Just because we think of something as a cliché it doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Indeed many clichés are only seen as such due to their repetition – and not because they don’t contain genuine truths. Two of the oldest clichés in the world of credit management, and indeed business as a whole, are as true today as they ever were, first of all, “Cash is King” and secondly “A sale isn’t a sale until the money is in the bank”.
Indeed it could be argued with some justification that making sure you get paid for work you’ve completed is now more important than it’s ever been. With so many businesses having seen a major interruption to cash flow as revenues tumble through the lockdown securing the monies due to you is absolutely vital.
For many companies, expenditure has continued with regular overheads still needing to be paid even while income has reduced. As a result, watching your own cash reserves dwindle or your financial credit lines extend can be a sobering reality when an unexpected bill may be just around the corner. For many SMEs this can be a particular problem; without the reserves of larger businesses, they are especially vulnerable to the threats of late payment and bad debt and are less likely to employ their own credit management professionals to specialize in these areas.
The single most positive impact that any business can make on its cash flow situation is to make sure that customers pay what is due and that they pay it on time. The fundamental basics of good credit management should be in place as a matter of course. Always credit check new and existing customers, make sure that they can pay you and have a good payment track record.
Determine and agree on appropriate terms in advance, make sure you invoice your customers promptly and take particular care to ensure that your invoices are accurate. You don’t want to end up delaying payment from a customer because you’ve made a mistake and they only highlight it when the money is due. Once the invoice is issued, stay in touch with your customer to help ensure payment.
It all seems so simple and logical - but what happens when it goes wrong, when a customer doesn’t pay and that money is staying in their bank account and not yours? There is no doubt that for many companies and particularly smaller businesses chasing up overdue payments is one of the most time consuming and stressful processes anyone has to go through. After all, you run your business to find and fulfil new opportunities, not to see your valuable time eaten up by the nerve-racking demands of trying to get your hands on what is rightfully yours. On top of that for many companies, there is almost an embarrassment factor in having to ask a customer to pay up and particularly now when so many companies are in some form of distress because of the pandemic. For many, it is almost easier to either put off dealing with the problem or be prepared to simply write off monies due as bad debt and a lesson learned.
We’ve built up a trusted long term partnership with one of the UK’s leading debt collection service providers to take that headache away and let you concentrate on running your business. Daniels Silverman is an established and ethical operation who will take over the complete management of securing overdue payments and what’s more will do it on a “no win no fee” basis. Agile and adaptable, Daniels Silverman has been active throughout the pandemic, effectively and sympathetically obtaining monies due and working together with clients and their customers. They make sure that after making initial contact with the debtor they keep in touch and offer a full range of options to help manage the issue. This includes all the technological routes now available and even allows debtors to pay via text services.
In these challenging times and as all companies look to consolidate their cash reserves as we look to open the economy back out, the last thing you want is to be dragged down by the problems arising from late payment. If you have a specific issue right now then you can take action today. Simply complete the form below, adding the details of the debt and a member of the Daniels Silverman team will be in touch to agree on the next steps, take control and get you the money you are owed.