Strategies for Getting Paid on Time-Part 2

This is part two in our series of discussions on helping business owners to get paid on time. Remember, uncollected income is the most obvious impact on your cash flow. Preventative measures will save you the hidden wasted costs of time spent chasing payment. Here are two additional strategies to employ:
Set a collection policy:
The chance of recovering payment reduces the older a debt becomes. Establish firm rules for follow-up, such as: a phone call at 7 days overdue; a letter at 14; another call at 21 days; stop supply or service at 30; turn to more formal approaches, such as collection agencies, at 60 days. In line with this schedule, set suitable options at certain stages such as partial payment, an installment plan, and whether or not future purchases are allowed.
Focus recovery power in the right hands:
Avoid the trap of turning your sales people or service staff into debt collectors. Mixing messages about employee roles will do more harm than good in the long term. Give the job of bad debt follow-up to one person, along with a set of clear guidelines for action and most importantly, your full support.
Do not hesitate to ask firmly for due payment because you fear losing customers. Non-paying customers may not be worth keeping.
For more guidance on cash flow management, accounts receivable and other areas where your business can be improved, please contact Simons Bitzer & Associates by visiting www.simonsbitzer.com or calling 782-3070 for a FREE one hour consultation with one of our team members.

Simons Bitzer & Associates' Inaugural Blog

Since 1995, Simons Bitzer & Associates has been committed to helping business owners and their teams realize growth, improve efficiencies, and maximize profitability. With that in mind, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Simons Bitzer weekly blog where we will discuss timely and effective business strategies, most often as they relate to the field of accounting. We truly hope you will enjoy our posts and we look forward to receiving your feedback as we enter the age of social media.

Strategies for Getting Paid on Time-Part One

If we don’t get paid, we go out of business. With more debtors delaying payment in these tough times, taking action to collect money should be a top priority for business owners. Few small businesses can afford to turn customers away, but being timid about stretched credit terms puts your company in danger. If you are not being paid on time it is harder to find money to settle your own outstanding debts. How can you collect money owed, and at the same time, avoid bad feelings developing between current and new customers who begin to fall behind on payments?

Try these simple in-house strategies:

Check credit on all new clients:

It is worth the fee to do a background check on new clients, despite the temptation to automatically take on any new clients when business is slow. The cost of your staff’s time chasing money and the potential price of debt collection later is not worth the risk. A reference check should be accepted as “company policy” by new customers.

Set terms at the sale:

The best time to get the message through about payment terms is when you close the sale. Outlining credit expectations early sets the right tone and foundation for late account follow-up if necessary. Make it a prominent part of the agreement when customers place orders.

For more guidance on accounts receivable and other accounting issues, please contact Simons Bitzer & Associates by visiting www.simonsbitzer.com or calling 782-3070 and receive a free one hour consultation with one of our team members.