Billing has long been treated as a back-office function. But for many organisations, it's now one of the most frequent and visible customer touchpoints. When that experience is clunky, confusing, or inconsistent, the result is predictable: more late payments, more support calls, and more cost.
The good news? A better payment experience is both achievable and measurable. It starts with a modern approach to billing — designing the journey as a service, not just a transaction.
The Problem with One-Off Solutions
Many teams try to fix billing with isolated solutions like redesigning a bill or adding SMS reminders. While these changes can help, they often fail to address the underlying friction. That's why we developed the Payment Experience Maturity Model — a practical tool to help organisations assess their current state, align teams, and take realistic steps toward a better billing experience.
What a Modern Payment Experience Should Look Like
A modern payment experience should be seamless and intuitive. Customers expect:
- Simple, login-free payment flows
- Actionable reminders via mobile and email
- Consistent messaging across channels
- Flexibility in how and when to pay
- The ability to act immediately, without friction or confusion
The Payment Experience Maturity Model: Four Stages of Progress
Our model provides a framework for assessing your billing experience across four key stages:
- 1. Reactive: Billing is manual, disconnected, and inconsistent. Reminders are minimal, and there's limited visibility into customer behaviour.
- 2. Tactical: Automation is introduced, but the experience is inconsistent across different channels like SMS and email. Analytics exist but are underutilised.
- 3. Integrated: A coordinated reminder strategy is used across multiple channels. Payment options are easy to access, and there's clear visibility into engagement and payment status.
- 4. Proactive: A fully embedded, real-time payment experience. Messaging is adaptive and driven by customer behaviour, with continuous optimisation based on data.
Why a Modern Billing Strategy Is Essential
With the rising cost-of-living and digital-first expectations now the norm, a good billing experience is no longer a 'nice-to-have' — it's a necessity. Customers want and expect payments to be seamless, intuitive, and easy.
53% of Australians have paid a bill late, often because of confusion or complexity rather than financial hardship. 61% want mobile-optimised billing and 53% desire "one-click" payments.
These findings underscore the need for timely, intuitive, and consistent customer communication that builds trust, not resistance. Our maturity model helps teams with fragmented systems and siloed responsibilities break this pattern by providing a shared language and measurable structure.
Ready to Get Started?
The first step is to assess your organisation's current state using the Payment Experience Maturity Model. Once you've identified your maturity stage, you can prioritise both immediate and long-term improvements.
The next step is to use our Payment Experience Audit Checklist to dig deeper into your current operations. This tool helps cross-functional teams evaluate the bill-to-pay experience across six core capabilities: Reminder Strategy, Tone and Messaging, Channel Consistency, Payment Flexibility, Use of Behavioural Signals, and Overdue Response Design.
Next in the Series
- Part 2: Identifying and fixing friction in your billing journey
- Part 3: Designing proactive, consistent billing communications
Or, talk to us about how Glider can help your organisation create better billing outcomes. Speak with our team today.
