Last month, I mismanaged a few invoices and found myself hounding clients for payments way too late. Some even acted like they forgot about their overdue bills.
Now, I’m anxious about missing anything again. What methods do you use to ensure you always know who owes you money?
Been through this mess too many times. Here’s what actually works for me:
Send invoices on the same day every week. I do Fridays so it’s consistent.
Make a simple list with these details:
Check your bank account twice a week minimum. I do Mondays and Thursdays.
The key thing is having a routine you stick to. Once you miss checking for a week or two, everything falls apart fast.
Also, don’t wait more than 3 days past due to reach out. The longer you wait, the weirder it gets for everyone.
I learned this lesson the hard way too. My approach now is setting payment terms upfront and sticking to them.
When I send an invoice, I write the due date on my desk calendar. Not digital - the physical one right in front of me. Hard to ignore when it’s staring at you every day.
I also started requiring partial payment upfront for bigger jobs. Cuts down on the stress of chasing large amounts later.
One thing that helped was changing my invoice template to say “Payment due within 15 days” instead of “Net 30.” Shorter terms mean less time for clients to forget or put it off.
The biggest change was realizing that following up isn’t rude. Most clients just need a reminder. The ones who get defensive about it are usually the problem clients anyway.
Keeping it simple is key. A notebook can do the job. Just check it regularly to stay on top of payments.
I invoice weekly and check my bank account the next week to see what came in.
If anything is missing, I call them immediately. Most clients appreciate a quick reminder and tend to pay within a few days.
Use a basic spreadsheet to track invoice dates, amounts, due dates, and payment statuses. Update it weekly to reflect when you send invoices and mark them as paid upon receiving payment.
Set calendar alerts to remind yourself to follow up. I contact clients 7 days past due for a friendly nudge, then again 14 days later for a firm reminder. Staying on top of it keeps clients paying instead of waiting for overdue accounts.