Fellow reader Christopher asked, regarding fixed-priced projects, how does the payment structure work?
The short answer is, get paid 100% up-front.
The “usual” approach for invoicing Salesforce projects is:
- Build part or all of the project
- Invoice the client
- Cross your fingers that you get paid within 30 days
Charging late fees, sending reminder emails, and politely but firmly chasing the client are all part of this approach.
If you bill 100% up-front, you avoid all of that nonsense. The exact phrasing I use in my proposals is, “100% payment is due to schedule the project”. Feel free to copy and paste those words.
If the client pushes back hard, then you can split invoicing into two: one up-front and one at a time-dependent moment. For example, 3 months after the project started. Notice I said “time-dependent”, and not “milestone dependent”. The reason for this is because sometimes milestones are hard to agree upon.
Also, when the project is a monthly subscription, invoice on the 1st the month.
The takeaway
Billing after the work is done can create a boatload of frustration and lots of back-and-forth. Skip these rough waters and sail smoothly by billing 100% up-front.