Why "no" to customers?
There can be many good reasons why you should say no to certain customers.
An obvious natural cause is if your initial feeling about the customer is bad; the customer makes some unreasonable demands, the customer has some requests you don't think your company can fulfill, or you don't think the collaboration will be good for one reason or another. This can often result in a bad experience for the customer and your company - and probably a lot of hassle. In this case, we focus on a completely different reason; the financial reason for saying 'no'.
Because what financial reasons are there to say no to a customer that generates revenue and sales for your business, you might ask?
Unfortunately, it's a (growing) fact that companies are increasingly experiencing financial challenges with customers; and the challenges this creates in non-payment or slow payment. This fact can be costly for the company.
How do I protect myself against bad payers?
You can never be 100% secure against bad payers, but you can do a lot - and with very little effort.
With the right tools in your everyday life, you can reject them before they become a customer of your business. That way, they're rejected before you've done the work or delivered your product to them - and avoid losses.
In other words, the best way to avoid bad payers is to reject them before they even become customers - that way you don't have to pay them any costs in terms of hourly wages and any material consumption.
What tools can I make use of?
There are many great tools available today to find information about your customers; who they are, their financial figures, where they live and much more - information that is now just a few clicks away.
Hos Qatchr har vi udviklet et kreditdata-værktøj i samarbejde med Nordens førende inkassofirma, Collectia A/S – et værktøj der kan hjælpe dig, når du skal træffe beslutninger om dine kunder; og hvilke du eventuelt skal sige nej til.
Not sure if Qatchr is right for your business? Then try us out for free - with no strings attached. We offer a free demo for 14 days!
Don't just use credit ratings to say no
Credit ratings are a great tool for determining whether or not you should engage with a customer. However, a negative credit rating of a company or individual doesn't always have to mean a categorical no to doing business. Even if a credit rating of an existing or potential customer shows poor creditworthiness, "bad payer" status, indications of bankruptcy relations or something else, the most important thing is that you as a company pay close attention and establish a sensible credit policy in advance.
En måde til, hvordan du kan navigere uden om faresignalerne ved en dårlig betaler, kunne eksempelvis være at opstille specielle krav til dem – krav (fx forudbetaling beførste køb) du måske ikke stiller til kunder du kender i forvejen.
Because if you don't want to say no to a bad payer - a cash payment, payment in advance or payment on delivery could be an option.
