Chasing Payments: The Most Awkward Part of Running a Trade Business

You Did the Work. Where's the Money?

You showed up on time. You did the job properly. You even cleaned up after yourself.

Now it's been 3 weeks and you're still waiting for payment.

Australian tradies are collectively owed billions of dollars in late payments at any given time. It's not just annoying — it's crippling cash flow and killing businesses.

Why Payments Drag Out

Most of the time, it's not malicious. People just... forget. Life gets busy. Your invoice sits in an email inbox, unseen.

But here's the thing: the longer an invoice ages, the less likely it is to get paid.

• Under 30 days: 90%+ chance of payment
• 30-60 days: Drops to 85%
• 60-90 days: Falls to 70%
• Over 90 days: Less than 50% — you're basically writing it off

The Awkward Chase

Chasing money feels gross. You're a tradie, not a debt collector.

But someone has to do it. So you send a reminder. Then another. Then you call. Then you feel like a pest.

Meanwhile, you're spending hours every week on what should be automatic.

What Actually Works

The tradies who get paid fastest aren't chasing harder — they're automating the chase:

• Invoice goes out immediately when the job is complete
• Automatic reminder at 3 days: "Just checking you received this"
• Automatic reminder at 7 days: "Friendly reminder, payment due"
• Automatic reminder at 14 days: "This is now overdue"
• Easy payment link in every message

No awkward phone calls. No personal confrontation. Just polite, persistent, automatic follow-up.

The Bottom Line

You shouldn't have to beg for money you've already earned.

Automation makes follow-up consistent, professional, and completely hands-off. Your cash flow improves. Your stress drops. Your relationships with customers stay intact.