Rule One of Business: Get Paid
To get paid, you would realise is essentially fundamental at your business because if you do not get paid, what’s the point in business?
You will be laughing at the amount of business people who permit their customer base to simply pay when and if they get around to it. I know of a tradesman who continuously makes bad debts like trophies. Why, do you think? Simply because he can’t bring himself to ask for the cash and people just intimidate him.
If you give somebody credit, only do it when they have cleared themselves to you by paying cash on delivery (COD) for a period. Moreover, you must gauge whether they have the funds to pay you – if not then you shouldn’t do business with them. Don’t fool yourself into the pattern of “I need the work” or “I need the sales”. It’s pointless in doing the service or providing the goods for zip if you aren’t paid.
If you are the type of person who can’t demand the money even when the service has been done, try these tips:
Tell your customer that when all the work is done, you will need cash or cheque. They should likely have it to hand over at completion and you won’t need to demand your payment.
When you send the quote, be sure your payment terms are plain.
Complete an invoice with the terms of payment plainly listed and hand the client the invoice when the task is done. They should take the invoice and reactively know they need to pay you the fee now without you having to say a word. Make up a “vicious boss” who will torture you alive if you do not leave with the pay for the job.
Set up your banking to set you up with Merchant facilities so you can use credit cards including Mastercard and Visa. Most people own credit cards and it should stop the dilemma of the client not owning a cheque book or not having the right cash on hand.
Moreover, don’t be asked not to keep hold on your goods till after you’ve been paid. Understand, until the goods are paid for, they remain yours.
If you choose to let a client credit, make sure you have the following details off them a week PREVIOUSLY you allow them credit.
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Bank name and address
- Account no.
- 3 trade references with their names, addresses and phone numbers
Once you record all this information, contact the branch and make certain that they do use an account with them. Then, contact all of the trade reference and find out if they pay their invoices correctly or if there are any difficulties with them.
Most people will be willing to tell you if the person is troublesome. If everything is OK, allow them a moderate level of debt, say no more than $500 (depending on your business). Monitor the operation of the account for a few months before allowing this amount to be exceeded.
If you’re looking for a Brisbane web design company or Brisbane SEO company, talk to Search Tempo. Check out their SEO prices today.
Step 1: Do your research