Jack Harper
09-03-2008, 11:32 AM
I've noticed several threads lately about billing, quoting and deposits so I thought I would throw out a practice I use that may be of some use for others. This concerns both the quoting and the subsequent billing and really only applies to term accounts i.e. those you give 30 days to pay.
When I quote a job that will be on terms, I quote for net 10 payment with an asterisk and footnote showing billing terms of net 10 and to add 4% for net 30. This allows me to show a lower quote. However, when I bill the account, I bill for the full 30 day amount and show terms of net 4/10/30. We all know that large companies (the ones we are offering these terms) will pay only when they are good and ready and rarely will pay early for the discount.
Of course this is really nothing new as many of the older readers will have memory of when it was very common to have net 2/10/30 terms for almost any bill.
At the end of the day, more often than not, it's another 4% to the bottom line.
When I quote a job that will be on terms, I quote for net 10 payment with an asterisk and footnote showing billing terms of net 10 and to add 4% for net 30. This allows me to show a lower quote. However, when I bill the account, I bill for the full 30 day amount and show terms of net 4/10/30. We all know that large companies (the ones we are offering these terms) will pay only when they are good and ready and rarely will pay early for the discount.
Of course this is really nothing new as many of the older readers will have memory of when it was very common to have net 2/10/30 terms for almost any bill.
At the end of the day, more often than not, it's another 4% to the bottom line.