Our kids have now been back to school for a couple months now and they are beginning to get in a groove and hopefully, (I say, hopefully…) learn some valuable lessons not only in the books but also in some good life habits.

One of those lessons that your kids and maybe us adults too should be acquainted with is financial literacy. Yeah, your kids may be getting their fair share of math lessons but what are they going to do with that math knowledge as they get older? Hopefully they will use some of it to manage their finances.

As a collection agency, we see many people who were probably not given the proper knowledge about their finances at an early age. For whatever reason, they acquired some bad habits and fell into tough times and way behind in their financial obligations. And some legitimately have fallen on hard times.

It’s the people who have over time, developed bad habits with their money that concern us the most. But some great tools have come out recently and we want to bring them to your attention.

We’ve already told you about Ask Doctor Debt and we’ll continue to update you on that important resource but a great tool for kids is a USA Today supplement that came out a couple weeks ago. You can find it in the link below with a few other important tips to help educate youth on the very important subject of staying on top of their finances. There is no better time than when they still have a piggy bank so don’t wait. http://www.acainternational.org/reporters-back-to-school-financial-literacy-tips-for-parents-19815.aspx

Collection agencies all over see what happens when people lose sight of their finances and ignore good habits with their money. Don’t let your children fall into this category. Make sure you check out those tips.

I was asked to write this article that was recently published in the trade publication Banker & Tradesman in the Boston area. I thought I would share it with you here.

The title of this article may contradict everything you’re heard about collections and getting customers to pay on time but there is a way to keep your customers even after the collection process and it’s all in the way you structure your accounts receivables program from start to finish.

While collections might be a touchy subject in this economy, the fact is you still need to get paid for what you do. How you approach it, how flexible you are and how diplomatic your collection process is will determine how successful you are in getting paid.

Now you won’t be able to save every customer that falls behind or does not pay but by thinking just a little different in your approach to getting people to pay could improve your cash flow and keep those customers coming back even after the collection process.  And remember this golden rule of getting paid; the longer a bill goes unpaid, the harder it becomes to collect on.

State your payment terms upfront; Make sure your customers are fully aware of your payment terms in advance of service. You can do this verbally, in your lobby, on your contracts and of course on your invoices.

Invoice on a regular basis: This may sound very simple but that fact is, many do not invoice on a regular basis. There are two ways of doing this. Invoice at the time of service or invoice on a set day of the month such as the first of the month. Don’t wait until you have time. Make the time.

Customer service calls: Here comes the diplomacy part. Once an invoice goes unpaid, say at the 30-day mark, place a good old fashioned customer service call. Check in on the customer and find out if there was any issue with the service you provided. Then, bridge into the late payment and see what you can do to find out when they will pay. It’s a good idea to send a statement at day 30 as well.

More calls and a statement: Starting at day 45, make another call and at this point, the call should be about the late payment. The first sign of someone hesitating to pay is when they stop communicating so you need to keep the lines of communication open. Another statement should accompany your call. In seven days, make your third attempt at placing a call to find out if your customer intends on paying. If that goes unanswered then the intent of your customer may be becoming clear at that point.

Hire a reputable collection agency: If you still have not been paid at day 60, its time to bring in a third-party collection agency. It should be no surprise to the customer at this point they have been sent to a collection agency. Ask within your industry for a referral, ask your colleagues, and check their references. Make sure they have some experience collecting in your industry. And make sure they align with your goals. If you want to try and keep your customer, make sure you tell them that.

It also makes good business sense to have a relationship with a collection agency before it’s an urgent need. If you’re in an industry that sees regular late payers or defaults, you’ll want to have that system in place before it’s too late. A reputable collection agency will offer a whole host of services to fit your business including flat-fee collections that are much more affordable and by nature, diplomatic. And you can have a system already in place for when you need it.

One last tip. Don’t take it personally when people don’t pay you. To be in business means that you’ll have a certain amount of bad debt. It happens. As long as you have a system in place for dealing with it and act in a timely manner, you’ll know you did what you needed to deal with the problem.

We’ve just been notified that we have once again been named one of the best places to work in the collection industry. This marks four years in a row on this list. As we were founded in 2004, I think that’s saying a lot. It’s a program created by industry publication insideARM.com and The Best Companies Group.

I’m one of four partners and there were several things we knew right from the start that we wanted to incorporate into this collection agency when we founded it. One main goal was to create a workplace that employees could thrive in, build a career, have fun and make a decent living while being proud of what they do. We also knew that by providing great customer service and giving our team the tools and technology to do so, it would make both customers and employees happy.

For us, it was a no-brainer…With these values in mind, we’ve grown our company in a time when many are not growing, we’ve retained many team members, some with us from the very beginning, and we have been recognized over and over again for our charitable work and of course how we treat our team.  Just look at the video from our last Employee Week:

We’re in a tough and sometimes stressful industry and we’ve decided that we just need to liven and lighten things up around here from time to time. Yeah, we all get health benefits, paid vacations, bonuses and other traditional benefits but it’s the environment and culture we have cultivated here that sets us apart and keeps our team happy, growing and helping both businesses and individuals resolve debt in a time that many are struggling.

