- Thread starter Mr Fro
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Paul G
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My mate has a good saying.
"If I didn't need to get payed I wouldn't work. I can sit indoors and watch daytime TV and earn nothing."
Anyway, what's with the 30 days? If I walk out of Tesco's with the weeks shopping and say, "Pay you in 30 days"
they call the police.
Paul G
"If I didn't need to get payed I wouldn't work. I can sit indoors and watch daytime TV and earn nothing."
Anyway, what's with the 30 days? If I walk out of Tesco's with the weeks shopping and say, "Pay you in 30 days"
they call the police.
Paul G
MattF
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Personally, I'd say up your prices. If you're having to work yourself into the ground and then chase up payment, get rid of the chaff straight off the bat and aim for the better class of customer by raising your prices. You'll possibly cut your workload slightly and not see any difference in income for it. Asking for a basic upfront payment may be another option.
thats what does happen though if you pay by credit card (not the police part)
NickyEng
Brown belt in Origami
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Yes mate doing both things.
I have enough boat customers again (alot chucked boating in height of recession) to grade my customers.to grade them 1 to 5 by initial chat
Aim for 4 &5 for main customer Base. Consider 3 in slack times and dont touch 1 and 2 since I will usually end up losing with those customers anyway.
daleyd
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I've never been self employed but I sympathise with customers blaming you for everything that goes wrong.
The amount of times I've heard ....."since you were here 3 months ago for *insert unrelated job here* now this *totally unrelated problem* is happening ..."
these mobile card machenes are brilliant 
get one of them stuff a card machene under there nose you'll soon know if they are going to pay. some of the small stuff they want to be paying upfrount.
i think the rich non comerical customers i used to have cost me more than i ever earnt, now i just tell them i'm to busy ( at the politest ) when there up **** creek a good trick a good trick is to charge them upfrount and put a late payment surcharge on the ticket that really ****** them off
Mod: Edited for language
get one of them
stuff a card machene under there nose you'll soon know if they are going to pay. some of the small stuff they want to be paying upfrount.i think the rich non comerical customers i used to have cost me more than i ever earnt, now i just tell them i'm to busy ( at the politest ) when there up **** creek a good trick a good trick is to charge them upfrount and put a late payment surcharge on the ticket that really ****** them off
Mod: Edited for language
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NickyEng
Brown belt in Origami
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I think it w
I have made my bed I need to lie in it tho. Like dunk said on earlier post you just need to plod on because the other option is to go back and work for someone. I have been on my own for 8 years so that would be hard. I am not gonna be good with some guy shouting orders at me. Like most Scottish engineers / welders I tend to flash up easy so probably fired or jailed if he was shouting the odds
I know Dale it is a pain and honestly alot of leisure boatowners are exceptionally bad.I've never been self employed but I sympathise with customers blaming you for everything that goes wrong.
The amount of times I've heard ....."since you were here 3 months ago for *insert unrelated job here* now this *totally unrelated problem* is happening ..."
I have made my bed I need to lie in it tho. Like dunk said on earlier post you just need to plod on because the other option is to go back and work for someone. I have been on my own for 8 years so that would be hard. I am not gonna be good with some guy shouting orders at me. Like most Scottish engineers / welders I tend to flash up easy so probably fired or jailed if he was shouting the odds
daleyd
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An angry Scotsman? Surely not !
I do hope everyone here who is doing this for a living is aware of the Late Payment legislation? Statutory fees that apply to every late payment (so you could go back on some customers who have paid badly in the past and invoice them for the lot in one big hit).
As for domestic work - well, as has already been said - get a mobile terminal and get some payment upfront before work starts. Gives you an idea of their credit worthiness if they refuse.
As for domestic work - well, as has already been said - get a mobile terminal and get some payment upfront before work starts. Gives you an idea of their credit worthiness if they refuse.
not honestly aware of that but the problem i can see untill you have one over them you'll just get told to feck off. the only way ive ever managed to get money off those who choose not to pay because they think they don't have to is to take advantage of there desaters.
tho if i chould bill them for every late payment ever that chould be intresting
tho if i chould bill them for every late payment ever that chould be intresting
KemppiFrog
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Majority of my customers are private individuals and pay promptly on completion, including the boat owners. Used to design odd stuff for a biggish landscaping co. Buildings, Gazebos, bridges, etc. usually one offs, and oversee the construction. They were usually late payers, so I walk into the MDs office one day and pointed out that I got things out quickly and kept their customers happy, so why not do the same for me? It worked. Been self employed since I was 22 and it has been tricky sometimes, but worth it. No retirement in sight tho
.
KF
.KF
Wendelspanswick
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I turned up on a site the other day, I signed in at reception and had just wandered over to the Comms room when the receptionist came rushing over and said I don't know what you've done but the whole network has just crashed.I've never been self employed but I sympathise with customers blaming you for everything that goes wrong.
