For today’s B2B merchants, uncertainty and rising costs—from payment processing fees to operational inefficiencies and navigating the changing economic winds of tariffs—are putting increasing pressure on margins. To adapt, companies are rethinking how they manage expenses and embrace emerging technologies. Using strategic and practical cost control methods, including surcharging, B2B businesses can strengthen profitability and innovation in an increasingly digital-first payment space and control cash flow without sacrificing customer experience.
The Case for Cost Control
Between rising operational costs, volatile supply chains, and tightening profit margins, today’s B2B merchants face an exceedingly difficult playing field––and cost control is key. Last year, over 70% of C-suite leaders focused on managing expenses. In 2025, the challenge remains: How can companies cut costs without compromising growth, service quality, or performance?
Cost control is the process of monitoring, managing, and reducing business expenses to improve profitability. Helping merchants reduce their spending, increase efficiency, and unlock capital for strategic initiatives, this process requires a dedicated focus on innovation, adaptation, and growth. To move the needle, finance and accounts payable (AP) teams need a strategic plan, compliance guardrails, and, most importantly, the right tools in their tech stack.
Strategy 1: Automate and Streamline Payment Operations
According to a PYMNTS report, companies with automated payment processes and digital tooling supporting their finance functions report 80% lower uncertainty levels than those utilizing paper-based and manual processes. Why? Automation gives firms greater transparency and control over cash flow and profitability. By investing in a robust digital toolbox, merchants can optimize cost recovery, limit avoidable expenses, and future-proof their organizations.
Although automation’s advantage is clear, many B2B companies still rely on manual invoicing, fragmented accounting systems, and disjointed payment workflows that increase costs and slow cash flow. This outdated approach creates inefficiencies that compound over time, resulting in higher operational costs and missed opportunities for optimization.
To drive digital innovation across payment processes, merchants can start by focusing on three high-impact areas:
- Automate invoicing and collections by digitizing accounts receivable (AR). This approach reduces Day Sales Outstanding (DSO), mitigates human error, and reduces administrative burden while ensuring faster payment cycles.
- Integrate enterprise resource planning (ERP) and payment systems, enabling real-time visibility into payments, invoices, and cash flow. This integration eliminates data silos and provides finance teams with the insights they need to make informed decisions quickly.
- Leverage data and analytics to manage cash flow, strengthen fraud protection, and mitigate compliance risk. Advanced analytics can identify patterns and trends that help predict cash flow needs and optimize payment timing.
Strategy 2: Unlock Faster Payments and Greater Transparency with Virtual Cards
To minimize costs and maximize profitability, B2B business leaders should focus on payment processing time. Unlike Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers and other traditional payment methods, virtual cards enhance visibility, traceability, and speed—well suited for today’s complex trade environment where supply chain agility pays dividends. Digitally generated and linked to a real credit account, virtual credit cards don’t just reduce fraud risk and increase control over spending; they also integrate seamlessly with modern AP tools and ERP workflows, helping businesses digitize and streamline payment processes with greater transparency, flexibility, and efficiency.
Given the volatile nature of today’s business landscape, increasing efficiency today can mean avoiding considerable downstream costs tomorrow. By eliminating paper-based or time-consuming payments, merchants can bolster their ability to pivot amongst trade disruptions, maintain healthy supply chains, and control costs with greater agency. Likewise, real-time payments enable stronger supplier relationships and faster, more secure transactions. And in an era where business conditions can change rapidly, having payment systems that adapt quickly provides a competitive advantage.
Strategy 3: Strengthen Your Bottom Line with Surcharging
For B2B businesses, credit card fees can silently erode profits, especially when big invoices are paid by credit card. These processing fees often represent a significant but overlooked expense that can dramatically impact bottom-line profitability. Right behind labor and rent, credit card swipe fees represent the third-largest expense for merchants, making cost recovery an essential strategy for maintaining healthy margins.
Surcharging is much more than a line item on an invoice; it helps merchants manage payment processing costs and regain stability while preserving the customer experience. By baking fee recovery into select or all credit card payments, teams gain the visibility they need to improve budgeting, financial planning, and resource allocation. At the same time, merchants unlock the ability to incentivize early payments and reduce DSO, optimizing both cost recovery and cash flow.
Crucially, surcharging preserves payment flexibility, so merchants don’t have to choose between their customers’ preferences and their bottom line. Plus, with selective surcharging, companies can target specific customer types and business units, applying surcharges strategically to align with business goals. This targeted approach ensures that surcharging supports broader business objectives while maintaining positive relationships with key customers.
Controlling Costs with a Managed Surcharge Provider
Companies thrive on predictability—something that’s increasingly hard to maintain in today’s global economy. With the right tools, finance leaders can leverage surcharging to address an often-overlooked source of financial unpredictability: interchange fees. To achieve meaningful cost control through surcharging, B2B merchants require a comprehensive solution backed by expert guidance. That’s where InterPayments comes in—making surcharging faster, easier, and more reliable through our managed approach to implementation and optimization.
Surcharging isn’t just a fee; it’s a strategic business decision that impacts every aspect of your operation. Managing complex processes like compliance, surcharging, or IT maintenance in-house can be inefficient and costly. That’s why InterPayments helps businesses control costs and avoid unnecessary expenses through innovative solutions, from transaction cost data logs that deliver actionable insights and boost fee recovery, to automation that lowers back-end costs and reduces the manual overhead of traditional payment processing.
With InterPayments, you get more than just the right tools—you get a customizable solution built to perform. We empower, implement, and guarantee compliant surcharging on your current platform, integrating with existing processes and procedures to minimize disruption and maximize benefits. As your Managed Surcharge Provider, we calculate the exact surcharge amount for every card and optimize recovery, ensuring that your business captures the full value of your surcharging strategy while maintaining complete compliance with indemnification.