It’s always frustrating when people decide to pay for services on there own time. One productive way I’ve found to deal with this problem is to turn to a collection agency. Let the professionals handle it, and honestly I don’t have the time or stomach for these type of things. I’ve had success with Wheycor Capital Group. It was inexpensive 15-30% and they welcome freelancers or find a collection agency near you. You can find them at wheycor.com I highly recommend them.

It’s always frustrating when people decide to pay for services on there own time. One productive way I’ve found to deal with this problem is to turn to a collection agency. Let the professionals handle it, and honestly I don’t have the time or stomach for these type of things. I’ve had success with Wheycor Capital Group. It was inexpensive 15-30% and they welcome freelancers or find a collection agency near you. You can find them at wheycor.com I highly reccommend them.

Done.

When I take on a new client who has no payment history I ask for a 3-6 month upfront deposit. I hold that deposit and then either return it to them if the relationship is terminated or apply it to the next 3-6 months. I then bill them weekly by PayPal invoice. They pay me by e-check using PayPal but that takes up to a week to be deposited into my account and by then I have started to work another week without having been paid.

Since my terms are payable upon receipt or work doesn’t continue, those who pay by echeck (with the delay) can still have continuous work being done but I am protected by the deposit I hold if the weekly echeck does not clear.

My most popular option is PayPal payments using a credit card which is immediate into my bank account. I do pay for fees but that is a part of the convenience of being paid immediately. For these clients I take 50 percent up front at the beginning of the month and then 50 percent at completion at the end of the month. I do this for 3 months until a history is established of good payment.

Then I just go to weekly invoicing through PayPal. if they don’t pay me for the week, I don’t work the next week. I only had this problem one time. I sent several emails with a copy of my policy and mentioned that I would let my peers know about this issue on the internet. (I never said what I would state or if I would use their company name but that was enough to make them finally pay.) I never worked with them again.

It is important to have payment and late payment policies in place and in writing before starting any work. I state my policy during the client consultation, in my welcome packet and in my contract.

I bill weekly so that any unpaid problems are minimized. If they don’t pay one week of VA services, then it is better than losing 2 weeks or more.

Lots of good ideas here!

Thank you!

Janine Gregor
http://www.YourVirtualWizard.com
Virtual Assistant