But, But ... When Highly Referred Doesn't Mean Highly Reliable
It's the end of the month and that means invoicing. It also means following up with invoices from past months that remain unpaid. Usually, this latter process is short and painless. This month, however, I'm about to get downright Screw You! nasty. One invoice is now over 60 days, the other is right at 30 days, and neither client is responding to my request for payment. The most frustrating aspect of this collection effort isn't the money per se (they were both small assignments). It's the fact that both of these clients came recommended to me by someone I knew: a long-time ongoing client and a fellow freelancer I've networked with over the years.
I have to admit, however, that I'm partially to blame for the predicament I now find myself in. Precisely because a familiar face (cyber face anyway) was associated with these two clients, I curteously offered to bill them in full upon completion instead of sticking to my rule that ALL new clients pay 50% up front.
Well, Screw you, non-paying referred clients! You just ruined it for the rest (the honest) of my referrals. No more Ms. Nice Irreverent Freelancer, which you're about to witness firsthand!
Labels: client tales
posted by Irreverent Freelancer @ 5:00 PM
9 comments
9 Comments:
Ooooo! You know, I'm thinking of the idea of service rendered - now pay me. That's fair. Why should my writing make someone money while I have none? Unless, of course, the client has a definitive reason they can't pay right away. I can be flexible, as long as I'm not taken advantage of.
Billing...ugh. One of my least favorite parts of freelancing. I once spent nearly three months chasing a client down for a $37 payment. It was more the principle of the thing than the money, but he finally coughed it up. Then he had the nerve to ask me to do another, larger project for him for the same pay. I didn't laugh in his face but I came very close.
You might explain the situation to the client who referred you, and ask them to help put the heat on the non-paying clients. I've been in a similar situation before, and that's how I finally got paid!
I now bill 50% for both NEW or RETURNING clients....no matter the case, that way no matter what happens on their end, I have 50% off of my money to pay bills.
we know I learned my lesson from a similar situation to which being flexible has cost me waaay more than the initial amount that was owed me. There's a fine line between being flexible and being taken advantage of. The bottom line in any business agreement is that the client knew the bill was coming, put that money aside and don't touch it - a service was purchased and payment is due. I wholeheartedly agree with no Ms. Nice Irreverent Freelancer!
Oh lord. I hate that. I've let this one happen once or twice, as well. It sucks when they bite the hand that feeds them.
Try this - try sending an email and following up with a quick call to make sure they received it. Oh, and send one in the mail, too. If you do everything but fly a banner over their parking lot at lunchtime, I'd say you've done more than enough and they can't claim they didn't know...
I usually remind the client that gee, I sure hope they are not using the work, you know, copyrights and all--because they do not own it!
Great advice all around. I was crazy busy this week, but you can be sure I'll be putting the pressure on these two deadbeats come next week!
Ah, the freelance pastures are certainly green and lush, but you have watch out for the poop lurking in the tall grass. ;-)
I used to charge 50% upfront for all new clients and then gauge my level of trust with the client for follow-up projects. No more; all clients, existing or new, pay 50% upfront and the remaining balance is due prior to launching the site (or delivering goods and/or printed materials). I lost more than $5,000 last year on a project through Guru.com and I simply cannot afford to lose any more time and money.
A tip for new freelancers: get 50% upfront, require the remainder prior to delivering ANYTHING, and if the project budget is under $1,000 ask for the full amount before doing any work. If you like you can offer a money-back guarantee (that is within reason, of course) and if the client moves on so much the better. Let someone else deal with these kinds of schmucko clients.
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