Get Paid: How to Stop Chasing Invoices and Fix Your Cash Flow
If you run a video production business, you already know this tension.
You want to spend your time doing good work, running shoots, looking after clients, improving your craft, and building the business.
Then there is the other part. Invoices. Payment terms. Awkward follow ups. That little knot in your stomach when you realise a big invoice is overdue and you were counting on it to pay contractors, cover tax, or simply breathe.
Getting paid properly and getting paid on time is not a “nice to have”. It is one of the core systems in your business. When it works, you have more options. When it does not, everything feels harder than it needs to.
This post is about building a payment system that reduces stress and improves cash flow, without turning you into a debt collector.
You are not a charity. You are not a bank.
Let’s get the mindset part out of the way.
Your job is not to provide free credit beyond the terms you agreed to. You are not there to fund other people’s internal processes. You are delivering a service that has real costs attached to it. Time, labour, equipment, software, contractors, overheads, tax.
Sometimes clients take advantage of creative business owners because they assume we will avoid conflict. They assume we will do the work first, ask questions later, and hope for the best.
Healthy boundaries fix this. They also change how you feel about your business. When you respect your own terms, you carry yourself differently. Clients feel that.
Most clients will follow your system if you lead
Think about how you behave when you hire a service provider.
If the process is clear and confident, you usually just go along with it.
A removalist turns up, explains their payment process, and you follow it. A tradesperson sends terms, you follow them. A consultant sets expectations, you follow them. Not because you were forced, but because the system was obvious and the person seemed organised.
It works the same way in video production.
A lot of clients do not know what “normal” is with production companies, especially if they have not worked with one before. That means you get to guide the process.
If you explain your terms early, and you do it with calm confidence, many clients will accept it as reasonable.
For example, a 50 percent upfront payment before work begins is normal in plenty of creative service businesses. If you present it like it is part of your process, most people will simply treat it that way.
“Start as you wish to continue”
Payment problems usually don’t begin when the invoice becomes overdue.
They begin much earlier, when the terms were vague, unspoken, or treated like an afterthought.
If you set the tone early, you make it easier for the client to do the right thing.
That means:
• Your terms are clear before the project starts
• The client agrees to them in writing
• You reinforce them during onboarding
• You make paying you straightforward
All things being equal, you would prefer the money in your account than theirs. And you would prefer it sooner than later.
That is not aggressive. It is sensible.
Why upfront payment matters (beyond “because I said so”)
An upfront payment does a few things at once.
It confirms commitment. People treat projects differently when they have paid something.
It protects your cash flow. You can book crew, lock in resources, and cover costs without floating the project.
It reduces stress. You stop feeling like you are doing free work while hoping the invoice gets approved somewhere inside a company.
And it gives you options. With more cash available, you can invest back into the business. Marketing. Equipment. Better systems. Even just giving yourself breathing room.
Use onboarding to make payment feel normal
If you do not have a formal onboarding process, this is one of the best reasons to create one.
Onboarding is where you set expectations and reduce friction.
You walk the client through how the project works. You explain communication, timelines, feedback, approvals, and what you need from them.
Then you cover payment in a simple, practical way.
Something like:
“We want your project to run smoothly and stay on schedule. Part of that is making sure the payment process stays on track as well.”
You restate the terms they already agreed to. You explain when invoices will be issued. You explain what happens if payment is delayed, especially if that delay affects delivery.
This conversation can feel slightly uncomfortable if you are not used to it.
Chasing overdue invoices feels worse.
Be flexible when it makes sense, not because you feel bad asking
There is a version of business advice that says:
“Never start work until the contract is signed and the deposit is paid.”
Sometimes that is correct.
Sometimes it ignores how large organisations actually work.
Big corporates and government departments often have vendor onboarding, procurement steps, and longer payment cycles. Getting set up can take time. Some teams cannot pay deposits even if they want to, because policy says no.
You still want strong terms.
You also want to be smart about when to flex.
The key is to make a clear assessment.
