How to Get Paid Quickly on Every Project
If there’s one thing every freelancer absolutely hates, it’s waiting to get paid for your work.
There’s nothing worse than going weeks on end without a check and watching your bank account balance nosedive as the bills and expenses keep rolling in.
Many just accept this as part of the freelancing game. I know I used to. But then I came up with a technique for getting clients to pay me earlier. Now I regularly receive checks on time and sometimes I even get paid in full before the project is complete.
All I did was make an adjustment to the Fee Agreement (i.e. contract) that my clients sign. At the end of the agreement, just above the line that indicates where the client is to sign off, I inserted two check boxes, with this accompanying copy:
For your convenience, two methods of invoicing are available. Please choose your preferred option:
Option A: Invoice us in two installments. 50% of the total project fee is invoiced now. The remaining balance will be invoiced upon project completion or 30 days from project start date (whichever comes first) and is payable net 15 days. Work for this project begins following my receipt of this initial deposit check.
Option B: Invoice us once. 100% of the Total Project Fees amount is invoiced now, payable in 30 days.
The result? It works like a charm, and has sped up my receivables cycle tremendously. With two invoicing options, you give your clients a choice in the matter, yet, either option is great for your cash flow! A true win-win.
To my surprise, several clients choose Option B, which means you get to send an invoice for the entire project fee before you even begin. I suspect it’s because they prefer to not go to the trouble of preparing a check more than once.
I love “Option B” clients because it sometimes means your check will arrive before the project you’re working on is even complete!
Remember, just because some clients take a long time to process invoices, you shouldn’t have to be the one who suffers by waiting forever to get paid!
Instead, use this technique to get your invoice into their payables stream 15 to 30 days early, depending on how you’re currently invoicing, and start getting paid on time. You deserve it!
*Disclaimer: Contract language shown in articles and posts are for illustrative purposes and should not be interpreted as legal advice as the authors are not lawyers.
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Pete Savage is co-editor of The Wealthy Freelancer and host of the The Freelancer’s Friday Call-In Club, the world’s only FREE weekly teleseminar for freelancers. Membership is complimentary for subscribers to Pete’s free SAVAGE Marketing newsletter.
Ethan says:
July 22nd, 2008 at 9:11 am
Thank you Pete this is a very helpful tip, especially the part about giving clients the option. The wording in your contract language comes across as very friendly too, I will definitely be using it!
Steve Slaunwhite - Editor says:
July 22nd, 2008 at 10:35 am
Great article, Pete.
Another tip for getting paid quicker is to find out who the “Accounts Payable” contact is in the company. Getting friendly with that person can speed up payments considerably.
Steve Slaunwhite
Pete Savage, Editor says:
July 22nd, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Indeed Steve! Last year, at Christmas, I couriered a box of chocolates to my Accounts Payable contact at one of my biggest clients as a ‘thank you’ for helping me sort through the corporation’s ever-changing payables policies. I also sent a note of thanks to her supervisor. These little gestures resulted in a contact who is actually happy to go the extra mile for me if ever a payment is held up as it winds it way through their intricate payables system.
Michael Temple says:
July 22nd, 2008 at 7:51 pm
I have had good luck with the 50% down and the 50% upon completion or before if I am waiting for information from the client. However another trick I have used with equal effectiveness is to ask for 100% paid in advance, but the difference is I offer them a 10% discount if they pay in advance. With larger companies they are REQUIRED to take all discounts so they end up taking this choice because their account payable policy says they must take the option if offered. I get paid all in advance, minus the discount before I even start work, which is much better than waiting for money.
Dan Prender says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 2:24 am
I do editing freelance and charge as much as I can because this part of the work is so important and I am good at the job. Now I can use your techniques to get paid more quickly too? Great tips well presented;thanks.
Pete Savage, Editor says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 7:49 am
Great tip Michael. Offering a 10% reduction in return for getting paid up front is DEFINITELY worth it. Thanks for sharing that one. The more freelancers who adopt these kind of professional payment terms the better; it reinforces common practice that everyone - even beginners - can leverage.
Monica Ricci says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Dude. You’re a genius. I love this! I also do something to get people to pay up front. I offer a discount for volume. If they PRE-pay for three sessions or more with me and my team, they get ten percent off. It’s not a ton of cash to give up, but it does two things:
1. It improves my cash flow and
2. It invests the client in the process because they’ve already paid. They’re more willing to see it through quickly because of it.
~Monica
Steve Slaunwhite - Editor says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 5:40 pm
Pete, Monica & Michael,
I learned the “10% discount for payment in advance” technique several years ago in a book called Million Dollar Consulting. The first time I tried the technique, it worked. Frankly, I was surprised. These days, 20-30% of my clients pay me in advance.
Michael, one of my clients, a corporate marketing manager, also told me, “We’re REQUIRED to accept all discount offers from our vendors.” It’s not an uncommon policy.
Pete Savage, Editor says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 7:50 pm
Monica, thanks for your comments, and your #2 is a CRITICAL outcome that should not be overlooked… thank you for pointing it out! When a client has paid up front, you have their full attention! Background materials, feedback, and revisions all seems to flow to your way much faster once you’re holding the check (or have already cashed it!)
Alan Kravitz says:
July 24th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
GREAT advice, Pete. I will try this out. I also agree with the importance of getting friendly with people in accounts payable. I used to be shy about doing this; I didn’t want my clients to think I was “nosey.” But I’ve gotten over that fear, and I’ve realized that (a), clients don’t mind this at all and (b), that accounts payable person can be a great help in tracking down that occasional invoice that just doesn’t “land” where it’s supposed to.
Speaking of invoices, I must say I’ve had greater success mailing my invoices than with e-mailing them. Yes, it’s slower, but at least with old-fashioned mail, the client (or an assistant) opens it and it’s already in their hands. In my experience, that seems to make a difference. Now, I snail-mail all my clients - and belive it or not, I seem to get paid faster.
Pete Savage, Editor says:
July 24th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Alan - TERRIFIC tip! Who would have thought that mailing invoices would actually be FASTER! It just shows that when we think we’re making things “easier” we should ask ourselves: Easier for whom? Your way takes more effort on your part, but that effort makes it easier for the CLIENT, and when it comes to getting paid, this is a worthwhile trade-off! I never would have thought of this - thank you for sharing!
Ronnie Lebow says:
August 7th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Here’s a question.
If they pay you 100% up front, what do you do about ongoing creative changes, revisions etc.?
Do you stipulate (in an additional sentence or two) that these additional charges (if required) are not included and will be issued in a final invoice?
Just wondering.
Pete Savage, Editor says:
August 8th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Hi Ronnie,
Great question. Yes, your revisions policy should be clearly stated in your contract, pointing out, as you do in your post, that an additional invoice will be issued for any revisions not included in the quote. Or…
Some freelancers will include up to two rounds of revisions in the original quote, and might include wording along these lines in the contract… “Up to two rounds of revisions will be completed at no charge, provided the required revisions do not change the scope of the project as originally quoted. Any changes to the original project scope are subject to additional fees.”