Why You Should Provide Options to Past Due Clients
It never fails in business. At some point, you will deal with at least one client who does not pay their bill. It’s a tough position to be in because you’ve likely already provided your service…and you weren’t paid. You certainly have choices when it comes to collecting on past due accounts. Regardless of what you ultimately decide to do in order to handle past due clients, one fact remains clear: you should always provide options to your past due clients to help them pay their debt. Here’s why:
Working with Past Due Clients Is Good for Your Reputation
It’s not always going to be easy to give options to past due clients. After all, you may wonder if you can really trust them when it comes to following through. Of course, there’s always a chance that they will not be good on their word. Yet, the most important reason why you should provide options to past due clients is because it is good for your professional reputation. Working out a payment plan that is beneficial to your client’s needs is important. You may still get paid and you salvage the relationship. Although you may not want to use your professional skills and resources with this person since they now have a history of non-payment, by giving options you are protecting your reputation. Happy clients may tell one or two people, but unhappy clients, even the ones who don’t pay bills that they know they owe, will tell the entire Internet. Your reputation is one of your biggest assets as a business. It’s important to do everything within your power to protect it.
Options Help You Get Paid
Most people who default on their payments don’t do it because they had some nefarious plan to try and get something for nothing. Often, people don’t pay because they experienced a job loss or some other major life event. Offering options helps you get paid. If someone lost their job and found one that pays less, they may not be paying because they can’t afford to make many of their minimum payments. Providing options, such as a lower monthly payment or a bi-weekly payment, could help your client get you paid. It might take longer, but getting what is owed to you in smaller increments is often better than not being paid at all. You also show your client that your goal is to provide solutions to help them regardless of the problems that they face.
Provide Options, Not Harassment
Often collection agencies make the mistake of harassing past due clients. The problem with this is twofold. Most clients will just stop answering the calls. They also have the option of reporting harassment to the FTC. That type of report can cause you to face an expensive lawsuit. Many people will file bankruptcy just to stop the collection calls. If someone is pushed to believe that they should file bankruptcy, you likely won’t get paid at all. Instead, when you call past due clients with options, you make it more likely that you will get paid at least something on the debt.
Get Help with Past Due Accounts
If you need help with your past due accounts, call Clients ARM. We have more than 30 years of experience in accounts receivable, collections, and helping businesses just like yours choose the right options to help you extend the right amount of credit to your clients and to get you paid. Clients ARM also offers a free loan matching program for your clients. Our program, Hello Finance Manager, can help your clients find financing to pay for your services in full. To learn more about how Clients ARM can help you and your clients, call us today.
