In fuel marketing, getting from order to cash sounds simple—orders come in, you fulfill them, and cash flows out. But it’s not always that straightforward, right? That’s because many businesses, perhaps even yours, have a “leaky” order pipeline. Our founder, Pavan (who also founded FuelPanda, a fleet fuelling business in California) recently explained a few mental models and shared actionable insights into how automating your order-to-cash process can close these leaks and boost cash flow. Let’s break it down.

Picture This: An Order-to-Cash Pipeline

Imagine an order pipeline. On one end, orders go in, and on the other, cash flows out. But if your pipeline has “leaks”—that is, manual processes like paper forms, spreadsheets, or phone calls—each leak represents an opportunity for errors, delays, or backlogs. And these leaks aren’t just a hassle; they’re costing you cash. So, let’s go through the main stages in this order-to-cash pipeline and highlight the key “leak points” that could be holding you back.

1. Order Intake: Multiple Channels, Multiple Chances for Error
   Fuel marketers often get orders from all directions—calls, emails, recurring schedules, or even tag monitors. This kind of variety can lead to mix-ups, slowdowns, or errors. For example, because fuel prices fluctuate, some companies don’t decide on a supplier until the day of. This last-minute rush can lead to errors in planning, which could turn into costly delays.

2. Order Enhancement & Dispatch: Variability in Decision-Making
   Once the order is created, the next step is enhancing and scheduling it. Here, you’re adding details like which supplier to use, the pick-up point, and who’s doing the delivery. Some companies still print and fax schedules between locations. Others might even fax a whole shift plan back to the central office for another round of review, reprinting, and then re-sending. With so many manual touches, it’s a wonder errors don’t happen more often. Dispatchers are constantly fighting the same fires everyday, are constantly doing overtime and burn out.
   
   

   

3. Order Fulfillment/Delivery: Information Gaps on the Road
   Your driver finally receives the order. But does he have all the information he needs? For instance, does he know the gate code? Or who to call if he can’t access the site? Each piece of missing information is another “leak.” A lot of companies give binders that contain such information to drivers that they have to go through and figure out. Something that we see a lot is the huge amount of back and forth between drivers and dispatchers in the form of constant texting and calls. Drivers call dispatchers to get the information they need and dispatchers call drivers to get visibility on the orders, to know if the driver has the inventory to take an urgent call-in and so on. Every missing detail adds a delay to the order delivery, which leads to driver and dispatcher overtime and customer dissatisfaction.

4. Reconciling Field Data: Collecting and Sorting Paperwork
   Once the order is delivered, there’s still plenty of work to do. Drivers bring back stacks of paperwork—BOL images, delivery tickets, receipts. Sorting through these is like putting together a puzzle: what was delivered, what was retained on the truck, and so on. And then comes “reconciling,” which our founder perfectly describes as “figuring out what happened.” Without an automated system, this process means you’re spending hours or even days before sending out invoices. If invoices aren’t going out quickly, then cash isn’t coming in quickly.

5. Invoicing and Payment Collection: The Final Stretch
   When you’re not sending same-day invoices, you’re not collecting cash as fast as possible. Worse, if invoices contain mistakes, you’re introducing “garbage” data to your back office system and eroding trust with customers. And that delays payment even more. If your customer spots an error, they’re unlikely to rush to pay; they’ll want it fixed first. The next time you send an invoice, they're bound to think "They made an error last time. Let's first check everything before we pay". This means your invoice goes to the bottom of the pile leading to a delay in payment. If even just a few of your customers do this, cash flow can become a real problem. The worst part is that a slow pipeline here doesn’t just leak cash; it risks losing clients.

There’s a concept called garbage in, garbage out. If you don’t have a good automation system in place, you’re essentially bringing garbage data or garbage information in from the field. Sure, you can reconcile it as much as possible, but that poor-quality data still makes its way to your back office system and, worse, to your customers. And over time, this erodes trust because customers start to see invoices that have mistakes or pricing errors. That eroding of trust leads to delays in approving invoices because now you’re stuck in the customer’s accounts payable process as they double-check each one. So, this is a major cause of slowdown—slow invoicing compounded by slow approvals due to mistrust in data accuracy.

Why Automation is the Answer

So, why all this talk of leaks and delays? Because automation can plug these leaks. With order-to-cash automation, you eliminate most manual steps, reducing errors, improving cash flow, and, Pavan says, making you “first in line to get paid.”

But something we hear often is "Yes I know the answer but we just don't have the time!".

A mental model we find useful here is "Slow down to speed up".

Think of it this way: you may have raised funding, you’re looking to grow, but the way you’re operating right now isn’t set up for that next level. Slowing down means taking the time to put proper processes in place, implementing the right software, and hiring the right people. When you do this, you can speed up in a way that doesn’t burn out your team, doesn’t damage the culture, and lets you grow in a non-linear fashion. And what does non-linear growth mean? It’s that if you’re doubling your business, you shouldn’t have to double your staff. Without leverage, that growth isn’t sustainable. Slowing down first makes it possible to get the software and systems in place that will enable you to grow efficiently and sustainably.

Here’s a practical example. Think of ordering a pizza. You can see your pizza’s progress in real-time—when it’s being prepared, baked, and delivered, all for a $15 order. Now, imagine your customer who’s ordering fuel worth $60,000 and has no clue if it’s on its way, has been delivered, or what the final price will be. Automation bridges this gap, giving your customers peace of mind and giving you an edge over competitors who haven’t made the leap.

Conclusion

If you’re running an efficient operation even with these leaks, that’s a huge opportunity! By plugging leaks with automation, you’re not just making things smoother; you’re gaining leverage in your business. Faster cash flow, happier customers, and a more empowered team—all this is within reach. Take the time to plug your leaks now, and you’ll be ready for faster, more scalable growth tomorrow.