Sales Tip: What to do if your customer has missed multiple payments

Once your customer has missed three or four weekly payments, it is time for additional action. Three to four weeks may not seem like a lot but if you miss three or four car payments, the repo-man will be knocking soon. For each month that passes, your chances of collecting are reduced by at least 10 percent.

In jobber training, companies will say to not throw good money after bad focusing more on your selling. This seems very one-sided since your suppliers always get paid by you and skippers don’t really hurt them.

The court system is one alternative but depending on your state laws this could take years and keep you significantly away from your selling time.

Collection agencies are a possible alternative, but they can be so expensive that they may also not be worth your time. Additionally, some collection agencies will want you to sign the debt over to them. This is risky as the debt is now theirs so you may not ever get repaid and if they own the debt, they are not subject to any fair collection practices laws. In my opinion, Tool Dealer Network may be an option for you. It is a mobile jobber only collection service that has reasonable collection rates and follows the collection regulations.

If you are thinking that you don’t want to be known as a hard-ass by your customers that is the wrong thinking. A strong reputation in the industry for wanting your money is perfect.