The Client Letter
October 9, 2012
Sedona, Arizona
Sunny 52 Degrees
Let’s all say it together:
If you’re having trouble getting paid by your clients, it’s not their fault, it’s yours.
I won’t incriminate myself by telling you how long I DIDN’T get this, but I think it’s firmly embedded in my psyche now.
If you’re having money problems with clients, you need to fix it. And you CAN.
Now it shouldn’t come as a surprise to your clients that you are in business to get paid. We can talk about quality service and doing good work and all that, but that’s simply not the end goal.
The end goal is money. It’s not a secret… unless you treat it like one.
I don’t eat at fast food places like McDonald’s anymore, but they have this funny way of doing business that’s instructive here. They actually have the gaul to make you pay before you eat their food? The nerve.
Mickey D’s sure knows how to structure a deal!
You provide a wee bit more value to your clients than McDonalds no? And yet, tons of service providers have things setup so they don’t see a penny before the work is done.
I’m experimenting all the time with ways to structure payments from clients. Usually, it’s 100% of the fee upfront. Lately, I’ve been experimenting with 2 payments. (There’s a secret to doing this right if you actually want to GET the second payment. I reveal it in the new version of this.)
Getting paid upfront is where it’s at. And you know how you do it?
You say that’s what’s going to happen.
“My fees are due in full on commencement…” That always has a nice ring to it.