I’m in a bit of a situation, as are many of my co-writers with a web content client/company. I started an assignment in early March, finished it by deadline at the end of March, and have yet to be paid. Many of my co-writers haven’t been paid, either. Yes, we’ve contacted the company, and we’re each told relatively the same excuse with a few variables.

I’m not too worried - I have a gut feeling that I’m going to get paid. But the onset of this situation has made me do some thinking. It’s one thing for something to come up causing a client to need to pay you a little later than expected, but it’s another thing when the client is well over a month late and offers no explanation unless you initiate contact.

How do freelancers avoid this situation? How can we get paid on time? Or, at least handle the situation correctly if we aren’t?

The simple answer is, “Get everything in writing.” Now, for some clarification.

Step One: Get the exact terms and conditions before you accept the gig.

Or, after you’ve accepted it, but before you’ve started it or signed any kind of contract. If your client doesn’t have any kind of contract for you to sign, discuss with him the deadline and when you can expect payment. Then you need to draw up a contract of your own stating all pertinent information (your name, his name, the date you took the assignment, your deadline, when he agreed to pay you and how much) and send it to him. It’s as simple as that.

Don’t worry about offending anyone - if your client is legit, he’s not going to “fire you” simply because you want clearly defined terms and conditions. He’ll probably appreciate your professionalism. And if he does “fire you”? He’s obviously not trustworthy and doing you a favor.

Step Two: Do your job.

Do it well, and do it on time. You can’t expect your client to hold up his end of the deal if you don’t hold up yours, right?

Step Three: Send your invoice.

Once you’ve completed your job, on time, send your invoice to your client. (SideJobTrack.com is a great, and FREE, site that helps you keep up with all of your freelance gigs, as well as create invoices and run reports. If you don’t have it already, shame on you.) Make sure your invoice includes the payment due date.

Step Four: Wait.

Wait for your payment. If it doesn’t arrive on the exact date that you and the client agreed upon, don’t flip out. Give him a couple of days. I currently write web content for a small online company whose owner told me that upon receiving my articles I would be paid “immediately.” This was true for a few weeks, then “immediately” turned in to two or three days after I sent my articles in. That’s fine - I know I’m going to get paid, and I know it’s not going to be later than two or three days. So, waiting is a good step just in case you find yourself in a similar situation. I would suggest waiting no longer than one week after the agreed upon payment date.

Step Five: You’ve either been paid or you haven’t.

If you have been paid, good for you. You might want to send your client a short note confirming that you received payment. I always do this when payment is in the form of a check or money order sent through the mail; however, if it’s via Paypal, I don’t.

If you haven’t been paid after a week, send your client a reminder notice. Don’t be rude, don’t whine about how you can’t feed your kids. Be completely professional - without being a doormat, of course. Let the client know that he is a week late and you would like payment by (some other soon date).

Step Six: Send a second invoice and late payment notice.

If you’ve read this far, chances are you haven’t gotten paid, even after your first reminder notice. This time, send a second reminder notice along with another copy of the invoice and the contract that the two of you agreed upon. At this point, you may want to let the client know that you expect payment immediately.

Step Seven: It’s time to get nasty.

Bless you if you find yourself at this step in the process. If your previous attempts have failed, it’s probably time to look into a collection agency (I’ve been told that by hiring one yourself, they only take a percentage of what they get back for you from the client) or even small claims court (this is where the contracts come into play).

If you didn’t invest that much time in the project, or the pay wasn’t going to be that high anyway, you probably won’t want to take the legal route. If not, my advice is to never, never work for them again. Pretty obvious, huh? Be sure to tell all your freelance writing buddies, as well. There are hundreds of freelance writer forums out there that have special sections dedicated to warning the rest of us about these low down, no good, scum bags.

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