Summary
- Set clear fee expectations from the beginning.
- Send the clients your work product even if they won’t totally get it.
- Show your value in your time descriptions.
- Call the client before a big bill hits.
It is important to lay a good foundation for your client relationships in order to make billing and collecting fees smoother—and to help you avoid a big outstanding invoice and an intimidating conversation with a client coming between you and your year-end bonus.
If you’re looking for a New Year’s resolution, here’s a suggestion: Start having more productive conversations with your clients about your bills. As a late gift from me to you, below are five tips that will increase your chances of collecting your fees in full.
In this new year, while you’re eating healthier, saving more, taking more time for yourself, or whatever other resolutions you’re setting—one resolution that you should actually keep is to lay good foundations in your client relationships by having better fee conversations.