The Guide to Getting Paid E-Book

Michelle Dunn

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 237

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

Give your business a successful credit and collections plan with this easy and clear guide Over 100,000 businesses have slow or non-paying customers. Yet very few actually have a workable plan for claiming the missing revenue that results. This book gives you a complete solution and tool set to ensure your business maximizes its collections while maintaining an effective, profitable credit plan. You'll discover how to set up an efficient in-house credit policy that not only lets you collect more debts, but also boost sales, increase cash flow, and grow profits. Step-by-step credit management instructions show you how to weed out bad-paying customers, add more good-paying customers, collect on past-due balances, avoid bad debt, and limit credit risk. * Contains all needed forms to set up and implement an effective credit policy * Author is a popular columnist for several newspapers and national magazines, and appears regularly in the media as a go-to authority on debt Get Paid enables you to decide what matters most to your business when it comes to billing, payment terms, pricing, cash flow, and more, then set up the systems to meet these goals and increase profitability.

Leseprobe

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Foreword

Preface

1: What Is Credit Management?

OBJECTIVES OF CREDIT MANAGEMENT

HOW CREDIT MANAGEMENT AFFECTS YOUR CUSTOMERS

ELEMENTS THAT AFFECT CREDIT MANAGEMENT

WHAT IS CREDIT RISK?

WAYS TO LIMIT YOUR CREDIT RISK

MANAGING CREDIT RISK

CHECKING PEOPLE’S CREDIT

WHAT TO AVOID WHEN EXTENDING CREDIT

UNDERSTANDING DEBT AND BAD DEBT

CREATING A CREDIT POLICY

ELEMENTS OF A CREDIT POLICY

CREDIT POLICY FOR ABC COMPANY

SKILLS AND RESOURCES NEEDED FOR SUCCESSFUL CREDIT MANAGEMENT

FOLLOWING FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS

WHY SHOULD YOU HAVE A CREDIT MANAGEMENT PLAN?

USING CREDIT MANAGEMENT TO IMPROVE COLLECTION PROCEDURES

ACTION STEPS FOR YOU TO TAKE TODAY

COMMON CREDIT MANAGEMENT MISTAKES AND HOW TO CORRECT THEM

DEALING WITH BAD CHECKS

TOP METHODS FOR IMPROVING COLLECTION PROCEDURES

CREATING AN EFFECTIVE CREDIT POLICY

REMEMBER

WHAT NOT TO DO

2: How Credit Affects Businesses

HOW A BUSINESS CAN OBTAIN CREDIT

THE IMPACT OF BAD CREDIT ON YOUR BUSINESS

WHY YOU SHOULD EXTEND CREDIT AND HOW TO DO IT

BILLING AND PAYMENT TERMS

INVOICING

LATE FEES AND INTEREST

DISCOUNTS

3: Effective Payment Arrangements

OBJECTIVES OF PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS

HOW PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS AFFECT YOUR BUSINESS

ELEMENTS THAT AFFECT PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS

WHEN TO SET UP PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS

HOW TO SET UP PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS

WHY TO OFFER PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS

DECIDING WHO NEEDS A PAYMENT PLAN

SKILLS AND RESOURCES NEEDED FOR SETTING UP REALISTIC PAYMENT PLANS

ELEMENTS OF A PAYMENT PLAN

WHY SHOULD YOU OFFER PAYMENT PLANS?

TRACKING PAYMENT PLANS

MISSED PAYMENTS AND HOW TO CORRECT THEM

TOP METHODS FOR IMPROVING PAYMENT PLANS

FOLLOWING UP

PAYMENT ARRANGEMENT CHECKLIST

4: Handling Customer Deductions

SENDING LETTERS TO PAST-DUE CUSTOMERS

SAMPLE COLLECTION LETTER

5: Debt Collection Calls

MAKING QUALITY COLLECTION CALLS

YOUR OPENING LINE

FOUR TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR PHONE DELIVERY

6: Using E-Mail in Collections

DIFFERENT TYPES OF E-MAIL

PRIVATE E-MAIL

SOCIAL NETWORK E-MAIL

USING E-MAIL TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS

WHAT YOU CAN DO

WHAT YOU CAN’T DO

OBTAINING CONSENT TO USE E-MAIL

LAWS PERTAINING TO E-MAIL

CAN-SPAM RULES

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

HACKING AND IDENTITY THEFT

SENDING INVOICES VIA E-MAIL

DO I NEED PERMISSION?

SENDING ATTACHMENTS

DO I NEED PERMISSION?

VERIFYING DELIVERY

CORRESPONDING THROUGH E-MAIL ABOUT PAST-DUE ACCOUNTS

SENDING BACKUP DOCUMENTATION THROUGH E-MAIL

PROOF OF DELIVERY

PROOF OF SALE OR ORDER

DUNNING NOTICES

FINAL NOTICE BEFORE FURTHER ACTION

7: Using Social Media in Collections

WHAT ARE ONLINE COLLECTION TECHNIQUES?