The amount of times I've heard ....."since you were here 3 months ago for *insert unrelated job here* now this *totally unrelated problem* is happening ..."
I replied sarcastically that the network must be wired off the kettle in the kitchen then because all I had done so far was make a cup of tea!
Mr Fro
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I'm clearly not the only one then!
This is a good first lesson for me and a hoof in my naive nuts so to speak.
For me, it's not a question of choice as most companies in the pharmaceutical industry use the same intermediary so I'm pretty much stuck with them unless I want to agree to longer payment terms.
I think I'll be adjusting my future pricing to allow for "early" payment. ;-)
This is a good first lesson for me and a hoof in my naive nuts so to speak.
For me, it's not a question of choice as most companies in the pharmaceutical industry use the same intermediary so I'm pretty much stuck with them unless I want to agree to longer payment terms.
I think I'll be adjusting my future pricing to allow for "early" payment. ;-)
Kayos
Gone......
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Not mentioning names but I used to work for a very big, well known energy supplier fitting central heating, once got to a job, walked it with the customer and cracked on draining down and ripping out.
By lunch time I realised no gear had turned up, made a few calls and found out we were on stop as they had been delaying payment for goods supplied, then some bright spark decided to argue the cost and try get a discount!
Apparantly the paid the £1m-ish that day as they stood to loose so much more with all the jobs being delayed
Within a month we had a new main supplier......
Just shows big companies are all the same, they were trying it on with a national supplier
By lunch time I realised no gear had turned up, made a few calls and found out we were on stop as they had been delaying payment for goods supplied, then some bright spark decided to argue the cost and try get a discount!
Apparantly the paid the £1m-ish that day as they stood to loose so much more with all the jobs being delayed
Within a month we had a new main supplier......
Just shows big companies are all the same, they were trying it on with a national supplier
NickyEng
Brown belt in Origami
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Wish I had your boatowners then pal. The majority in my marina are the most demanding and selfish tight miserable people I have ever met.Majority of my customers are private individuals and pay promptly on completion, including the boat owners. Used to design odd stuff for a biggish landscaping co. Buildings, Gazebos, bridges, etc. usually one offs, and oversee the construction. They were usually late payers, so I walk into the MDs office one day and pointed out that I got things out quickly and kept their customers happy, so why not do the same for me? It worked. Been self employed since I was 22 and it has been tricky sometimes, but worth it. No retirement in sight tho
KF
Alot are struggling cos of the climate and some are living in spam Valley and can't afford the boat. The ones that can afford just don't want to spend and usually fight you on every penny and every other little thing.
The working man can't really afford a boat these days so the good customers I do have here are sorta middle class. The dreadful weather this year has not helped. Believe it or not alot will not spend on the boat till they know that the weather is gonna justify them using the boat. Otherwise it's just a resenting cost!
ahh yess i know the type of person,
boat needs loads of work but they leave it untill the nice weather comes so they know they can use it before starting work, by the time work is finished nice weather is all but gone and they don't want to pay as they havent played ? can be the same with cars.
same with cars, soem of the really really old classics it's a case of this can be done but it's going to take x months but they want it next week, usally it involves getting something unavalible cast or made
boat needs loads of work but they leave it untill the nice weather comes so they know they can use it before starting work, by the time work is finished nice weather is all but gone and they don't want to pay as they havent played ? can be the same with cars.
same with cars, soem of the really really old classics it's a case of this can be done but it's going to take x months but they want it next week, usally it involves getting something unavalible cast or made
KemppiFrog
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Years ago, I was responsible for a big company yacht as part of looking after all their stuff in Portugal. It used to come in for the off season and usually needed quite a bit done, so I was often in the Marina. One day a retired airline pilot knocked on the deck and asked if I could look at his engine. For six months it had been looked at by several different guys, but would start, only to stop a few seconds later. Injection serviced twice, bled innumerable times, head off and valves done. No difference. So I listened to it start... and stop, thinking I know these guys and they are not bad mechs. Heard a slight hiss after it stopped and disconnected the exhaust pipe on a whim(dry to the stern, then water injected at the top of the swan neck)Tried again and it ran fine, yep, the exhaust was blocked with carbon at the swan neck. The client look at me like I had grown wings and spluttered that he had been at this for six months and I had sussed it in five minutes. Well, word spread and I was beating them off with a boathook after that. Pure luck. All my clients down there were pretty well off and paid when asked.
The ones here are also all owners of sailing yachts and retired or Professional types. So far not had a bill questioned and payment on the spot.
Do you find a difference between the Mobo owners and the Yachties?
The ones here are also all owners of sailing yachts and retired or Professional types. So far not had a bill questioned and payment on the spot.
Do you find a difference between the Mobo owners and the Yachties?
