Starting in 2014 we have posted more than 250 original foundation engineering stories. To offer our readers some more variety our marketing team has decided to mix in some different kinds of topics that will hopefully benefit our readers. Let us know below by leaving a like if today’s post was interesting to you!

How to get paid on time – this is one of the most pressing issues facing all of us in the foundation industry. If your company policy is very strict, you will take on less business but will get paid reliably for the work done. If your policy is too lenient, you will be very busy, but you will be running after your money, and this may affect harmony between client and supplier. Below we will share our take on this trade-off, and we hope there will also be some value for you in our business experience!

When negotiating a cooperation agreement, it is important to communicate how expense and project cost are different. Spending more may end up costing less. Determine together in which area you and your client see the deal happening.

Anyone who has done business with ICE will know at which segment we are aiming, which is quite a typical position for foreign invested enterprises: fair and transparent. We aim to be technology leader, not cost leader. Striving for a market leadership position means that ICE is setting industry standards which includes commercial terms that are fair to both sides, sustainable price levels, and no false competition through inferior quality offerings.

This is so central to our business that it is part of our mission statement: Our mission is to introduce deep foundation methods that reduce environmental impact, increase working efficiency, and help our clients run a profitable enterprise by breaking the spiral of price competition. Our success is guaranteed by challenging the market to achieve these three goals with advanced technology and high reliability of ICE products.

Now that we have discussed product positioning, lets move on to part 2: getting paid. We find that all client-supplier interactions benefit from clear payment notifications and fixed time payment schedules. For our rental client we incentivize on-time payments with a future discount as part of our VIP rental discount program. Below you will find a full list of suggestions.

ICE top tips for you

● Be a good payer yourself, pay your suppliers according contract, return deposits and issue fapiao’s timely.

● Getting paid is not a favor, it follows from contractual obligations

● If you can, set your contracts up so clients pay for your services in advance.

● Include all bank and invoice data, fapiao category in the purchase contract. This will reduce time once the payment date has arrived.

● Be persistent, the most relentless payment chaser will be paid first, if only to stop the calls.

● Offer a product or service with unique benefits for which your client will gladly use their own cash flow to get work with .

● You can offer payment plans to break up the cost or agree to monthly payments that pre-pay for the coming month.

● The more you can get pre-payment, the more you can offset the risk of not getting paid or having delays in payment as the client understands that they need to pay for you to do the work.

● If this is new to you, don’t foist this on your existing clients, but instead roll it out as you bring in new clients.

●  Some customers occasionally pay a few days late but, while the excuses might wear thin, they always pay. In that case, it might be unwise to kick up a fuss. Ultimately, it comes down to your gut instinct.

● Once you have issued the invoice the customer now has the advantage. When this happens, you need to stay alert. Make a system that helps you track when your invoices  are due. Before the due date, find some reasons to stay in touch with the person who bought your goods or services. Don’t disappear because the people who get paid are often the uppermost in the payer’s mind.

● If your products or services are not a high priority or you customer simply cannot afford them, it may be time to lose that client.  You cannot be asked to work for free, at least not for long.

● Refuse new orders from overdue accounts. Do not accept orders from clients who are not paid up, and implement cash-on-delivery policies for chronically late payers.

● do not pay sales commissions or bonuses until payment is received. A sale is not a sale until the cash is received. Incentivize everyone in the company to make collections a priority.

● Focus on having a diverse customer base, a large and varied customer base means that a payment problem with one customer does not put the entire company at risk.

If you enjoyed this article, be sure to follow us! In this series we will be sharing on topics such as “How to get noticed: marketing for foundation companies”, “financing for foundations equipment” and “How to manage a construction team”.