Make 2011 the Year YOU Control Your Cash Flow

Running a business is stressful enough without having to then keep chasing debts and money from those who are simply not paying up. But 2011 could be the year that you control your cash flow, not others.

Harley Grove offers a credit management service which is designed to work with you to keep you in control of your finances. There are two parts to the credit management service that Harley Grove offers, their Credit Control Service and their Debt Recovery Service, both designed to make sure you control your cash flow.

The Credit Control Service is a ‘prevention rather than cure’ service, where the aim is to start communications early and keep on top of payments before they can spiral out of control. This proactive approach means that, working under yours, the client’s, name, they make sure that any queries or discrepancies are dealt with early on, to ensure payment is sent to you on time. This helps to reduce both debt levels and stress, allowing you to focus on more important areas of the business.

The Debt Recovery Service is for those hard to get outstanding and late payments from debtors.

Again through clear communication, this service helps to distinguish between those who cannot and will not pay up. With the aim to recover as much debt as possible from your debtors, the Debt Recovery Service can help recover debts of on average 30% within the first 3-6 months.

With specialists on hand, Harley Grove can help you to control your cash flow. By keeping on top of potentially difficult payments, and those stubborn debts you can’t get returned, you can help to protect your business from future financial difficulties. So, let 2011 be the year to say goodbye to outstanding invoices and payments, and hello to a positive bank balance.

How Credit Control Software Could Save Your Business

Imagine 2 scenarios:

Same client, same relationship. Except that every time he calls you log into your credit control software that tells you exactly how much he owes you, how overdue it is and how good he is at paying you. You gently remind him you can't do any more work until the last invoice is settled, and he pays up happily, as it's only a small amount.

photo credit: alancleaver_2000

5 Reasons To Stay On Top Of Credit Control

There's an often used saying that goes:

“A sale is not a sale until it's paid for”

Yet that's something that lots of small businesses often forget – the sale isn't really a sale until the money is in the bank.

It's very easy to look at your list of sales and think you've done well, but if your credit control isn't up to scratch, then it's all just figures on a piece of paper.

Here are X reasons why you should keep on top of your credit control.

1. Suppliers
   If you're not collecting money from your buyers and customers on time, then the chances are you're paying your suppliers late too. This leads to bad relationships, loss of discounts and preferential treatment, and can in turn lead to suppliers refusing to deal with you. As you're finding out yourself, no-one likes to provide goods or services to a customer who doesn't pay up on time!

2. Staff
   Obviously your staff won't be happy if it's clearly difficult to pay them every month, and even less so if they're paid late, but it's not just their salary that can be affected by lax credit control. If you're not collecting money on time, and not paying suppliers on time, then the chances are it's your staff bearing the brunt of the money chasing phone calls, and that can be really bad for morale. Reducing production and conviviality among colleagues. Unhappy staff don't do a great job!

3. Reputation
   This works both ways – if you become known as someone with less than perfect credit control then your suppliers will take advantage of this and pay later and later – your reputation as a bit of a pushover could spread and before you know it you're spending more time chasing money than you are earning it. And of course, no-one wants to have the reputation of being a late payer, so you may find it hard to get new suppliers and preferential prices if it's widely known you can't pay on time.

4. Bank
   More and more these days the banks want to see a steady flow of money coming into a business account. If all of your chasing is done when your business bank account is into the overdraft, it's quite clear to your business bank manager that your credit control policies leave a lot to be desired. Also, if you want to apply for a loan or an overdraft / extension in the future, the bank will look at how your account has been run – if your credit control makes your business look unprofitable you're unlikely to get that loan.

5. Continuity
   Whether you're a one man band or a small team of people, having to stop and chase money or answer money chasing calls eats into your production time. If you have to stop work for a client because they haven't paid, it gets harder to pick it up again. If you have to tell a supplier to stop provision of a service or goods because you haven't paid, then when you do pay, it could be a while before they can start again. Continuity in business is important to keep the flow of a job going, don't let your bad credit control spoil it!

They say that cash is king and as we can see, good cash flow is essential to running a successful business – no cash, no business.

Giving your customers credit may be good for sales but do you have the right procedures to collect the cash?

Credit Hound® is designed to automate and streamline the processes involved in good credit management. Greater automation of your chasing procedures improves productivity and brings savings to key areas in your business.