Chasing an Overdue Invoice
Added 2026-10-30
Escalate by stage: protect the relationship first, raise consequences last.
A client is late paying the final invoice. I will give contract terms, days overdue, previous communication, and likely reasons. Write three stage messages: 1) within 7 days: reminder plus an easy out (maybe they did not receive the invoice); 2) 15-30 days: state the impact on us and ask for a firm payment date; 3) 45+ days: state next steps (pause service, hand to finance, follow the contract). Under 100 words each, no threats, no begging.
Site original
Chinese original
How to use
催款要按时间升级，不要第一天就撕破脸。
Try tweaking it
- Have it state how the hypothesis could be falsified before discussing execution.
- Split the plan into a one-week testable experiment.
What you should get
- A small testable experiment with a failure threshold
- Costs, risks, and what needs outside confirmation
Common mistakes
- Asking for a "full business plan" and getting unverifiable optimistic assumptions.
- No failure threshold, so you never know whether to continue.
How to check the output
- There is a clear failure threshold, testable within a week.
- Costs, assumptions and risks are listed separately.
Where it works
- Good for: turning business assumptions into a small testable experiment with a failure threshold first.
- Watch out: for pricing, contracts and legal points, treat output as a draft needing professional review.