Get Paid On Time
One of the biggest obstacles to making your business profitable is collecting due payment. No matter how good the quality of your work is, if you're not getting paid, you won't make money. Here are tips for ensuring you get paid promptly.
1) Keep the terms of payment clear. This includes making sure there's a provision for when you'll be paid in the contract and sending invoices that are unambiguous. Clients will procrastinate paying bills that are confusing.
2) Don't worry about being nice. Shorten your billing cycles to 14 or 21 days instead of 30 to 60 days. This will allow you to call your client sooner to check on the status of your payment. You can also add a line to your invoice that tacks on a five to ten percent penalty for late payments.
3) Ask for payment upfront. Although it may seem unprofessional, most clients will give you an advance if you ask for it as an act of good faith.
4) Take legal action. This should be a last resort. If you hire a bill collector or take the client to small claims court, you'll lose your client and a large percentage of the payment.
Comments
On the Mark!