If you want to learn more about what we needed to do to even qualify for this recognition, check out the Best Places website at: http://www.insidearm.com/features/best-places-to-work/

I was recently elected to the ACA International Education Foundation Board. While I’m thrilled at the opportunity to network with others in the collection industry from around the country, this is a real opportunity to make a more significant impact on individuals and families struggling with the issue of debt.

The foundation spearheads many important programs but one in particular is Ask Doctor Debt. The website is an important tool for people in getting help and assistance with issues surrounding debt and mounting bills in front of them. Not only can you hit their website but they also have a Facebook page that you can “like” so you get up to date information on a regular basis.

Ask Doctor Debt has a ton of info on it and they also feature a question of the day. It has the most commonly asked questions regarding debt and tools to help plan your finances and a section to file a complaint if need be.

You would think as a collection agency we would not promote such things but nothing could be further from the truth. We want people to understand how to manage their finances and we really want people to understand the law and their rights regarding these issues.

We also want everyone to understand their responsibilities when contacted by collection agencies because when everyone understands these, debt gets resolved, not just paid. Relationships are mended and hopefully, business continues.

Yes, I’m officially on the board and that gives me an opportunity to create even more awareness about this great tool that everyone should use and visit.

Here’s the website; www.askdoctordebt.com

I was recently elected to the ACA International Education Foundation Board. While I’m thrilled at the opportunity to network with others in the collection industry from around the country, this is a real opportunity to make a more significant impact on individuals and families struggling with the issue of debt.

The foundation spearheads many important programs but one in particular is Ask Doctor Debt. The website is an important tool for people in getting help and assistance with issues surrounding debt and mounting bills in front of them. Not only can you hit their website but they also have a Facebook page that you can “like” so you get up to date information on a regular basis.

Ask Doctor Debt has a ton of info on it and they also feature a question of the day. It has the most commonly asked questions regarding debt and tools to help plan your finances and a section to file a complaint if need be.

You would think as a collection agency we would not promote such things but nothing could be further from the truth. We want people to understand how to manage their finances and we really want people to understand the law and their rights regarding these issues.

We also want everyone to understand their responsibilities when contacted by collection agencies because when everyone understands these, debt gets resolved, not just paid. Relationships are mended and hopefully, business continues.

Yes, I’m officially on the board and that gives me an opportunity to create even more awareness about this great tool that everyone should use and visit.

Here’s the website; www.askdoctordebt.com

We work hard at this collection agency to give you valuable tips and advice on how to get paid and of course, paid on time. With timely blogs and videos and occasionally a blooper reel or two to lighten things up.

But I want to bring to your attention a new book that has just come out called “The Guide to Getting Paid.” It’s written by columnist and author Michelle Dunn who has written about credit and collection issues for a number of years.

In her book, Michele talks about the basics of credit management and how credit issues affect a business’s ability to conduct business. She goes over the ins and outs of collection on overdue bills including how to make calls, using email in your collections and how and when to make payment arrangements with your customers.

Michelle also writes about what to look for when searching for collection agencies to handle your more stubborn accounts.

 Finally, her book gives an overview of collection laws and regulations that anyone trying to collect on bad debt should be aware of. Those laws are not just for collection agencies and you should take time to have a basic knowledge of them.

The more you know about the ins and outs of collections the better prepared you’ll be both with internal and external procedures.

If you want to learn more, you can find her book on Amazon.com. The link is below.

http://www.amazon.com/Guide-Getting-Paid-Weed-out-Customers/dp/1118011619/

Ok all you landscaping pros and lawn care specialists. We know you’ve been busy this summer and yes, summer officially ended last week but have you kept up on your billing or have you let it fall behind?

We’ll be at The Green Industry and Equipment Expo in Louisville from October 27-29. APR will be at Booth # 9193. And this reminded me that this is the time of the year when we may get a short break from the lawns before we really ramp up the yard cleanups for the fall. A perfect time to get caught up on things, most importantly, getting paid.

If you have not caught up on your late-paying and non-paying customers, it’s time to get a handle on this quickly. Soon enough, you’ll be up to your neck in leaves and branches and before you know it, plowing snow, hopefully, making some serious cash.

But if you’re not getting paid for what you do, you’ll be up to your neck in receivables and not cash, leaving you challenged to make payroll and take care of other responsibilities.

A couple quick tips;

Take time now to go through your books. Get some help if you need it and make sure you’re getting paid but even more so, make sure you sent the bill. I recently talked to a business owner that found out his people failed to send out thousands of dollars in invoices. You won’t get paid if you don’t ask for the money…

Get caught up and stay caught up. Don’t just take your downtime to button up your accounting. Once you clean up your books, keep them that way. Find out what’s not working and who’s not billing and fix those issues now.

Get Help. If you need a third-party collection agency to help you with accounts that are not paying, find one now. Whether it’s American Profit Recovery or other collection agencies, find one that knows your industry and get them working for you.

More on how we help landscaping and lawn care pros is in the video below;