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By Robert Moskowitz
First, use your appointment scheduler or contact manager software to remind yourself of when to send each late-paying client the next in your series of collection letters. Try to "bunch" these dates so instead of sending one letter/invoice combination each day, you send 5 on Friday, or 20 at the end of each month.
Second, name your collection letters in series order (such as "collect1.txt", "collect2.txt", and so forth) and store them in one directory or folder that's easy to remember and find. Open a "log" file in your word processor, contact manager, or elsewhere to keep track of what letters you send, and when you send them. You can also record any responses you get from each customer. Most fax-modem software has an built-in logging feature that records what you send automatically.
Third, use your fax-modem software to automate as much more of the process as you can, such as storing the relevant customer names in a customized address/fax phonebook list, and using the software's built-in scheduling features to send the faxes at pre-set times without your conscious attention.
The twin requirements of effective collections (assuming you've already extended credit to someone who's too slow to pay) is first to catch the overdue invoice as early as possible, and then to maintain a steady drum-beat of notices that strike like clockwork and make it clear that paying what's owed will be easier and cheaper than delaying payment any further. Equipping your computer with a fax-modem gives you the power to accomplish both these requirements while taking far less time and trouble than collections probably drain from you right now.
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