Do you get paid on time by your clients or do you often have to wait for a long time? Many freelancers and agency owners struggle with payment issues and suffer financial troubles. Sometimes situations get worse. It’s heard that some clients stop responding after getting the final reviews updated and don’t pay at all.
But it can’t go so. As an agency owner or a full-time freelancer, you need to make sure you don’t miss any payment and get paid on time. Otherwise, you fail to afford and get into the financial troubles that would be a great challenge to overcome.
This guide will tell you how you can successfully get paid on time. Let’s dive right in.
5 Tips for Freelancers to Get Paid on Time
Know Clients Before You Commit
A client reaches out to you and asks you to collaborate. You are super excited and can’t wait to get started on their project. Never do so. When someone reaches out to you for the first time for your service or product he or she is called a lead, not a client or a customer.
You have to try to perceive his desire to purchase and financial capability. You can see reviews or looks for other persons or organizations that worked for the lead before and ask them about their experience. First, vet your leads then move forward.
Never Begin without Signing an Estimate
Signing a contract is a must to avoid hassles and get paid on time. Once you have vetted the lead and decided to work, it’s time to get things down in writing.
Create a proposal or an estimate describing scopes of work, deliverables, due date, prices, and terms & conditions. When everything is clearly documented in writing, dispute possibility is 0 %. Moreover, it shows your professionalism and builds your brand loyalty.
Be Punctual with Your Due Dates
In true words, don’t give your client a reason to slow down the payment. Be super serious about the due date of the project and let your client be punctual with the due date of your invoice.
Break down your scope of work and set a certain duration for every part of them. Track your performance and accomplish them on time. It will help you to carry out the entire project on time.
To get paid on time, on-time project submission is the most important thing. Keep your words and show professionalism and get paid on time.
Unfortunately, if you have any health issues or unavoidable urgencies, you can let your client know about your condition and ask for extending the project deadline.
Send Invoices Immediately Upon Completion
It’s needless to mention – the sooner you send your invoice, the more likely you get paid on time. Never procrastinate to send your invoice. Create a professional invoice and send him to your client just after you accomplish and submit the project finally.
In terms of project collaboration, You can ask your client to make your payment in milestones. It’s less stressful for both you and your client. You are giving and taking.
Set Up a Follow-Up Strategy (Automation is Key)
Sending invoices can’t always ensure getting paid on time. Sometimes your clients are too busy to keep everything on track. Your clients may forget or even overlook your invoices intentionally.
So you have to send reminders again and again after every three days or a week. It’s a bit tough to keep reminding your clients every week about your overdue invoices. There are many sophisticated ways you can automate it.
Propovoice is one of the best CRMs for billing & accounting and client relationship management. You can create professional estimates and invoices as well as activate automation in a few clicks to keep reminding your clients about your invoices. Try Propovoice to boost your sales and get paid on time.
