YOUR GUIDE TOGETTING PAST

DUEyou did the work, submitted your invoiceand waited patiently for payment.

ow the 30-day deadline has passed, andthere’s no sign of your money. You don’twant to burn any bridges, but the overdueinvoice is damaging your cash ow.

WHAT NEXT?

Short answer — right away.If you know you have a goodrelationship with the client,you can probably afford towait three to four daysbefore chasing the payment.

But even withtrusted clients, don’tleave it too long.

You are legally entitledto be paid for the goodsand services youprovide, and lack offollow-up makes youlook unprofessional.

Make your initialcontact via email.

If you don’t receive atimely response, sendanother email and calltheir nt.

Most statesprotect smallbusinesses againstlate payments byallowing amonthly financecharge foroverdue invoices.

Rules vary, but aslong as you caplate fees at 10 percent youshould be fine.

One word ofcaution - it'sonly appropriateto charge a latefee if your clientunderstands thatyou reserve theright to do so.

Make sure yourcontract warnsnew clients thatyou may chargeinterest ifinvoices aren’tpaid on time.

If the customer disputes your invoice and you don’t have acontract counter their objections with the law.

The phrased you need is "quantum, meruit," Latin for " as muchas he deserved." This means you're entitled to the responsible

value of your services, based on your customary rate.

Carrots are often better than sticks when resolving disputes,so you could also try oering a prompt-payment discount or

setting up a payment plan.

Also remove some friction by letting clients payin a way that suits them best, such as ACH

payments, credit cards and PayPal transfers.

legal action should'nt be an empty treat, so familiarizeyourself with what a lawsuit entails.

It’s also worth doing a cost-beneysis onheavyweight debt collection.

Wheather you hire a lawyer or appoint a collection agency, ata certain point, it's no longer worth your time or egency totry to collect an unpaid invoice.

Ultimately, the best way to keep on top of late payment is toset aside some time every week to deal with credit control.

If you arerepeatedly havingproblems gettingpaid, it may betime to reviewyour customercontracts.

With every newclient, make sureyou explain yourterms of businessand invoicingprotocols.

Other optionsinclude asking for adown payment or apercentage upfront(or even full payment) beforework begins.

It’s obviouslyimportant that yourcustomers pay forgoods or servicesrendered, andfollowing these tipsshould gethard-earned cashinto your accountmuch quicker.

Sources: https://www.bluevine.com/guide-to-getting-paid/

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