The Builders Merchant Cash Flow Problem
Builders merchants and trade suppliers operate on tight margins with long payment cycles. The typical flow:
Tradesperson places an order — on account, by phone, or in the branch
Goods are delivered or collected
An invoice is sent — 30, 60, or 90 day terms
The merchant chases payment — phone calls, emails, statements
Payment arrives — eventually — via bank transfer or cheque
This cycle creates predictable problems: overdue accounts, manual chasing, disputed invoices, and cash flow gaps that constrain the business.
The payment infrastructure most builders merchants rely on — card terminals at the counter, phone payments where staff take card numbers verbally, and bank transfers that need manual reconciliation — hasn't kept up with the volume and complexity of trade account management.
Three Improvements That Change the Cash Flow Picture
1. Payment Links for Trade Accounts
Instead of sending a paper or PDF invoice and waiting, send a payment link alongside it.
The customer gets an SMS or email with a branded checkout page. They tap to pay — by card, open banking, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. The payment is confirmed instantly. No chasing. No waiting for bank transfers to clear.
Where this makes the biggest difference:
Statement payments — send a monthly payment link alongside the account statement. One tap to pay the balance rather than writing a cheque or setting up a bank transfer.
COD and pro-forma orders — send a payment link before dispatch. Goods only ship when payment is confirmed. Eliminates bad debt on new accounts.
Overdue accounts — instead of another phone call or letter, send a payment link with a clear amount and due date. Lower friction means faster payment.
Delivery surcharges and ad-hoc charges — send a quick link for one-off amounts without generating a full invoice cycle.
2. Open Banking for High-Value Orders
Builders merchants regularly process high-value transactions — bulk materials, project orders, large account balances.
A £10,000 timber order at 2% card processing fees costs £200 in fees. Across 200 high-value transactions per month, that's £40,000/year in card fees alone.
Pay by Bank (open banking) lets the customer pay directly from their bank account. Near-instant confirmation. No card fees. No chargebacks.
Shuttle supports Pay by Bank alongside card payments on the same payment link. The customer chooses their payment method at checkout. For high-value transactions, a simple nudge — "Save on this order with Pay by Bank" — can shift a significant percentage of volume away from card rails.
For builders merchants doing £5M+ in annual revenue, the card fee savings from open banking alone can be £50,000–£100,000 per year.
3. Voice Checkout for Phone Orders
Trade customers order by phone constantly. A plumber needs pipe fittings delivered to site. A builder calls to add to their running account. A project manager orders materials for next week's job.
When these calls include a payment — COD, pro-forma, or settling an overdue balance — most merchants either:
Take card details verbally (PCI compliance risk)
Ask the customer to call back and pay at the branch (friction)
Send a link after the call and hope they pay (drop-off)
Voice checkout captures payment during the call. The customer enters card details via keypad while the staff member stays on the line. Card tones are masked — staff never hear the numbers. Payment completes in seconds.
For merchants handling 50+ phone orders per day, this eliminates the gap between "order placed" and "payment collected" for phone-based transactions.
Replacing Manual Credit Control
The real cost for builders merchants isn't payment processing fees — it's the people and time spent chasing overdue accounts.
A credit controller making 30 calls per day to chase payments is expensive and inefficient. Most of those calls end with "I'll pay it next week" — which means another call next week.
Payment links shift this from human-chasing to digital nudging:
Automated reminders — send an SMS payment link 7 days before due date, on due date, and 7 days overdue
Escalation sequences — email → SMS → WhatsApp, each with a payment link
Self-service — the customer pays when it suits them, without scheduling a call with your credit team
The credit controller's time shifts from chasing payments to managing exceptions — the 10% of accounts that genuinely need human intervention rather than the 90% that just need a convenient way to pay.
What to Evaluate
Multi-channel delivery
Trade customers vary. Younger tradespeople prefer SMS and WhatsApp. Established builders prefer email. Accounts departments prefer email with PDF attachment plus payment link. Your payment solution should support all of these.
Branding
Payment pages should carry your merchant brand. MKM, Jewson, Travis Perkins — customers recognise and trust the brand. A generic third-party checkout page for a £5,000 payment creates unnecessary doubt.
Account integration
Can payment links be triggered from your ERP or trade account system? Integration with systems like Intact, K8, Merlin, or industry-specific platforms eliminates manual link creation. API access and workflow connectors (Zapier, Make.com) bridge the gap without custom development.
Payment method mix
Cards for small transactions. Open banking for high-value orders. Apple Pay and Google Pay for speed. The checkout should present all options and let the customer choose.
Reconciliation
Payment activity should reconcile automatically with trade accounts. At minimum, transaction reference mapping (invoice number → payment) should be automated so the accounts team isn't manually matching bank statements.
PCI compliance
If your staff take card details over the phone — which most branch and telesales teams do — you have a PCI compliance exposure. A PCI DSS Level 1 certified payment provider removes card data from your environment entirely.
FAQ
Can I send payment links for trade account balances?
Yes. Generate a payment link for any amount — a single invoice, a monthly statement balance, or a custom amount. Send via SMS, email, or WhatsApp. The customer pays in one tap.
Will this work with our existing ERP / trade account system?
Shuttle provides API access and integrations with Zapier and Make.com. Most ERP systems can trigger a payment link via webhook or API call when an invoice is generated or an account reaches a threshold. No custom development needed for standard integrations.
What about customers who don't have smartphones?
Email payment links work on any device with a web browser. For customers who genuinely prefer phone payment, voice checkout captures card details via keypad during the call — PCI-compliant and no smartphone required.
How much can we save with open banking?
Depends on your transaction volume and average order value. A builders merchant processing £500,000/month in card payments at 2% fees pays £10,000/month. If 50% of high-value transactions shift to Pay by Bank, the annual saving is roughly £60,000. The higher your average transaction value, the bigger the saving.
Is this suitable for branch counter payments too?
Yes. QR codes displayed at the counter link to a branded checkout page. Customers scan and pay from their phone — useful for busy branches where terminal queues slow things down, or for card declines where an immediate alternative is needed.
Can I use this for new customer deposits / pro-forma?
Absolutely. This is one of the strongest use cases. Send a payment link before dispatching goods. Payment is confirmed instantly. No risk of goods-on-account for unproven customers.
Related Reading
How to Send Payment Requests — the complete guide to digital payment collection
Shuttle vs Prommt — comparing payment link providers for high-value transactions
Prommt Alternatives for Platforms — the landscape of payment request providers
Best Payment Link Providers (2026) — ranked comparison of payment link services
What Are Voice Payments? — how voice checkout works for phone-based payment collection
UK Guide to Collecting Overdue Payments — the legal and practical framework for UK debt collection
QuickBooks Payment Links — if your accounting runs on QuickBooks
Xero Payment Links — if your accounting runs on Xero
Payment Links on Invoices — why adding payment links to invoices accelerates collection
Collect faster. Chase less. Save on card fees.
Shuttle gives builders merchants payment links, voice checkout, and open banking — from $49/month. Stop chasing payments manually and start collecting digitally.
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