The last toast is over. The invoice still needs chasing.
The venue is cleared, the couple has left and you are checking the final supplier costs. One client invoice remains unpaid. You could write another reminder yourself, or ask the accounts mate to prepare a draft for you to review.
The awkward email is part of the job
The event has a natural finish line. The day runs smoothly, everyone gets where they need to be and the last supplier leaves. Then the admin carries on. An unpaid balance can linger while you turn to the next enquiry and event.
The reminder itself takes a few minutes. It is the checking, timing and wording around it that take attention. Leave it too long and the money stays tied up. Follow up too firmly and you may worry about the effect on the client relationship.
Government research found that 68% of surveyed businesses with business customers usually pursue late invoices informally, while 27% pursue them formally. Among businesses that avoid formal pursuit, 33% cited protecting customer relationships, according to the Department for Business and Trade’s late payments research.
Following up takes time
Late payment is common. In the same government research, 49% of small businesses said customers typically paid later than the agreed terms, compared with 36% of businesses overall.
A separate study by the Department for Business and Trade and the Office of the Small Business Commissioner found that 22% of surveyed businesses said staff spent time chasing late payments. For businesses affected by late payment, the average was 86 staff hours a year. That time goes on finding invoice details, writing reminders and tracking what happens next.
Wedding planners do not need a harsher tone. Routine follow-up needs to happen even when there is no quiet moment between client calls and event work.
Let the accounts mate prepare the chase
WorkMate OS has an accounts mate that can help prepare a reminder for an unpaid invoice, using the information available to the crew. Your brand voice is stored in the shared Brain, so the draft can sound more like your business than a generic template.
You stay in control of what goes out. The process is draft, review, send: you see the message and approve it before it reaches the client. The activity log records what ran and what it produced. You still check the invoice details and decide when a reminder makes sense.
Keep the relationship moving
A reminder need not make a good event end on an uncomfortable note. It can state what remains due and ask whether the client needs anything from you. The crew can draft it; you decide if it is accurate, timely and ready to send.
Check the latest records first if the client has paid, raised a query or needs a different arrangement. The draft saves some preparation time. The judgment and the relationship stay in your hands.
For another look at the same admin pressure, read the photographer’s invoice chase and the accountancy invoice waiting for an awkward email.
Department for Business and Trade, late payments research. Findings cover businesses with business customers and are not specific to wedding planners.
Department for Business and Trade and the Office of the Small Business Commissioner, late payments research. Findings cover surveyed UK businesses and are not specific to wedding planners.