By Howard Gordon, Branded Program Manager, Food Export – Northeast

Food Export – Midwest and Food Export – Northeast’s Branded Program is committed to assisting companies with cost-sharing reimbursement assistance of eligible marketing and promotional expenses.

One of the facets of the program is the ability to seamlessly submit claim documentation to our team and for us to turn-around the claim so we can pay your submission in a timely manner. The following are some helpful hints to aid you in the claim process so you can receive your claim reimbursement quicker!

1. Submit Claims in a Timely Manner

When the activity you are seeking reimbursement for has finished, and you have all the necessary documentation including an itemized invoice, proof of payment, and proof of activity you can begin to submit the documentation online and upload the required items to have the claim set up for review.

Even if you only have part of the necessary documentation ready, you are able to submit those pieces early so that when you receive the additional pieces, there will be less to upload.  Please note the expense will not be reviewed until complete documentation is submitted.

If an activity has been completed earlier in the program year, often companies forget to submit their claims.  We recommend setting calendar reminders to upload your claim pieces early. Waiting to submit claims towards the end of the program year can sometimes cause delays in processing because of the large volume of claim submissions received by the final cutoff off date.  

We review claims on a first come first serve basis in the order they are received.

2. Staying in Touch with the Claims Team

Always make sure to doublecheck with your Branded Program team to ensure that your claim submission is complete. 

Companies tend to think that their claim has been accepted and we have everything we need, but that is not always the case. Sometime there is “additional information requested”, which means that we have additional questions about your submission. We will reach back out to alert you of what documentation is still outstanding.  Often, we do not hear back right away from companies after requesting additional information. This can delay the timeline for getting the claim reviewed and paid.

 Once you have submitted the claims, we recommend that you follow-up with your Branded Program contact to confirm that everything was received, so you are on track for the claims to be approved for reimbursement.

3. Sign Up to Receive Reimbursement Electronically

In 2020, we were pleased to roll-out a pilot program of reimbursement for companies using the ACH (Automated Clearing House) payment system, where companies can receive payment directly to their account electronically.  

We implemented this feature based on the feedback we heard from many of our companies, and it has been very well received so far.  Especially during the pandemic when people are not going into the office as much and working from home, having an electronic option has proven very beneficial.  This feature is currently available now, and we plan to continue this program into 2021. 

To sign up, please contact your Branded Program contact, who will provide an ACH request form.

Once we have received your completed ACH request form, our Finance team will administer verification trials to confirm your designated account. Once you see the test deposits in the account, you will need to confirm receipt in order to finalize the enrollment process. Signing up to receive ACH reimbursement  enables you to access your reimbursement quicker and decreases wait time.

We hope the tips above are helpful in teaching you how to receive your Branded Program reimbursement efficiently and conveniently. As always, if you have any questions on your reimbursement claim documentation, you can contact your Branded team, we’re here to help!