability/Timing (When your organizations receives full access to funds collected)
38.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

39.	Expense / Overall Cost
39.		Very Dissatisfied	2	3	4	Neutral	6	7	8	9	Very Satisfied	N/A
	ACH	ACH Very Dissatisfied	ACH 2	ACH 3	ACH 4	ACH Neutral	ACH 6	ACH 7	ACH 8	ACH 9	ACH Very Satisfied	ACH N/A
	Credit Cards	Credit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Credit Cards 2	Credit Cards 3	Credit Cards 4	Credit Cards Neutral	Credit Cards 6	Credit Cards 7	Credit Cards 8	Credit Cards 9	Credit Cards Very Satisfied	Credit Cards N/A
	Debit Cards	Debit Cards Very Dissatisfied	Debit Cards 2	Debit Cards 3	Debit Cards 4	Debit Cards Neutral	Debit Cards 6	Debit Cards 7	Debit Cards 8	Debit Cards 9	Debit Cards Very Satisfied	Debit Cards N/A

	Why Different (If ACH is lower)?

40.	If you know, what are your company’s approximate costs for a typical payments received via: Percent or $ - please specify with % if percent
	Checks/ Money Orders
	ACH
	Cash
	Credit Cards
	Debit or Prepaid Card

Would the following ACH services or solutions help your organization's consumer payment receipt/collection efforts?

41.

Account Verification (Ability to know if the account numbers are valid)

Yes

Don't Know

If yes, how might it help?

42.

Directory services/tools/notification (Ability to receive updated bank account numbers when they change, tools to improve or add numbers when they change, capability for banks to send out updates to billers)

Yes

Don't Know

If yes, how might it help?

43.

Simpler debit authorizations (An easier process for obtaining an original authorization)

Yes

Don't Know

If yes, how might it help?

44.

Simpler Research/dispute resolution (An easier way to obtain proof of payment authorization)

Yes

Don't Know

If yes, how might it help?

45.

New formats, etc. (enhanced data fields and formats to communicate account changes or payment methods)

Yes

Don't Know

If yes, how might it help?

46.	For Recurring Payments, please describe any important pain points and/or differences in your process(e)s for obtaining authorization from customers between ACH and card payments. For example, enrolling into recurring ACH requires mailing in a voided check and a signed form vs. an online entry of bank account or credit card account number.

47.

If no differences in your process(es), please indicate here

No Difference

48.	For One-Time Payments, please describe any important pain points and/or differences in your process(e)s for obtaining authorization from customers between ACH and card payments. For example, recording of calls and consent for ACH payments by telephone may take more time that is required for a credit card transaction.

49.

If no differences in your process(es), please indicate here

No Difference

Characteristics of your Organization’s eBill Programs

50.	What are your top three obstacles to increasing customer adoption of ACH payment by consumers?
	1.
	2.
	3.

51.

Are there budget resources for increasing recurring and/or one-time payments?

Yes

If yes, approximately how much is spent annually?

52.	How are consumers educated about electronic payment?

53.

Do you market or promote one-time electronic payments to customers to encourage them to try electronic payments?

Yes

54.

If yes, do you try it during enrollment / customer on-boarding?

Yes

55.	What messages are used/have been successful to enroll Recurring electronic payments?

56.	What messages are used/have been successful to enroll One-Time electronic payments?

57.

Does “green” messaging help with electronic payment marketing efforts?

Yes

58.

Are “faster”, “convenient” or “easy” messages successful?

Yes

59.

Are you aware or have you used www.electronicpayments.org?

Yes

60.	What types of Promotions or Consumer Education programs could an industry organization provide to boost electronic payments adoption and help meet your company’s goals?

61.

If you offer electronic billing, do you “turn off” paper bills for recurring payment customers?

Yes

N/A, We do not offer eBilling

62.

Is the policy the same for all payment types?

Yes

63.	If no, which payment type(s) differs in treatment?

64.

How are eBill customers paying - by ACH or credit card? Please check all that apply

ACH

Credit Card

Debit Card

65.

