Standard Payment Terms + A Weekly Collections Routine | Our super blog

📌 Summary

Outcome: Faster cash collection, fewer surprises, less awkward chasing.
Time: 45–60 minutes setup, then 20 minutes/week.
Owner: Finance/Admin owner (or Founder) + Sales for escalations.
Steps: Standardize terms → invoice immediately → set a weekly AR review → follow a simple reminder ladder → escalate consistently.
Metrics: Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), % invoices paid on time, overdue balance.

🎯 What you’ll achieve (in 2 weeks)

Customers know what to expect (terms stop being negotiated deal-by-deal).
You get paid faster because invoicing and follow-ups are consistent.
Overdue invoices stop “hiding” until they become a crisis.

⏱️ Time & effort

Setup: 45–60 minutes
Ongoing: 20 minutes/week (more if you have many invoices)
Owner: Finance/Admin owner (or Founder)
Dependencies: A way to send invoices and track paid/unpaid (Super, accounting tool, or spreadsheet)

🚦 When to use this (signals)

Use this quick win if:

Invoicing timing depends on memory (“we’ll send it later”).
Payment terms vary widely and feel improvised.
You don’t have a weekly view of what’s overdue and by how much.
Cash flow surprises happen even when revenue looks “good.”

🧩 Step-by-step (follow in order)

Step 1) Choose your standard terms (pick 1 default + 1 exception)

Keep it simple. Examples:

Default: Net 7 / Net 14 (or pay upfront for smaller plans)
Exception: Net 30 only for specific customer types you explicitly choose

Rule: you can make exceptions, but they must be intentional and visible.

Step 2) Put terms in writing (every time)

Terms must appear in:

Proposal / order form (if you have one)
Invoice
Email confirmation (“Terms: Net 14 from invoice date”)

This avoids “I didn’t know” conversations later.

Step 3) Invoice immediately (define “immediately”)

Pick the rule your team can follow:

Subscriptions: invoice on contract signature (or automatically on the billing date)
Services / one-offs: invoice the same day delivery is confirmed
Milestones: invoice within 24 hours of milestone acceptance

The biggest collection issue is often late invoicing, not late paying.

Step 4) Create a simple Accounts Receivable (AR) view

You only need these columns:

Customer
Invoice #
Amount
Invoice date
Due date
Status (Open / Paid / Disputed)
Days overdue
Owner (who follows up)
Notes (last touch)

Step 5) Run a weekly collections routine (20 minutes)

Same day every week (e.g., Monday 9:30am):

Sort by days overdue
Identify the top 10 overdue by amount or risk
Send reminders (see ladder below)
Mark next action + date
Flag anything needing Sales/Founder escalation

Consistency beats intensity.

Step 6) Use a reminder ladder (polite, predictable)

Keep it boring and professional:

3 days before due: friendly reminder + invoice attached
On due date: “Just a heads up—due today”
7 days overdue: firmer reminder + ask for payment date
14 days overdue: escalate to decision-maker + pause/hold policy if applicable
21+ days overdue: final notice + stop service (if contract allows) or formal collection steps

You’re not “being mean.” You’re running a system.

Step 7) Decide your escalation and pause policy (only if needed)

Define one clear rule:

When do you involve Sales/Founder? (e.g., >€X or >14 days overdue)
When do you pause service? (e.g., >21 days overdue and no plan)
When do you write off? (rare early stage, but define who decides)

✅ Done Definition (DoD)

You’re “done” when:

You have a default payment term + one exception rule
Terms appear in proposals and invoices
Invoices go out immediately based on a defined rule
You have one AR view with due date + status + owner
A weekly collections review is scheduled and run
A reminder ladder + escalation rule exists

⚠️ Common mistakes (avoid these)

Mistake: Negotiating terms on every deal → Do this instead: one default, one exception.
Mistake: Invoicing late → Do this instead: invoice within 24 hours of the trigger event.
Mistake: Reminders depend on mood → Do this instead: weekly routine + ladder.
Mistake: Sales promises “we’ll figure it out later” → Do this instead: require terms before “Won.”

📈 How to know it’s working (in 2 weeks)

Process metric: 100% of invoices have clear due dates and owners
Speed metric: fewer invoices become 14+ days overdue
Outcome proxy: overdue balance decreases week over week (even if slowly)

❓ FAQ

What if customers demand Net 30 (or Net 60)?

Decide in advance who qualifies for exceptions. If you accept Net 30, balance it with a higher price, partial upfront, or annual prepay options.

What if we’re subscription-based—should we do prepaid?

If you can, yes. Annual upfront (with a discount) is often the cleanest cash-flow improvement.

What if an invoice is “disputed”?

Mark it as Disputed, assign an owner, and set a due date for resolution. Disputes should not sit in the same bucket as “Open.”

Should Sales be involved in collections?

Only on escalations. Make Finance/Admin the default owner; involve Sales when relationship or negotiation is required.

🔗 Related quick wins

Want this to run automatically?

You can implement this with any tools. If you’re using Super, you can standardize payment terms, automate invoicing triggers, and run a weekly collections view with reminders in one place.