For most individuals, attorney rates can be too high and expensive. When it comes to paying legal fees, clients may be hesitant or even want to renegotiate. There are several aspects to keeping your clients happy and have them pay on time.
Happy clients are the ones who are more likely to pay their bills. The key to keeping your clients happy is communication. Clients appreciate knowing what is going on with their cases. Thus, arranging a communication and case update schedule is useful. Depending on how involved your clients want to be, providing them with confirmation letters to start certain work and sending them copies of the work for approval may be appropriate and greatly appreciated.
Although you are providing services to a client for compensation, not charging your clients for certain items will help you establish good relations. For low cost items such as small print jobs, mailings, and simple communications, you can give those to your clients for free. You should let your clients know that you are giving them free services by writing “no charge” for those services on their bills. As a result, your clients will think that you are giving them a good deal and that you are not penny-pinching them.
To encourage on-time payment, you can use a “token economy” of positive and negative reinforcement. For example, you can give a 10% discount for on-time payments and a 10% penalty for delayed payments. If the client is delinquent for a couple of months, you can state that you will stop all work. Another method to obtain payment is by the use of retainers. If the client is hesitant to sign a retainer, you can offer them a 10% service discount. This has the potential to persuade a client to sign a retainer.
Communication is key in establishing a good relationship with your client. Remember, a happy client is more likely to appreciate your services and will be more willing to pay their bills on time.
Authored by Adam Vukovic, LegalMatch Legal Writer and Attorney at Law
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