Alternative Billing: Accept Credit Cards? Pre-paid plans? 1

[rlee53]

Some customers I support with routine questions that require maybe a few hours per week, and some occasional calculations or diagrams supporting the answers/opintions. Currently we get a PO from them for maybe 40 hours, then I invoice every two weeks against the PO until its depleted, then get another one and so on.

Getting a new PO every few weeks is a headache for me, their accounting dept., the customer, etc. Then theres the invoicing that I have to follow up on, etc. It's inneficient on both ends.

I'm wondering if there is a better way for this type of situation? Maybe I could accept Credit cards, or have a fixed monthly cost like the prepaid attorney plans,...

Has anyone found a good system for this type of customer.

 

[msquared48]

School?

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[MacGyverS2000]

School?

Say wha?

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[lansford]

Actually, this sounds like a good deal to me. Most of us usually have to wait for our $$.
JIM

 

[greenone]

We are on retainer with several clients, for anywhere to $300-$1500/mon. Some months we win, and some they win. Special projects get a specific proposal and cost.
If you decide to accept cc, make sure your fees are high enuf to cover the charge that Visa/MC/Amex will hit you up with.
We have also signed up with paypal for one customer-again, we pay a fee on each payment.

 

[MacGyverS2000]

Expect about 2-3% from CCs, add another couple of percent for PayPal with CCs.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[TheTick]

If your customer will do Paypal, that's probably your best option. Paypal is viewed as a rinky-dink, unprofessional payment method by some. Some companies don't like it because it is easy to abuse.

You need a merchant account to accept CC's. This can get pricey (I looked into this myself, once). Be careful. Lots of internet predators looking for a cut of this kind of business. Best thing probably is to talk to your banker in person.

If cash flow is a problem, you might be able to set up a line of credit with your bank.

 

[Ashereng]

For engineering work, payment is typically you invoice, and then they send a company cheque.

This has worked for me for many many years.

I use a spreadsheet to keep track of invoices, receipts, etc. If this is too much of a burden, then maybe you need to get someone to help with this.

The other solution of just invoicing a fixed sum monthly, and then reconciling at the end of the year may work, if both sides agree to it. Haven't tried this method, but I would think the amount of work is probably comparable.

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[DonPhillips]

Invoicing is easy with the proper software. QuickBooks allow you to easily credit time against the PO and generate invoices you can e-mail to your client.

I prefer a check, to lower my costs, but I have accepted PayPal from individuals. Almost as good as a check.

Don Phillips

http://worthingtonengineering.com

 

[cvanoverbeke]

Our firm is a consulting engineering firm in Ontario. As a favour to a client, I setup the ability to pay by credit card. They wanted the air miles. Since I only do 1 transaction per month, the best method is through a Telephone system. I use Moneris,

http://www.moneris.com.

There are other providers such as Global Payments. The big advantage I have seen from accepting credit cards is the money is in your bank account the next day. However it does cost money. The merchant discount fee can be from 1.75% to 3% of the payment amount. I suggest shopping around. My biggest issue was paying $15.00 per month even if I do not use the service. Maybe it will allow you to offer services to customers who like paying by Visa.

Cvanoverbeke