Set up an automatic payment reminder

It’s easy to forget to follow up on outstanding invoices, especially when you’re out and about during the day, helping clients or preparing for new jobs. By setting up an automatic payment reminder, you no longer have to rely on your memory for that first follow-up.

The basic principle is simple: include a clear due date on every invoice. If payment hasn’t been made by then, send a friendly reminder with a link to pay straight away. If there’s no response, the accounts team or the business owner will be assigned a task to follow up personally.

How do you set up an automatic payment reminder?

Don’t start with a long series of stern messages. First, set up a single, clear initial step: a reminder as soon as the due date has passed. This is often exactly the nudge needed when an invoice has simply been overlooked amongst other matters.

Follow this sequence:

Create and send your invoice with a due date.
Set up a friendly payment reminder to be sent automatically after that date.
Set up a follow-up step if payment hasn’t yet been made, such as a second message or a task.
Stop the follow-up automatically as soon as payment is received.

In Klantly, invoices are automatically flagged for a reminder after the due date. You decide what happens next. This could be a second message, or a task for the person responsible for following up on the outstanding invoice. Visit the page on invoices and payment reminders to see how invoicing and follow-up work together.

Why do you need to set an invoice due date first?

Without a due date, nobody knows when it makes sense to follow up. The customer cannot see when you expect payment, and you have no fixed point in time at which a reminder should be sent.

You should therefore always set a due date on the invoice before sending it. The reminder can then only be triggered once that date has passed. This ensures you do not send a message whilst the agreed payment term is still running.

This also gives you peace of mind. You no longer need to go through a list every week to check which invoices have been outstanding for long enough. The due date determines the first point at which you should follow up.

What wording should you use for a payment reminder on an invoice?

The first payment reminder doesn’t need to sound threatening. Many late payments aren’t a deliberate refusal to pay, but rather an invoice that has been forgotten or, in the case of a business customer, is still going through an internal payment process.

Keep the message brief and factual, therefore. State that the due date has passed, which invoice is concerned and how the customer can pay. If there is a payment button on the invoice, the customer can pay straight away without having to enter any details.

A simple structure is:

a friendly salutation;
the invoice number and the outstanding amount;
a note stating that the due date has passed;
a clear payment option or link;
a way to get in touch if they have any questions.

Tailor the tone to suit your business and your customers. With email templates, you can customise automated messages yourself. Furthermore, sent messages remain in the customer’s communication log. This allows you to see later what was sent and when, and whether the message was delivered.

When should you pass an outstanding invoice on to the accounts department?

You automate reminders precisely because they must always be sent on time. However, a payment arrears that persists often requires human attention. Therefore, after your first reminder, set up a task for the accounts department or the business owner if payment is still outstanding.

Decide in advance who will take on this task. In a small business, this is often the owner. If you have an accounts department or back-office staff, it makes more sense for them to check first whether something has gone wrong: an incorrect email address, a query about the invoice, or a payment that still needs to be processed.

A practical arrangement could be: the first reminder is sent automatically after the due date. If payment still hasn’t been received by then, the person responsible is assigned a task to ring the customer or send a personal message. With tasks linked to customers and invoices, this follow-up remains visible and doesn’t get lost amongst loose notes.

Practical example: from a forgotten invoice to a standard follow-up process

Suppose your installation company completes a maintenance job on a Thursday. The engineer records the hours worked and materials used on the work order. Back at the office, the work order is checked and converted into an invoice, with a clear due date.

The customer does not pay on time. As soon as the due date has passed, they automatically receive a friendly payment reminder with a link to pay. The customer then settles the invoice and the reminder sequence stops automatically.

If payment is still not received after that first reminder, a task is assigned to the accounts department. The staff member opens the customer file and immediately sees the invoice, the due date and the reminder previously sent. A brief, personal phone call can then clarify whether the customer hasn’t received the invoice, has a query or will pay later.

This is the difference between chasing up outstanding invoices and having a set procedure in place. The standard step happens without you even having to think about it. Your time is only spent on the invoices where there’s actually an issue.

Where does the automation of payment reminders end?

An automated reminder is not a debt collection process. It is a timely and friendly message. A customer who is unable or unwilling to pay will not be resolved by sending three more automated emails.

Personal contact remains necessary when an invoice remains outstanding after the reminder, when the customer has specific queries, or when a payment arrangement is required. You also decide for yourself which next step suits your business. The system can send a reminder and set up a task, but you decide what to do next.

If you want to invoice more quickly, it helps to record the job details straight away. In Klantly, a completed work order can be turned into a draft invoice at the click of a button, so that hours and materials do not need to be re-entered later. This reduces the likelihood of invoices being sent out late in the first place.

Setting up an automatic payment reminder starts with a simple, fixed routine. Would you like to find out, with no obligation, how Klantly can help you with invoices, reminders and follow-ups? Get started for free

Set up automatic payment reminders for outstanding invoices