Appreciation post: that late fee email template I found saved me $400

I had a customer in Austin who kept paying 2 weeks late every month for 6 months straight. I finally tried adding a friendly but firm late fee notice template at the bottom of my invoices instead of sending separate reminders. Has anyone else found one specific wording change that actually got slow payers to send money faster?

3 comments

3 Comments

gray31415d ago

That little "thanks for your business" note really does the trick? I tried adding "Just a heads up" before the late fee mention and saw a 30% drop in late payments within two months. Seems like people just need a soft warning rather than a demand.

fionamurphy15d ago

$400 is wild lol. I used to think those late fee templates sounded too harsh or like you were being a jerk about it, but I tried one that said "A 2% late fee will be added for payments received after the 10th" and it worked way better than I expected. The key for me was adding a little note like "Thanks for your business, this just helps me keep things running smoothly" at the end. Now I have 3 clients who used to drag payments out for weeks who suddenly pay within a day or two of getting the invoice.

jana50915d ago

Honestly I see it the OTHER way around, I think being TOO soft just makes clients think the late fee is optional or negotiable. I've had way better luck with a firm "Late payment fee applies after 10 days" with zero fluff.