It’s been a long while since I blogged, and I am hoping to get back to it this summer. I love to write, but sometimes life gets in the way.
You may have seen the news that our postal services may get disrupted next week. There is the possibility for either a strike or a lockout. This has the potential to cause serious issues with cash flow for small business owners. Be proactive with the following steps:
- Offer alternative payment options to cheques. I have started placing a sticker on all my invoices (mailed, emailed and hand delivered) advising client’s that in lieu of mailing a cheque, they can call/fax/email me with their visa or mastercard info or pay by email transfer. Don’t take credit cards yet, look at some of the inexpensive merchant service providers such as Square.
- Prepare those monthly invoices now and get them in the mail, or consider emailing invoices rather than mailing them.
- Get in the habit of delivering your invoice with the completed job. Frequently, clients will cut me a cheque when I deliver the job.
- If you use Canada Post to courier out items, you may have to use an alternative like FedEx, Purolator or UPS. Make sure to reflect these additional costs in your shipping fee.
- Personally deliver jobs. Gives you a chance to get facetime with your clients and allow discussion about additional services/items you could provide.
Hoping that this contract issue gets resolved before a strike or lockout occurs.