That convo with a retired bookkeeper flipped my late fee stance

I used to be all about slapping late fees on any invoice past 30 days. Had a client last month who was 60 days out on $2,500 and I was ready to add 10%. Then my neighbor Carol, she ran a bookkeeping service for 40 years, told me she never once charged a late fee and had one client who always paid 90 days late but never missed. She said the fee just makes them avoid you longer. I argued back but she pointed out that chasing the fee is more work than chasing the payment, and that the guy always answered her calls because she didnt make him feel like a deadbeat. Tried it on this current guy, just sent a friendly reminder and offered to split the payment into two chunks. He paid the first half in 3 days. Still think late fees work for repeat offenders, but Im starting to think theyre a last resort not a first move. Anyone else ever drop the fee and get better results? What do you do with a client who is chronically slow but always pays?

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