Do you see many customers switching to a different payment method from their initial method when they originally enrolled in eBill?

To Card from ACH payments

To ACH from Card payments

Few changes from how they enrolled originally

Do not know

66.

Do you promote the use of service provider(s) to assist customers in paying their bills directly from online banking or other third-party payment providers?

Yes

67.

How do you get information about new payment options? Mark all that apply.

Your Bank

Your Vendors

On your own

68.	How does your organization evaluate new payment options? (e.g., PayPal, bill-my-parents, etc.?) How long does it take? What process is (or likely would be) used to make a decision?

Quantitative Information

69.	What growth rate percentages have you seen in Direct Payment via ACH and Cards over the past two years? How do you expect ACH Payment will grow in the next two years?
		ACH Overall
		One-Time ACH
		Recurring ACH
		Card Overall
		One-Time Card
		Recurring Card
		Alternative Overall
		Alternative One-Time
		Alternative Recurring
		Credit or Debit Card

70.	How many payments (or what percent of total) are received through the following methods/channels? Please specify if %
		Paper Items: Checks, Cash and Money Orders: In-person, Walk-in or Agent
		Lockbox - Mail or drop-box
		Electronic Payments : Recurring Preauthorized ACH (Auto debit PPD's)
		Online ACH (WEB)
		ACH received from a bill service provider (e.g., Fiserv or Bank)
		IVR - ACH TEL
		Call Center - Live Agent or Representative
		PINless Debit
		Other
		Total

71.	How are your consumer debits and charges initiated for Bill Payments? (Mark all that apply)
71.			In-House	OutSource - Bank	Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	N/A
		ACH	ACH In-House	ACH OutSource - Bank	ACH Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	ACH N/A
		Credit Cards	Credit Cards In-House	Credit Cards OutSource - Bank	Credit Cards Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	Credit Cards N/A
		Debit Cards	Debit Cards In-House	Debit Cards OutSource - Bank	Debit Cards Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	Debit Cards N/A
		Lockbox/Checks	Lockbox/Checks In-House	Lockbox/Checks OutSource - Bank	Lockbox/Checks Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	Lockbox/Checks N/A
		Other	Other In-House	Other OutSource - Bank	Other Outsource - Non-Bank Processor	Other N/A

72.	If known, who is your provider?
		ACH
		Credit Cards
		Debit Cards
		Lockbox/Checks
		Other

What is the approximate number (or percentage) of customers’ billing statements that are distributed by your organization in a typical month?
September 2012 or most recent month available Enter number or percentage, please specify if %

73.	Total Bills Generated
	Consumer or Residential
	Business or Non-Residential
	Total

Paper Bills Mailed

	Consumer or Residential
	Business or Non-Residential
	Total

Bills Distributed Electronically (eBills)

	Consumer or Residential
	Business or Non-Residential
	Total

Paperless Bills (No Paper Statement or Bills Sent)

	Consumer or Residential
	Business or Non-Residential
	Total

74.	Any Observations or General Comments?

Optional Information

This information will help us analyze the results and aggregate responses by peer group. No information will be released about specific organization's responses.

75.	To receive a copy please provide your contact information:
		Name
		Title
		Organization
		Email
		Telephone

Direct Payment via ACH Survey

We are conducting a confidential survey for NACHA, a leading payments industry association, to gather Billers’ Perspectives and Satisfaction with Direct Payment via ACH, Benchmark Adoption and Identify Best Practices.

All responses will be held in confidence and report data will be averaged or aggregated to conceal individual responses. Neither participants nor sponsors will receive access to any data containing information linking specific results to a participant.

To begin the survey simply click on the 'next' button below. You can also print the survey questions and save your responses as needed.

Part A: Background Information about your Organization

Please provide information about your organization which can be used for industry benchmarking purposes.

Part B - Electronic Payment Programs and Goals

Part C. Your Organization’s Business Practices by Channel

Would the following ACH services or solutions help your organization's consumer payment receipt/collection efforts?

Characteristics of your Organization’s eBill Programs

Quantitative Information

Optional Information

Thank you! We will send you a summary report in Q2 2013.