GOODBYE LATE PAYMENTS: HERE’S HOW TO FOLLOW UP FOR CUSTOMER PAYMENTS
Are you still receiving late payments from your customers?
I am pretty sure many business owners do! This is a problem most businesses are conversant with but have been ineffective in finding a right solution.
Every entrepreneur, solopreneur, businessman, freelancer goes through this quite frequently, perhaps daily. Ramifications of this are not worth mentioning as it takes a heavy toll on your business.
Getting paid on time is key to achieving the desired outcome from your business. On top of that, it sustains your business in the long run. Avoid late payments.
Here are some tips to follow up payments in order to have a healthy cash flow.
Always maintain communication with your customers
As a business owner, you are advised to speak to your customers in a positive tone. Go out of the way to help them and make sure they are completely satisfied with the service rendered. Having a one-on-one communication with your customers on a regular basis helps in gauging their satisfaction level.
Ensure you have terms and conditions
Depending upon the relationship the customer has, your payment policy should be clearly defined. All the details regarding the due date and other payment terms must be added to the invoice before it is sent to the customer either via mail or text. By doing this, you can avoid late payment.
Send out Effective Reminder Mails
It is important to set the first follow-up for every customer, it must be in the form of a gentle and effective reminder mail. You can set this reminder days before the due date of the e-invoice. Using an e-invoicing platform like Cashflow can set the automated reminders for every invoice as the user deems fit.
Understand the Customers’ payment
History As your business thrives, while dealing with any client, it is pertinent to understand their financial strength and credit history. It is not important to follow-up multiple times for payments if customer has a good payment track record. In such a scenario, it is advisable to be patient with the client, who is most likely to pay you on or before the due date.
Payment Discounts is required
Another innovative way to follow-up payments of your customers is to provide payment discounts. Early payment discounts help in building strong relationship with the customer. You can offer an early payment discount on a follow-up call, a week before the due date getting paid faster
Customer Awareness Management
Follow-up communication can be used as a medium to make the client aware about the benefits of making on-time payments. These can include early payment discounts, better price and priority delivery etc. Similarly the clients must be communicated about late fee and interest penalties associated with late payments.
Set a Personalized Greeting Message
Sending out thank you messages is essential to help foster this relationship. This could come in terms of personalized call or mail acknowledging that the payment has been received.
To that end, Cashflow e-invoicing has taken over the manual processes of invoice, many business owners NOW ensures that the payments are flowing on time. The online invoicing include such a powerful feature to enhance the usability and increase overall efficiency.
Cashflow brings safe, robust and secured transactions in the timely flow of payments. It also helps you manage debts, analyze your financial statement, keep track of records and get you paid faster!!!
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