“It is all about offering the channels our customers want and prefer”

– says Mette Nilsen, Head of the department Payment Service at OBOS.

In only six years OBOS has gone from distributing 36 % of paper invoices to only 2 % in 2022. Digital invoicing means less paper, less transport, less packaging, and less energy used – it simply is more sustainable. Not least, it is what the customers want.

It is an overall strategy for OBOS to take social and environmental responsibility. Decreasing the percentage of paper invoices is how the payment department can contribute to this goal.

Among the largest in the Nordic

OBOS is today Norway’s largest housing association – and one of the Nordics largest housing builders and housing managers, with over half a million members. The business extends all over Norway and runs an extensive business in Sweden.

Management and consultancy are important parts of the OBOS group. OBOS carries out business management for a number of housing companies. It includes both administrative and financial assistance and advice primarily to boards of housing companies, as well as collection and accounting for this customer group.

OBOS partnered up with Orbyt already back in 2016.  Orbyt supports large enterprises and partners with all their invoice-related needs. We help drive digitalisation, increase cash flow, and reduce environmental footprint, while at the same time helping businesses reach customers in their preferred channels.

Having a partner with a safe and stable platform was important for OBOS when choosing a new supplier. OBOS have a large volume of invoices going out, and they depend on everything running smoothly.

“We have to make sure our customers get their money. And we must be confident that our chosen partner deliver what we are expecting and help us if needed. We always get a quick response from the people at Orbyt if we need anything”

– says Mette Nilsen, and continues:

“We have always been a satisfied customer of Orbyt. And there is no doubt that their platform works as it should. Orbyt is a partner we can evolve with”

Advantages of using digital invoicing

Orbyt connects to all relevant documents and distribution channels. We are connected to a global network of invoice channels, suppliers, and partners. Through Orbyt  our network businesses get access to digital invoicing, mobile invoicing, direct debit, digital mailboxes, reconciliation services, and digital archiving, across markets.

Payment is a part of the customer experience that many companies traditionally do not focus enough on. The truth is, however, that a seamless payment experience itself can play a decisive role in customer loyalty in the long run.

Did you know that 35 % of calls to customer centers are related to billing? The digital distribution gives a lot fewer inquiries. And not least, it means less return mail. OBOS went from 18 500 return mails in 2020 to only 9500 in 2021.

The digitalisation journey for OBOS has happened little by little. It’s all about offering what their customers want, and OBOS needs to meet their expectations. OBOS used its invoices to encourage its customers to use digital channels.

“This is what the customers want. They want it easy, and they want to avoid paper fees. Our customers know what they have to pay each month, there are rarely any surprises. It is therefore a low threshold to set up payment agreements for our claims”

– Nilsen says

Invoice as a communication channel

The Orbyt platform will help you optimize customer communication. Orbyt provides a responsive invoice design where you can personalize customer communication and collect data. With our invoice template management, we enable our client’s self-serviced changes to templates. These templates have dynamic zones that give clients the flexibility to change invoice content without changing the actual template. The different areas of the templates enable the possibility to customize the messaging to different segments.

OBOS Sweden is using the Marketing module to communicate with its customers.

“With this module, we can focus on the customers and their needs. We are segmenting and sharing different messages, and of course, distributing these in the relevant channels”

– Says Jorn Stromberg,  Head of IT application operation and management at OBOS

More resources available

The dynamic landscape for payment channels is changing faster than ever, with new players establishing a presence in the finance industry. At Orbyt we are constantly monitoring the market to offer the right channels to our clients.

Before partnering up with Orbyt, OBOS spent a lot of resources following up on all clients and channels, and they also created their own PDFs. Now they have a professional partner who is handling this for them.

“We now have more resources available, more time and less frustration. The market is changing quickly, and we no longer need to follow up and adapt, we are confident that you will update your solutions if there is anything new and relevant for us and our customers”

– says Stromberg.

Orbyt gives you access to all relevant payment channels to give you the best customer reach. With a single integration, you can send invoices and documents to any preferred channel, even across geographies. This is something that OBOS now is taking advantage of.

“The Swedish market is growing, and Orbyt is a part of this growth. Since you already have a presence in the Nordics, you make this journey easier for us, and therefore, you are a part of this journey”

– Stromberg continues.

Some key facts

• 3x difference in churn rates when comparing direct debit to paper invoice
• 100 g CO2 saved per digital invoice
• 2,8x difference in reminders sent when comparing direct debit to paper invoices
• 5Euro total cost saving per digital invoice converted
• 48 %-90 % is the range of invoices paid on time from the least efficient channel to the most

Sources: Mastercard, Intrum, Visma, Betalingsservice