Tips for Effective Dunning

Many businesses, especially those in the initial stages of establishment, suffer a lot due to debts owned by clients. An occasional phone call or email to ask the customers to settle the debts may not be of much significance. For the best practice in reaching out to your clients to pay up, you should consider the following factors. 

Be Friendly

The goal of dunning is not to threaten your clients to pay up, but instead, remind them that their bill is overdue. You still want to retain your customer, and as a result, you should portray professionalism in your communication. A friendly toned email or phone call will motivate the client to find means of settling the bills.

Offer Payment Options

Clients who have default their bills may be undergoing through a financial crisis, but they are willing to pay the much they can afford. You can offer a more-friendly payment plan that allows the customer to pay in instalments until full settlement of the bill. The client also needs to hear that there is still an opportunity to continue enjoying your services or products, as opposed to being requested to pay and then getting blocked from the businesses. Reaching the customer will help you in coming up with the most convenient date when payments can be made on a monthly basis, mainly if the customer does not rely on a payslip. The objective is to provide a solution to make it easier for your clients to pay their bills.

Timely Notification

As you try to stay away from the hustle of running after clients who have defaulted their payments, you might want to consider sending reminders before the due date. Some clients may forget their bill payment dates and end up budgeting their money for other uses. A reminder done ten days before due date will see a rise in timely bill payments by your clients