Bookkeeping is a funny thing. Business owners either know how to do bookkeeping and are comfortable making the day-to-day entries - or they do not know how to do bookkeeping and don't want to have anything to do with it.
The good news is that bookkeeping is one of the easiest jobs to delegate. If you are not comfortable doing the bookkeeping, hire a Virtual Assistant and let them do most of the work. A Virtual Assistant can probably do most of the bookkeeping work in 4 or 5 hours a week. That estimate depends on the bookkeeping services that you want them to do.
One of the benefits of a Bookkeeping Virtual Assistant is to have the Virtual Assistant Collect Past Due Invoices.
This is an interested prospect with some hidden benefits.
When you have a small business, perhaps even a startup, when you sell your product and / or services, you bond with your customers. As the founder of the company, you probably have a gregarious, outgoing personality. People like you and trust you. As a result, they buy from you. Your bond with the customer grows even deeper during the installation and continues to grow ever deeper as you work with the customer to ensure they understand and fully appreciate your product and service so that they will provide a glowing testimonial.
Then day comes when you give your customer - your friend - an invoice. And it doesn't get paid. Now what do we do?
You don't want to risk your relationship with your customer. But you also need the money.
Depending on your relationship with the customer, you can call them and ask for the money. But you run the very real risk of damaging your relationship with that customer. And you are the boss. So there is no one else that the customer can turn to.
An easy way to handle the Past Due Invoices is to let the Virtual Assistant do the collection.
The Virtual Assistant can use all reasonable means - and maybe even some questionable means - in their effort to get the customer to pay the invoice. If the customer complains, they call you. You can say something like "I'm sorry that idiot treated you that way. It was totally uncalled for. You are one of our most valued customers. I'm going to have a talk with that goof. This better not happen again." As long as I have you on the phone, the payment for the work we did is past due. Is there a problem that I can help you resolve?" Is there a day when we can expect your payment?" "Would you like to setup a payment schedule?"
The Virtual Assistant is the "tough guy". You are always the "good guy"
It might be something to consider.