If you have outstanding invoices, you don’t want to miss this post. You’re going to learn about 4 ways that you can get paid faster. Why is it important to get those outstanding invoices taken care of faster? In addition to getting the money that your business needs, the longer it takes for you to collect on an invoice, the less likely it is that you’ll get paid. Use the following tips to decrease the amount of time that invoices for your business go unpaid.
Make Physical Invoices Stand Out
It doesn’t matter if you’re doing business with individuals or other businesses, your physical invoices should stand out. An eye catching logo can help your clients keep track of their invoice. Choose a logo that’s professional and that matches the personality of your company. You can also consider using paper that’s a little thicker. The goal here is to make sure that your clients remember when they’ve received your invoice.
Digital Invoicing and Payment Options Often Mean Faster Payments
Emailing invoices and offering online payment options can mean faster payments for your business. Most bookkeeping apps (and software for traditional computers) have the ability to create and send out digital invoices. Many of them will also allow you to send yourself (or your billing clerk) a copy of the invoice. This helps ensure that the invoice did, indeed, get emailed.
Accepting online payments is easier than ever. Most bookkeeping apps allow you to choose from several online payment options. Commonly requested online payment types include PayPal, Stripe, and Venmo. Google Pay and Apple Pay are being utilized by some companies, but not as many apps have those as options. Both PayPal and Stripe also allow clients to use their debit cards or checking accounts to pay. The fees are extremely low.
Depending on your industry, you may find it more convenient to choose a bookkeeping app that is designed to meet your specific needs. For instance, lawyers find LawPay and Lex/Actum easy to use options that meet bar requirements.
Follow-Up on the Phone
If a client misses their due date, give them a quick call and offer to take the payment over the phone. You should be able to manually process a payment through your bookkeeping software. If you’re working with other businesses in your area and you plan to run errands, you can also offer to stop by and pick up the payment. Sometimes a quick phone call is all it takes to remind a client that they missed a payment. You could also discover that the reason a client didn’t pay is because they had a question or problem with their invoice. This gives you an opportunity to rectify the situation.
Offer Incentives for Early Payment
This is one of the oldest invoicing tricks in the book, but it works like magic. Offering clients a small incentive for paying early (and in full) can help you get paid faster. However, if your early payment incentive specifies paying in full seven days before the invoice is due, don’t create an exception. Remember that this is a special plan. It is an incentive. It doesn’t work as an incentive if you change the rules.
If You Have Accounts Receivable Questions, We Have Answers!
If you have questions about any part of the accounts receivable process, Clients ARM has an answer for you. With more than 30 years of experience, we can help you with everything from client intake to collections (and everything in between!). To learn more or if you have questions, contact us. We’re here to help!
