Saturday, September 7, 2013

Roles Played By Billing Consultants

By Lila Berger


To effectively undertake billing process, there is a need to contact billing consultants. It largely depends on the agreements made between you and the customer. Varied forms of agreements might be involved in the undertaking the process. It might take other forms or a written contract between you and the client.

For example, a contract may be set up to pay an individual as he or she completes a given milestone. Such as completing one quarter of a project or submitting a draft report of a specific recommendation. Then you invoice your client upon the completion of each milestone.

However, if the work is done continually and bill your clients for the given number of hours or days that you work including the expenses (travel, photocopying). Then you collect the charges and bill them to your clients at the end of the agreed-upon billing period. This is usually done at the end of each month or calendar.

To ensure effective billing process, the following should be considered. While an individual may choose to invoice his or her client at the end of each milestone, considering front load your billing is essential. You should request for front payment than doing so at the end of the project.

This can be done by pushing for an advance payment to start the project or by simply making the first couple of payments to be higher than those that are due later in the project. Through doing this, you will be able to get financial head start and also minimizing the risk if a client may move into a later pay status during the course of the project. It will also cater for the project cost.

Often billing is essential. Often billing enables you to ensure frequent payments and cash flow. Even though standard consultants usually prefer monthly payments however, hourly or daily is preferred as it increases cash flow of individuals.

Immediate invoicing clients are effective. At the end of the billing cycle or on completion of the agreed milestone. Individual should invoice the client to ensure sooner consideration and payments.

Use email whenever possible. In the past invoices were snail mailed to the client, this used to take up to weeks to arrive. However, currently many clients welcome invoices sent via emails. This cuts delivery time from days to seconds as well as the cost. Significantly it is important to make email part of your business thereby encouraging the clients to do the same.

Offering a discount for prompt payments, this will help to motivate the clients to make earlier payments. You should offer small discounts such as less than one per cent to payments made within ten or twenty days. Offering discount will make you lose bit of the cash however, in the long run it positively increases your cash flow hence, making it worthwhile.

Additionally you should monitor the payments to be made by the customers closely. It is essential for billing consultants to keep an eye on the clients to pay their bills on time. If necessary they may make phone call to check the payment status and when necessary initiates the payments.




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