By Mariah Venus
Email Mariah
At BKE we understand that, for most business owners, getting paid quickly is critical. It can also be extremely difficult. We have all experienced the frustration of investing time, energy and funds into a client job only to be left spending more time and energy (your margin) following up on collections!
7 Tips To Help You Get Paid Faster
- Invoice immediately from your smartphone, tablet or laptop, sending your client a digital bill. It seems simple, but you’ve got to invoice quickly to get paid quickly!
- Consider using your bank’s smartphone/remote deposit app to snap a picture of their check (if you can collect one on the spot)
- Include electronic payment methods on your invoice so clients can pay faster
- Include multiple payment options in order to suit their internal processes (and thus make it easier to pay you)
- Give your client an incentive to pay earlier by offering a discount or imposing a fee (different strategies will work for different businesses)
- Make it personal by adding a thank you note, or when available, deliver a hard copy in person.
- Always be ready to accept payment on the spot with mobile processing such as Square or PayPal
There are other more intensive, process driven ways to help you get paid faster as well, such as setting up recurring ACH transfers for clients with recurring/contract work, or transitioning clients to value based (fixed) pricing to allow for recurring charges. You could even consider charging a deposit or materials fee before work begins to ensure you get paid quickly!