FINDING DEBTORS USING SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES

THINGS YOU CAN FIND ON SOCIAL NETWORKS THAT CAN HELP YOU AS A COLLECTOR

FACEBOOK

MYSPACE

TWITTER

SOCIAL MEDIA SUCCESS TIPS

8: Third Party Collection Services

HOW TO CHOOSE A COLLECTION AGENCY

WHEN YOU SHOULD USE A COLLECTION AGENCY

WORKING WITH A COLLECTION AGENCY

HOW COLLECTION AGENCIES GET PAID

9: Debt Collection Laws, Rules, and Regulations

FDCPA—THE FAIR DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES ACT

FCRA—THE FAIR CREDIT REPORTING ACT

WHAT LAWS ARE CHANGING AND HOW IT AFFECTS YOU

THE END DEBT COLLECTOR ABUSE ACT

THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION ACT

HOW FINANCIAL REFORM AFFECTS YOUR BUSINESS

BANKRUPTCY

DEATH

SKIPTRACING

AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT SKIPTRACING BY RON BROWN, A PROFESSIONAL SKIPTRACER AND THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOK MANHUNT

LOCATING AND TRACKING CUSTOMERS USING SOCIAL MEDIA

Conclusion

About the Author

Index

Copyright © 2011 by Michelle Dunn. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey. Published simultaneously in Canada.

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ISBN 978-1-118-01161-4 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-05848-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-05847-3 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-05846-6 (ebk)

This book is dedicated to my children, Nathan and Jonathan Linden. Special thanks to Kevin, Josh, Harry, and Ron.

Foreword

I was 12 years old in 1973 when my life was placed on a course that would prove to be both exciting and rewarding. My parents opened a collection agency in central Pennsylvania, and while my friends played in their backyards and later worked in local stores and amusement parks over summer vacations, I was emptying office trash cans, filing ledger cards, and stuffing mail in envelopes for the family business. My eyes were opened at an early age to the dynamics of credit, the importance of managing credit and collection processes, and the extent to which businesses can suffer enormous financial losses by failing to appreciate the need to manage the acquisition of new customers and the resulting payment for products and services.

Over the past 35 years, I have developed a career that’s included an active role as a collection agency owner, as a college professor, as a nationally recognized trainer in the credit and collection industry, and as president of ACA International, the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals. I continue to embrace the notion that proper education is the very foundation of business success. For that reason, I am delighted to recommend, The Guide to Getting Paid: Weed Out Bad Paying Customers, Collect on Past Due Balances, and Avoid Bad Debt, as an essential source for anyone planning a business venture, entering corporate life as a credit and collection professional, or having aspirations to own and manage a business enterprise in the future.

I have known and respected Michelle Dunn’s fine work throughout her extensive career in the industry as a business operator and author. She has made enormous inroads toward educating credit and collection industry professionals through her insightful publications, presentations at industry conferences and events, and one-on-one coaching of financial professionals. The Guide to Getting Paid is written from the perspective of an author who not only academically understands this industry’s dynamics, but who has also applied the recommended strategies to her own company as well as to countless others. There have been many articles and books written over the years on the subject of credit and collections. While many of these are useful, this publication differs in that it presents valuable knowledge in a concise and clear format that allows the reader to easily develop the repertoire of skills necessary for financial business success. From the onset of the book—which outlines exactly what credit management is—through the chapters on How Credit Affects Businesses, Effective Payment Arrangements, Using E-Mail and Social Media for Collections, Choosing a Third Party Debt Collection Firm, and finally, Debt Collection Laws, Rules, and Regulations, Michelle creates a wonderful foundation for success for the eager and willing student.

Read on and prepare to absorb the many dynamics and nuances of the credit and collection industry. Open your mind to the recommendations that this subject matter expert makes as you embark on a position or career in any business office where your skills will directly impact the enterprise’s financial success or failure. Congratulations on making the decision to join the hundreds of thousands of professionals that keep money flowing and bills current in today’s business landscape. Reading Michelle Dunn’s, The Guide to Getting Paid: Weed Out Bad Paying Customers, Collect on Past Due Balances, and Avoid Bad Debt is a surefire way to put your best foot forward for credit and collection success.

Harry A. Strausser IIIPresident, Remit Corporation and Interact Training & Development

* * * * *

Harry A. Strausser III, President, Remit Corporation, owns and manages Remit Corporation, a full-service third party debt collection firm in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. The firm specializes in medical receivables, commercial debt, and the purchase and management of accounts for debt buyers. Through the corporation’s subsidiary, Interact Training & Development, he presents many programs annually throughout the United States and abroad on credit, collection, communication, and motivation. He has served for more than 16 years as an adjunct professor of communication at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, where he has instructed in public speaking, interpersonal communication, and corporate communication. For more than 20 years he has maintained the status of Certified Trainer with ACA International Inc., the trade association of credit and collection professionals, during which he has presented hundreds of programs to industry professionals. He currently writes the Training Advisor column for Collection Advisor magazine, a widely read trade publication in the credit and collection industry. When not traveling to speaking events he resides in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania.

Preface

I am writing this book because while most business owners have a business plan and even a marketing plan, very few have a credit plan. It should come as no surprise that cash is a company’s biggest asset; therefore, failing to have a plan in place to protect that asset is one of the biggest mistakes businesses and entrepreneurs make. This book will help you understand what credit management and credit policies are, the objectives of a credit policy, and how it affects your business and customers. You will learn what affects your business’s cash flow and how to manage it, and be able to write your own credit policy for your business and improve your bottom line using credit management.