Every business out there will have to deal with a late-paying client at some point. If you feel as though your clients are becoming unmanageable or if you feel as though the late payments are really starting to affect your business, then now is the time for you to change that by regaining control.
Research and Select
There may be times where you are not in a position where you can be selective. This is especially the case when your business is slow. That being said, if you do your research in advance then you may be able to save yourself some time, money and trouble. Run credit checks if you can, especially if you are dealing with transactions that are worth a lot of money. You might not want to risk going into an arrangement with a client if they have a bad credit history, for example.
Be Clear
When you run a business, you have to make sure that your customers know and understand the payment policy you have. You need to add a clear policy to your invoices and your bills, and you also need to state the payment terms as well. At this point it is also very helpful for you to add consequences if your customers do not pay on time. This could state the fee that you will charge if your clients do pay late, so you can help to get some of your slow-moving clients paying up. If you want some help with your online payments, then check out: OnPay Solutions.
Offer Different Ways to Pay
The easier you make it for your customers to pay you, the faster you will come away with your money. Don’t wait for the check to be signed off and sent to you. Instead, set up an online payment option instead. It is now easier than ever for you to accept credit cards or even mobile payments online and when you do, you will soon find that you can get the money you need in your account in a matter of days as opposed to waiting weeks.
Offer Incentives
You may want to offer some kind of early payment discount if you can. This will prompt your customers to pay the invoice before the due date. It’s important to know that this discount will depend on the client and the amount of work you have.
Staggered Payments
Depending on the size of your payment or your project, it’s very helpful for you to get the payment upfront, or for you to ask for 50% of it so you can charge the rest upon completion of the project. This is especially useful if you have a new client. Whatever strategy you choose to go with, you have to make sure that you write this down in your policy. Your customer has to understand that payment is crucial to the operation of your business so you can keep on providing them with the service that you are right now, so do keep that in mind as much as possible.
No comments yet.