Having troubles get paid on time?  Here are some of my top tips to get paid faster:

1) Use online payment options, such as Stripe or GoCardless.  If you are using a software System such as Xero or MYOB, an online payment option is easy to setup and means your clients can pay straight from your invoice the same way as online shopping.  

2) Send timely invoice reminders and often.  Most accounting software systems have automatic email reminder functions available. For example, you can setup a reminder to be sent out automatically if an invoice has not been paid on time.

3) Offer regular payment plans. If you are doing reguarly work for clients, sometimes a payment plan can be a better option. eg. Monthly instalments. The client can then have this payment setup as an automatic payment to you.

4) Be upfront about your pricing and quote before starting jobs. Having clarity means there are no surprises.  If the scope of work changes while you are doing a job, let the client know straight away about any additional costs.

5) Reduce payment terms. Payment terms currently 20th of the following month? Time to scrap that. Make payment terms 7 days or less - same day if you can.

6) Use debt recovery agencies.  Know a client is not going to pay? Use a debt recovery agency to get your income. Debt agencies don't generally charge until your income is received. They take a cut of the income eg. Baycorp currently takes 25% plus GST.  There are some further administration costs to get started eg. Baycorp have $20+GST account registration fee. Let the client know first that if a debt is not paid by a certain date you will be getting a debt recovery agent involved.  Sometimes this is all the push they need to pay up!

Need help with any of the above, please get in contact.