5 Ways to Professionally Ask for Payment via Email (With Templates)

Asking for payment can be uncomfortable. No one wants to spend the time to individually contact customers and engage them in a potentially awkward conversation.

Unfortunately, these awkward conversations are often necessary, because late payments are rampant. According to Atradius, a whopping 92.6% of businesses reported late payments.

But you don’t have to spend extra time or effort following up on late payments. If you set up a system, create templates, and give customers convenient payment options, you’ll cut down on late payments.

Read on for 5 ways to professionally ask for payment via email.

Set up a system

First, set up a payment system and clearly communicate it to your customers. If you don’t provide them with an easy-to-understand payment schedule, then how can you expect them to pay on time?

Every company has different needs. Depending on your business, you may ask for a down payment upfront, or maybe you only charge the full amount after services are rendered. In any case, make your expectations abundantly clear to customers, including any late fees or penalties they may incur if they miss the payment deadline.

Once you’ve established a payment schedule and communicated it to customers, stick with it. Many businesses set up a series of emails they use when asking for payment. For example, a common schedule is to send out an email:

• A week before the due date
• On the due date
• One week after the due date
• Two weeks after the due date
• One month after the due date

Create templates

Don’t reinvent the wheel every time you communicate with customers. Create templates to easily ask for payments.

Templates remove the stress of having to type up a new email every time you reach out. Instead of worrying about getting the wording exactly right, you can simply send your pre-written template in a matter of seconds.

For even more convenience, automate your payment emails with a tool like EBizCharge. With EBizCharge, you can create a series of email templates and then set up a schedule for when you’d like them to be automatically delivered.

Using the schedule outlined above, you can send out 5 emails like this:

Email #1 (one week before the due date)

Subject: Payment for invoice #12345

Message:

Hi Sally,

I hope you’re doing well! I’m reaching out to remind you that payment on invoice #12345 is due August 25, next week. As we discussed, the total bill is $150.00. You can pay your invoice via credit card or ACH using this secure payment link: [Link goes here]

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Thanks,

Joe

Email #2 (on the due date)

Subject: Payment for invoice #12345 due today

Message:

Hi Sally,

I hope you’re doing well! I’m reaching out because payment for invoice #12345 is due today, with a total balance of $150.00. You can pay your invoice via credit card or ACH using this secure payment link: [Link goes here]. I also wanted to remind you that the late fee will come into effect tomorrow.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks,

Joe

Email #3 (one week after the due date)

Subject: Payment for invoice #12345 overdue

Message:

Hi Sally,

My records show that I haven’t received payment for invoice #12345. A payment of $150.00 was due one week ago, August 25. Please note that overdue payments are subject to a late fee. You can pay your invoice via credit card or ACH using this secure payment link: [Link goes here]

If you’ve already made the payment, please let me know, and get in touch if you have any questions.

Thanks,

Joe

Email #4 (two weeks after the due date)

Subject: Payment for invoice #12345 two weeks overdue

Message:

Hi Sally,

My records show that I haven’t received payment for invoice #12345. A payment of $150.00 was due two weeks ago, August 25. Please note that overdue payments are subject to a late fee. You can pay your invoice via credit card or ACH using this secure payment link: [Link goes here]

If you’ve already made the payment, please let me know, and get in touch if you have any questions.

Please send me a confirmation when you get this email. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,

Joe

Email #5 (one month after the due date)

Subject: Payment for invoice #12345 30 days overdue

Message:

Hi Sally,

This is my fourth reminder that your payment on invoice #12345 is overdue. Please let me know if there’s anything you need from me to initiate payment.

You can pay your invoice via credit card or ACH using this secure payment link: [Link goes here]. As noted in my previous emails, a late fee has been applied to your overall balance due.

Please make payment as soon as possible and send me a confirmation when you get this email.

Thanks,

Joe

Give customers convenient payment options

Finally, to ensure your customers pay on time, give them easy payment options. No one wants to sit down, write out a check, address an envelope, and drop it in the mail. That outdated payment method is just a series of small inconveniences that customers will most likely put off until the last moment. But if you give customers convenient payment options, they’re more likely to pay on time. The more friction you can remove between your customers and the payment, the better.

One of the tools you can use to make payments easier for customers is email pay. With email pay, you can send individual invoices to customers via email. Customers receive an email with a link to make payment. When they click on the link, they’re taken to a secure web form where they can pay off the invoice with a credit card, debit card, or ACH payment. Once they make a payment, they get a receipt emailed to them, and the paid invoice syncs back to your accounting or ERP software. Customers like email pay because:

• They can quickly and easily make payments
• They can pay on the go using a mobile device or tablet
• They can pay outside of regular business hours
• They don’t have to set up a phone call with you to make a payment over the phone

When payments are this easy, your customers are happy and collections are a breeze.

Conclusion

Collections are the lifeblood of any business. Without prompt payment, your cash flow will suffer and impact the overall health of the company. Fortunately, you can use convenient collection tools to take the pain out of asking customers for payment via email. With the right system in place, you’ll experience quicker collections, increased cash flow, and more time back in your day.