Intuit Inc. is looking to deepen entrepreneurs' reliance on its small-business payment services with a new payment-reminder app for mobile phones.
Its latest lure is MoneyDue, a free app for Apple Inc.'s iPhone and iPod Touch that works in conjunction with the Intuit PaymentNetwork for small businesses, Intuit announced May 31.
MoneyDue enables small-business users to create reminders of payments owed and received and link them to appointment dates within the calendar feature of their mobile phone.
The app "helps busy small-business owners professionally manage money flow from their smartphone," Yumi Clark, a director for Intuit PaymentNetwork, said in a press release.
When a client's payment is due, the app alerts the user to send an invoice to the client via an email that includes a link to Intuit's PaymentNetwork.
Introduced in 2010, PaymentNetwork enables small-business owners to receive payments from customers via automated clearinghouse funds transfers. Small businesses pay Intuit 50 cents for each payment received; the service is free to payors. PaymentNetwork also offers small businesses the option to receive credit card payments.
Intuit, creator of QuickBooks and other accounting software, is developing a version of the app for Android devices, a spokesperson tells PaymentsSource.
"This looks like another tool Intuit is hoping will tie its small-business customers closer to the various accounting and management services it offers," Nancy Atkinson, a senior analyst with Aite Group, tells PaymentsSource.
The service also may help small-business owners stick to a schedule for sending out invoices that could generate fees if payors are late, she suggests.
Intuit is promoting the app on its site and will continue to rely on word-of-mouth marketing for its PaymentsNetwork service, which is receiving "strong growth and positive customer feedback," the spokesperson says.
What do you think about this? Send us your feedback.