Is this client genuinely low risk?
Are they established?
Do they have a real finance department and a track record of paying suppliers?
Is the likelihood of non-payment extremely low?
If the answer is yes, you can choose to proceed while you wait for their internal machine to do its thing.
In Australia, the best backup in this scenario is usually a purchase order.
A purchase order is a strong internal commitment from the client’s accounts team that they intend to pay you for a specific service. In many cases, once you have a PO, the risk drops significantly.
A real-world example: when you choose trust on purpose
I’ve had situations where a client was ready to go on a substantial project with a tight timeline, but their company policy made an upfront payment impossible.
I asked for a purchase order. They did not issue POs.
At that point, the choice was simple.
Walk away from a great project, or proceed based on a sensible assessment of risk.
In that case, the client was a large, established software company. They had zero motivation to damage their reputation over a video invoice. I proceeded. It was fine. Payment was fine.
That is the point.
Flexibility is not weakness. It is a business decision.
If you are worried about getting paid, negotiate terms before you start
One of my coaching clients was about to DP on a large production and had that familiar uneasy feeling.
He assumed the rule was: do the work, invoice at the end, wait.
I suggested a different approach.
Ask for an initial 50 percent payment, then weekly progress payments during the production.
He thought that was unrealistic. He assumed the producer would laugh.
He asked anyway.
After some back and forth, they agreed to most of what he requested. He moved himself into a better position because he challenged the assumption that the “industry norm” is the only option.
That is worth remembering.
A lot of the pain in this area comes from terms you never asked for.
The overdue system: what to do when invoices slip
Even with strong systems, invoices still slip.
Not always because people are dodgy. Often because people are busy and your invoice sits in an inbox waiting for “later”.
So you need a simple, consistent follow up process.
Here’s a structure that works.
1) Reminder before the due date
A few days before the invoice is due, send a reminder.
This can be manual. It can be automated through your accounting software.
The goal is simple. Make it easy for the client to action it before it becomes overdue.
2) First overdue notice, friendly but firm
If the due date passes, send the first overdue reminder promptly.
Be polite. Be clear. Don’t over explain.
You are not asking for a favour. You are asking them to meet the terms they agreed to.
3) Escalate the channel if needed
If you do not get a response, don’t keep sending emails into the void.
Call the person who hired you. Ask who handles accounts payable. Get the right contact. Forward the invoice to that person directly.
Be calm and practical.
4) Tie payment to delivery, where appropriate
This depends on your contract and the type of work, but in many cases it is reasonable to hold delivery of final assets until final payment is received.
If you plan to do this, it needs to be stated upfront, not introduced as a threat later.
5) Keep notes and be consistent
The power of a system is that you do not have to think too hard in the moment.
You just follow the steps.
Consistency protects your cash flow and removes emotion from the process.
Make paying you easy
One more thing that matters more than people realise.
If paying you is annoying, slow, or confusing, it will take longer.
Simple improvements help:
• Clear invoice terms
• Correct purchase order details if required
• The right contact person in accounts
• Easy payment methods
• Invoices sent promptly at agreed milestones
This is part of professionalism. It is also part of client experience.
A simple payment policy you can adopt
If you want a clean starting point, try this:
• 50 percent deposit to book the project
• Remaining 50 percent due on delivery, or split across milestones for larger projects
• Reminder 3 days before due date
• Overdue notice sent 1 day after due date
• Escalation to accounts contact after 7 days
• Work paused or delivery held if overdue breaches the agreed window
Then adapt it based on the type of client and the level of risk.
If this is a weak point in your business, fix it properly
If getting paid is currently messy in your business, you do not need more motivation.
You need a clean process, a few scripts you can use, and the confidence to hold the line when it matters.
This is the sort of thing I work on with coaching clients because it improves cash flow fast, and it reduces stress fast.
If you want help tightening up your payment terms, onboarding process, and follow up system so you stop chasing invoices, take a look at my coaching options at ryanspanger.com/coaching.
