Payment links
Direct debit
Card payments
Digital payments
Credit control
Xero integration
Inform Accounting brought the share of invoices paid late from 9 in 10 down to roughly 1 in 12, and replaced three credit control logins with one.
At a Glance
How Inform Accounting took 9 in 10 late invoices down to 1 in 12
Inform Accounting is a Sutton Coldfield-based accountancy practice founded by Sian Kelly, positioning itself as a proactive, fixed-fee alternative to the traditional practice and acting as a fully outsourced finance department for many of its clients.
An early adopter of technology, Inform was connected to Adfin by Socket, going live on Direct Debit in December 2025 with an initial bulk migration of 423 mandates, a book that has since grown organically to 574. Adfin now sits alongside Socket and Xero in the practice's stack.
Before Adfin
After Adfin
Challenge
Three logins, four-figure lateness, and clients who wouldn't go near Direct Debit
Before Adfin, 9 in 10 of Inform's invoices were paid late, averaging 248 days overdue, with one legacy invoice from 2022 still outstanding after 1,309 days.
Credit control meant logging into three separate pieces of software just to chase a payment: a Direct Debit provider, a payment reminder tool, and Xero on top. First-attempt collection success sat at 81% heading into the migration.
A portion of clients had also resisted moving onto Direct Debit at all, which added to the cash flow pressure the practice was already managing.
“Previously, I was having to log in to three different pieces of software to do the credit control. We had a DD provider, we had a payment reminder software, and then obviously Xero, accounting software. But I'd have to log in to all three.”
Ruth Morris · Operations Manager, Inform Accounting
Solution
One platform, and a way in for clients who wouldn't do Direct Debit
Fewer pieces of software, more time for the business
Inform saw a chance to retire legacy tools rather than add another one. Combining Direct Debit collections and credit control into a single platform cut the administration time the team was spending on those tasks, freeing staff up for marketing and for automating payments further.
“When we looked at what was available on Adfin, it meant that we didn't need legacy pieces of software that we've got. We could have less pieces of software, which is always favorable. So we could combine our direct debit collections and credit control function into one and improve it, and reduce the administration time we were spending on those things.”
Sian Kelly · Founder, Inform Accounting
One login instead of three
Credit control that used to mean switching between a Direct Debit provider, a reminder tool and Xero now happens entirely inside Adfin.
“Now I just do it all from within Adfin, and it's a lot simpler, smoother, and a lot less for me to do credit control-wise. So it gives me a lot more time to do all the other operational stuff.”
Ruth Morris · Operations Manager, Inform Accounting
A way in for clients who wouldn't do Direct Debit
For clients Inform had never managed to move onto Direct Debit, Adfin's payment links gave them a more automated way to pay without another hard sell on mandates, shifting their mindset toward automated payment along the way.
“It's probably been the most effective method we've had of getting clients that we've acquired who didn't want to go on to direct debit to sign up to more automated payments and change their mindset on paying. We had tried approaching them and asking them to go on direct debits, and that's quite difficult, but Adfin has helped bring them onto a more automated payment method.”
Sian Kelly · Founder, Inform Accounting
Results
From 9 in 10 late to 1 in 12, with time freed up for the work that matters
Since going live on Adfin, Inform's invoice lateness has collapsed from 9 in 10 paid late, averaging 248 days overdue, to roughly 1 in 12, with first-attempt Direct Debit collection success holding steady at 95 to 98%. The 423 mandates migrated at the outset have grown to 574 through organic sign-ups.
The platform has changed what the day-to-day looks like for the team as much as the numbers.
“Cash collection has improved beyond what I could have expected, because it was good anyway, but now it's really, really good.”
Sian Kelly · Founder, Inform Accounting
“Moving across to Adfin has freed up my time. I've got less credit control to do every week, which I found manual and time consuming. I've now got a lot more time to do the more exciting tasks that I want to be doing, like learning to use AI within the practice, looking at the reporting. I've got a lot of marketing to take on, so it's looking at the marketing.”
Ruth Morris · Operations Manager, Inform Accounting