A HAPPY CHRISTMAS STARTS IN OCTOBER
Christmas should be that time of the year when all business people and professional managers can relax and enjoy their holidays. There is nothing better than being with family and friends at this time of the year and being ready for the new year.
Unfortunately, many of these people will not be able to fully enjoy their Christmas. The three main reasons why, will be:
1 they do not have the money they expected;
2 they are worrying about paying their bills due when they return to work;
3 they wonder why they did not get paid.
So why do they not have the money?
It is because these people did not fully understand the payment cycle of their customers and did not work hard enough to ensure their customers paid before Christmas.
As the Christmas and New Year holidays are upon us, now is not the time to go into the ins and outs of the how and why you have not been paid.
I would however like to draw your attention to the behaviour of retailers. Like you, they work hard all year to attract their paying customers. However, unlike many other business people, they do not wait for the first week of Christmas to try and get the money.
Retailers start ramping up their efforts to obtain every "Christmas Dollar" in October from their customers. Whether it be clearing up the shelves of obsolete stock, tidying up the store, bringing in Christmas stock, Christmas advertising etc. they are hard at work.
People in other business settings should look at what retailers do, and I believe, act accordingly.
If you are in business, start working on your own "Christmas Dollars Campaign" in October. Increase your efforts to clear up the causes of unpaid invoices, multiply your contacts with slow paying customers and perhaps, follow up more recently raised invoices which are now due for payment.
Act like a retailer and maximise your cashflow so you too, can enjoy your Christmas and New Year holiday.
May you have been paid by this Christmas 2011 rather than be paid in January, February or March of 2012.
Kim Radok