I've made a mistake, any advice please?

[marion]

Personally after 18 years in this business I would NOT let it go.

It has happened to me and I just kept on asking for it. I'm like a dog with a bone. keep asking and calling round. I got my money in the end

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[Baggybear]

I would just keep popping round when in the area and asking for my money. I know it was you who offered but she knew you expected payment & therefore your not wrong to keep trying to collect it.

I'm sure she will pay you as soon as she realises your just going to keep calling for the money as she won't want the hassle of answering the door to you and making excuses all the time.

 

[blossom]

I would send the letter as suggested, maybe follow up with a call or text and then write it off. Its not productive to spend so much time chasing it and it doesnt do your stress levels any good. You 'd have had to wait around anyway so dont count your time, so all you've actually lost is the trade cost of the tanning liquid - its no biggie so dont wory about it.

Put her on your blacklist though. Its time there was a central register for salons where we could list non payers so they were simply refused treatments anywhere else.

 

[mollie1985]

I would call rather than lettering or messaging, call from a different number or witheld and don't ask when she can pay ask what day suits her for you to come and collect x

 

[jamiereid92]

Thank you so much everyone for your comments. I am undecided at the moment whether to put an invoice / letter through her door or whether to just let it go and of course never book her in again (unless she wants to pay me upfront for both bookings). It's tricky because I know it was my idea to tan her then collect the money the next day, and this was truly because I didn't want to sit in my car in the dark for 45 minutes! I thought I'd much rather help this person out (I knew she was excited to get a tan for her brothers wedding) and help me out too. Now though my mind is completely on the money because I think it's so wrong of her not to pay me, or at least reply to me! I'm not comfortable with tagging on Facebook but I think I will definitely make some sort of politely worded point on one of my status updates and hope that she sees it.
A lesson learnt I think.......

Don't post anything about it on Facebook. If she does see it, its not gonna make her want to pay you, it will make her feel embarrassed and become defensive. If you handle this right you may get your money and have a loyal client.

Like Mollie said, ask her for a time that is suitable for her x

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[JulesLondon]

This is a complete reverse of the normal stories we hear about clients not paying their bills.

I think you need to ease up a little bit and wait for your money.

She didn't try to scam you, she tried to cancel by telling you she didn't have the money.

It seems that you had your eye on the money and didn't want to lose the sale - nothing wrong with that!

But as it's a situation of your making I would step back a little bit, stop hassling her every five minutes, and take a different approach.

Maybe put a note or card through her door saying you appreciate her situation, that you have extended the payment period to 14 days, and you hope she was happy with the tan. Advise that if she has problems paying you she should give you a call and you will work out a mini payment plan with her.

Be nice in this instance not mean if you want your money.

Good luck.

I would never think to do this (eyes on the prize and all!) but I think this is a great idea.

I also think that it's likely to make the client feel bad and hopefully she will think of you as kind, reasonable and professional (and obviously you won't let it happen again so you won't turn into a pushover) and will pay you as a result.

Beyond a follow up after the 14 days is leave it as others have said and say it's a lesson learnt. Would be curious to know if she did end up paying after this approach for future reference!

If you don't already id also install some kind of cancellation policy charge. You should never be left with nothing to do but sit in a dark car for 45mins without even getting paid! Xx

 

[Saira23]

Still no payment?

I used to allow my customers credit if they were short for the Sunbed or forgot their purse/card declined. I stopped doing this about 3months ago and put a polite notice in shop and on facebook about no longer offering credit. Although nobody was named, customers said they felt it was aimed at them. You honestly can't win but on the plus side, nobody has asked me for it since!

Definitely do not name & shame the person on facebook, it would likely put me off using a beautician if I saw them name & shame a client.

 

[Florry]

I would ask my local police for advice - this seems like stealing to me.

 

[Saira23]

I would ask my local police for advice - this seems like stealing to me.

Police won't get involved, they class it as a civil matter & not a police matter!

 

[Kim Lawless]

Sorry if this has been said (not read the other replies).

To be fair, she wanted to cancel so you would have lost her money anyway. You suggested that she still come and pay you later so she wasn't trying to have you over.

She's clearly broke and how these people get treatments done anyway amazes me but that's her business.

I know you're annoyed, we would all be, but it was you who encouraged her to come along when she couldn't afford it.

Leave it for a week and send one more text saying 'Hi X, Sorry to bother you but any news on my money?' If you get it then great but if you don't, just put it down to experience and never let her through your door again.

Don't mention this to other clients as you should never discuss clients and you'll get a bad rep.

I feel your pain but don't waste time on this or you'll do your brain in. :hug:

 

[NailsXpress]

I know it's kind of your own fault, but I also can't believe the cheek of people here. If you receive a service you should pay! She agreed she would pay you so she should.

Recently in Sweden there was a festival and the izettle system went down. As it was a money free zone, nobody had any cash on them. They all agreed (thousands of people) that they would all write out IOU's and then pay up very quickly.

Amazingly every single person paid and every single person who was owed money received it!

It's a lesson learned and you won't do a service like this again. It's happened to a lot of people but it doesn't happen again.

Take it on the chin and move on.

 

[kamikate]

I had this with 2 clients previously. One I chased for a year, she kept promising me she'd pay, then she moved house and I had to give up. The other I chased for 6 months before he paid up. A similar thing happened to me with a salon owner! I'd bought a cream from her, then found that it was out of date. It took me 2 months to get my money back from her, lots of texting and phoning and her not answering my messages. Sometimes people do honestly forget, others just can't be bothered, your money is a lower priority to them, they don't intend to be dishonest.