Business tips - making it easier to get paid

Making sure you get paid on time is crucial to your success. The process of making sales and generating revenue lies at the heart of any business model. But you can't manage your cash flow effectively, or raise any profits, if customers don't actually pay their invoices.

The easier you can make it for customers to pay you, the faster you'll see cash coming into the business. That’s good news for your financial position, your ability to cover your operational costs, and your capacity to fund the growth and expansion of your business.

So, how do you speed up those payments and make sure you get paid on time?

Set out clear payment terms

Your payment terms are the starting point for healthy payment times. These terms set out when you expect to be paid and form a legally binding contract with the customer. You may expect immediate payment on receipt of the invoice or on the 20th of the month following. You might set out a specific number of days that the customer has to pay the invoice (generally 30, 60, 90 or 120 days, depending on your industry). This allows your customers to pay for goods and services at a later, pre-agreed date – helping them to spread the cost.

Your payment terms should also include details of any late payment penalties. If the customer doesn’t meet your agreed payment times, most businesses will add a 1% to 1.5% monthly late payment fee to the outstanding bill. This acts as a great incentive for the customer to pay the bill, before the penalty fees start mounting up.

Invoice customers as soon as you can

In a business-to-consumer (B2C) environment, your customers will generally pay for their goods and services immediately. But when you’re working in the business-to-business (B2B) world, you’ll need to send your customer an invoice, asking for the money to be paid.

Customers can’t settle their bill until you send them an invoice. So, it’s vital to send out the invoice as quickly as possible, so you can minimise the gap between doing the work and being paid for the work. In some industries, the project will be broken down into multiple invoices, paid across a period of time. This makes it easier for the customer to pay and means you (as the supplier) don’t have to complete the project before receiving the money you’re owed.

Ideally, you want your invoices to go out as early as possible. This allows your payment terms to kick in and makes it easier to predict when cash will be coming into the business.

Be organised about your payment admin

Getting paid is a process – and the more organised you make the process, the quicker the payment will be received. When you send out the invoice, make sure you send it to all the relevant people in the payment chain. This will usually be:

Your main contact at the client – the person who you usually deal with.
The person who will approve the bill – the person who will green-light the payment.
The finance team – the person (or people) who will actually action the payment.

It’s also a good idea to quote any relevant purchase order (PO) numbers that the customer has raised, and to give a very clear description of the work done, or the goods purchased.

Embrace the available payment technology

Invoices used to be hard-copy printed bills, but in the digital age the vast majority of companies will send out e-invoices. Electronic invoices are easy to raise and can be emailed out instantly. Doing everything in the digital realm also makes it easier to keep records and keep track of payments.

Many e-invoice systems will also let you add a variety of different payment options for the customer. You could just include your bank details and wait for the customer to make a direct payment to your account, but you can also include payment buttons in the e-invoice that give customers the option to pay via digital payment gateways.

Offering more ways to pay makes the whole process more convenient for your customers – and will generally result in faster payment times as a result.

If you want to speed up your payment times and boost your cash flow, please do get in touch. We can help you streamline your payment processes and embrace the latest in payment technology.

< Older Post

Newer Post >

Tax planning helps you do more with your money

8 July 2026

Tax may be boring, but smart use of tax planning is a superb way to help your business do more with your money.

Is your business structure still the right fit?

3 July 2026

Your business structure plays an important role in how your business operates, how profits are taxed, how decisions are made, and how much personal risk you may be exposed to. For many businesses, the structure chosen at the start made sense at the time. But as your business grows or changes, it is worth asking whether that structure still supports where you are now - and where you are heading. The three most common business structures are sole trader, partnership and company. Each has different cost, administration, tax and liability considerations. Operating as a sole trader A sole trader structure is where one person owns and runs the business. The main benefit is simplicity. It is easy to set up, and from a tax perspective, business profits or losses are included in your personal tax return. Being a sole trader also does not prevent you from employing staff if your business grows. However, this structure can carry more personal risk. Sole traders generally have unlimited liability, which means if the business runs into financial or legal trouble, you may be personally liable. This makes the right insurance and risk management especially important. A sole trader structure can also become limiting if you want to bring in other owners, attract investment, or prepare the business for sale. Working within a partnership A partnership is where two or more people go into business together. Partnerships can be a practical way to combine skills, knowledge, resources and capital. They are usually relatively simple to set up and manage, although it is important to have a clear partnership agreement in place. This should document how profits are shared, how decisions are made, and what happens if one partner wants to leave or circumstances change. From a tax perspective, partnership profits are generally not taxed at the partnership level. Instead, each partner includes their share of the profits in their own personal tax return. The main risk is that partnerships do not offer the same legal separation as a company. In many cases, partners may be liable for partnership debts jointly and severally. There are ways to reduce this risk, such as using a limited partnership, but this should be considered carefully with the right professional advice. Operating as a company A company is a separate legal entity from its owners, who are known as shareholders. One of the key advantages of a company structure is limited liability. In many cases, a shareholder’s financial liability is limited to the amount they have invested in the business. A company structure can also be useful if you want to bring in investors, introduce new shareholders, or sell the business in future. However, companies usually come with higher administration and compliance requirements than a sole trader or simple partnership structure. This includes annual accounts, tax returns, Companies Office requirements and other record-keeping obligations. It is also important to remember that company funds belong to the company, not personally to the directors or shareholders. Money is usually taken out through salary, dividends, drawings or director loan accounts, depending on the circumstances. Getting this right is important from both a tax and cashflow perspective. When should you review your structure? It may be worth reviewing your business structure if: your business has grown or become more complex you have taken on staff, debt, assets or higher levels of risk you are considering bringing in another owner or investor you are planning to sell, exit or pass on the business your personal circumstances have changed you are unsure whether your current structure is still tax-effective or appropriate Is your current structure still working for you? There is no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to business structure. The right option depends on your business, your goals, your risk profile and your future plans. If you are unsure whether your current structure is still the best fit, talk to our team. We can help you understand the pros and cons of each option and work with your legal adviser where needed to make sure your structure supports your business now and into the future.

Getting the balance right with AI: Some dos and don'ts

29 June 2026

We’re experiencing an ‘AI revolution’. But do you know where AI can truly benefit your small business? We cover some key dos and don’ts of using AI in your business.