Originally published as Chapter 13, in the book titled The Real Business of Photography , Allworth Press, NY ISBN 158115-350-3

Failure to Comply
All too many photographers fail to find out how to invoice the client. In many cases the photographer sends an invoice with the finished work to the art director or editor only, when the client requires it to be sent to the accounts payable department. Do not assume the person receiving the work will pass your invoice on. Almost every company has a policy for receiving and handling invoices. Here are the things you need to know about invoicing any client.

• Who (person or persons) should the invoice be sent to?
• What department is (are) this person(s) in?
• Is the department at the same address as the purchasing party?
• How many copies of the invoice are required?
• What client reference(s) must appear on your invoices to identify the job?
• What is their payment cycle?
• Who should you contact, if the payment is late?

The last question above has a subliminal effect. It puts the client on alert that you are attentive to such details as getting paid on time.

No Invoice Sent
Yes, it happens. The photographer is a one-man shop and has to rush from one job to the other and maybe the next job is a two-week trip. Upon returning from the trip the photographer is faced with post-production work, new estimates, and sales work, and the other things in life that didn’t get done while he was away. Invoicing the earlier job slips through the cracks. The client can’t pay invoices before they are received. Once again, the subsequent system will solve this problem.

Collection Policy
A good businessperson has policies to govern his or her actions. The advantage of policies is that you do not have to make decisions about how to handle situations as they come up. You already have a policy for handling that situation. The most important policy your business can have is a collection policy. After all, getting paid is why you are in the business and what allows you to stay in business. You don’t want to be wondering what you should do when you have to collect money. Every day you waste in a collection process means that you are less likely to ever collect. The fact is that businesses that are having problems paying often get worse before they get better, if they get better. Proper and prompt collection practices are essential.

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(c) 2004 Richard Weisgrau [contact] [bio]