The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts an above-normal hurricane season. Unfortunately, we've already witnessed the power of Hurricane Ida across the country with much of its impact still to be determined.  Just as we've discovered with the COVID-19 pandemic, asking for money during this time seems precarious. 

Is there a nice way to collect payments from clients affected by natural disasters?

When your customer accounts become delinquent, they may have a number of reasons for not paying on time. Some of these excuses may be perfectly reasonable and others, not so much. If your in-house accounts receivable or collections department is fielding some of these excuses, here are some tips on how to handle them.

Here's how to respond to delinquent customer excuses for late payments.

The last thing a business owner wants to think about is why their clients or customers aren't paying. It should be a straightforward process - you do the work or supply the goods and they pay their bills. With a little examination of your payment process, you might be able to determine the problem with those slow or late payments. 

If B2B payments are too hard to collect, ask yourself these questions.

While this question will put off sales reps, collections teams may be cheering in their seats. If a sales representative works hard to land the ideal client but the invoice goes unpaid beyond the due date, who should be responsible for connecting with that client? Is a sale really complete if the invoice isn't paid? Do you have a solid process for who follows up and when it becomes necessary for your organization to move the account to collections?

Should sales representatives be responsible for collecting on past due invoices?

If you've been putting off the headache of collections, you've likely also been asking, "how can I improve my cash flow?" The two go hand-in-hand. When you're not following up on invoices that are getting older, your chances of collecting on them go down.  That means you're working for no pay and that's no good. 

Instead, use these B2B collections steps to convert aging receivables and improve cash flow.

If your business sends invoices or bills on credit or at recurring intervals, you likely have customers who pay late or not at all.  Delinquent customer accounts can affect everything from paying business expenses to destroying business relationships. Customers may be paying late due to a number of reasons, including lost invoices, expired credit cards, or the inability to pay. Instead of taking it personally, your business can follow these tips to recover the account in a professional manner. 

Here's how to manage delinquent customers in business.

One of the top stressors of Americans is their financial well-being. Take into account owning your own consulting business, starting a software company or freelance career, and that stress is exponential.  It's one thing to lack personal financial literacy but when your business and livelihood are also at stake, the anxiety can leave you paralyzed. 

Now imagine that you have to contact a customer that's behind on payments. 😲

Before you pick up the phone or send that email, take a moment to review these tips for keeping your cool when they owe you money. 

Employers are struggling with finding workers even though COVID restrictions are being lifted across the country.  According to a recent report, 42% of small business owners were unable to fill job openings and 91% were unable to find qualified applicants.  These challenges are also affecting the work that's getting done within businesses too. 

Here's how the job market is affecting client invoice payments.

Collecting past due debts from your customers and clients is an unfortunate part of the accounts receivable process. It's 'unfortunate' because not every customer will pay on time but it doesn't have to be contentious or ugly.  Your client will be aware of what they owe, when they owe and how to pay via your contract agreement. But even beyond that, there are steps you can take to ensure payment from your collections efforts. 

Follow these steps for successful business debt collections.

Over the course of 2020, businesses had to make adjustments to survive. For some, it was a matter of moving employees to remote work or pivoting to a new business strategy. For others, the effect of COVID-19 meant halting plans, shutting down, or laying off employees.  Manufacturers were unable to move products due to global supply chain challenges and small-to-medium businesses faced delayed payments. With states lifting mandates and vaccines in arms, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel. 

Are your client payments still affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?