When it comes to getting your invoices paid, nobody wants to come off naggy. As a small business owner, one of the biggest challenges is to convince clients to pay invoices—especially when you’ve asked more than once. Think of all the time wasted on mailing and emailing invoices, browsing through your inbox to pinpoint the hold up, making uncomfortable calls, and bombarding clients with reminder emails. There’s got to be an easier way to do this, right? Methods for Quicker Payments First of all, you should be proud that you own and run a business. Unlike working for someone else, you’re able to make executive decisions that directly affect your business’ bottom line and set proactive policies that help you get money quicker by promoting timely payments. Having trouble getting clients to pay promptly? Try these following invoicing “hacks” to see how you can improve your cash flow. 1. Communicate Expectations From The Outset Nobody likes the unpredictable, especially when it involves dollar signs. At the time of sale, or better yet, when you onboard a new client to your business, communicate to them a clear and detailed explanation of your invoicing policies. Walk them through your expectations and keep it simple. This will help manage expectations to avoid any miscommunication or misunderstanding regarding invoices down the road. 2. Payment First, Services After Does your small business have a history of late-paying clients? Try implementing a pay-first policy. Make sure clients either pay in full or leave a specified deposit before receiving any further services (or products) from your business. This will help ensure that you aren’t working your butt off for clients who aren’t paying you for your services (or the services you provided last month). 3. Routinize Your Invoicing When it comes to invoicing, if it is not intuitive, it won’t be remembered. Create a schedule for your invoicing and stick to it. Sporadic invoicing will only bring harm to your cash flow and communicate to your client that payment isn’t a priority. If it’s not a priority for you, why would it be for them? With Kashoo, you can quicken invoice payments by easily keeping track of all your invoices in a single workspace. Seeing your monthly invoices and its status (i.e. Unpaid Invoices and Unpaid Invoices By Client) for instance, will remind you which invoices are coming up, and which ones should be paid off but haven’t yet. Additionally, routinize your invoicing by utilizing Recurring Invoices so that invoices are created every week or month for the same client and sale. Set yourself a reminder on your calendar or in your phone to send that invoice to your client and ensure you never miss another one. If you already have a good relationship with a client, you can even invite them to a calendar event, reminding them that an invoice is due. Remember, billing early and consistently will inform your client to do the same for you. 4. Outline Late-Payment Fees Just like how outlining clear and detailed expectations of your invoicing policies is critical, communicating consequences to your clients are just as important for getting payments faster. For example, you can implement a late-payment fee (i.e. a 2-percent interest if payment hasn’t been received within 30 days) to add a little urgency to your invoices. 5. Reward Fast Payment Invoicing can be associated with rewards too! Have a little fun and show your gratitude by adding a reward (or even a nice note) for clients who pay before the specified due date. And remember: always say thank you. With Kashoo, you have the convenient option of emailing your invoices directly from within our software. Simply add a tailored thank-you note to your client before you send your invoices out. Trust us, your clients will appreciate the gesture—no matter how small. 6. Be Clear Lastly, use simple, everyday language when talking about payments. Choose language that is conversational and easily digestible when speaking to your clients. For instance, consider swapping “Net 30” with “Due in 30 days”. When it comes to communication involving payment, simplicity and clarity is key. The last thing you want is your client glancing at the invoice during a busy day, and they’re stricken with confusion rather than understanding exactly what is being asked of them. Late payments bogging you down? Power up your cash flow by using Kashoo for free today to help you implement these invoicing “hacks” to get some of your invoices paid faster!
