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You have many small business ideas to build your customer base and offering credit is one of them. But, can you afford to do it and will you be paid for what you have done or sold.  Those and many other questions come up when thinking about small business ideas.

If you have ever done a job and completed it to the satisfaction of your customer and not been paid for it you know this is the worse thing that can happen. Ity is something you willnever want to have happen again.

Always do a thorough credit check before extending any person or business credit. Before you give anyone credit you should make them complete a credit application, perform credit checks, and get at least two trade references. Most people and companies understand the need for this information and will gladly give it to you. Always remember that offering credit is a privilege and not a right, be firm on this fact.

You need to send an invoice out the day that you complete the service or send the goods. Always try to send a copy with the products and to the acounts payable department to make sure they have received it. Your shipping Bill Of Lading should have all the shipping information, product codes and should include a copy of the invoice.

Make sure that you get the name of the person who the account is payable through. If you have the company, fill out a credit application form than you should have the name of that person already. It is possible that you will speak to a number of people and get varying responses, but if you speak to the same person each time and keep notes of your conversations they will be accountable for the payment.

You should call and ask about the payment on the day that it is due. At this point there isn't a problem so there's no need to be aggresive. What you are doing is encouraging a slow payer to pay on time. The conversation can start with quality assurance questions such as, did they get the product on time, was the work done to your satisfaction or let them know the special steps you may have taken to assure they were satisfied. If all is well you can casually ask when you can expect payment. By making the conversation about them and their needs it will be easier to get what you need.

The final way to encourage a person to make a payment on time, or early, is to offer them a discount. You can offer a small but significant discount for early payment. It is important that you only offer this if you can afford to. You can place this offer on the original invoice and on any shipping papers. Let them know up front that they can save money by paying early.

Not being paid for your services is one of the worst things that can happen to a small business owner. Having it happen once can cause you to second guess all your small business ideas. Offering credit can be a good way for a small business to get orders for their goods or services, but only when done the right way. With the information in this article you should be able to safely offer credit to customers, knowing that you will be paid on time, if not early.

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Stephen Meyer is an experienced home based business owner who offers many legitimate home based business opportunties that can help any one succeed. To see his many legitimate home based business opportuntites and reviews please visit his Small Business ideas website at Small Business Ideas.