Let us guide you through Zahara’s AP Automation<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\r\nAs a small business with 12 employees, we trusted large companies to honour 30-day credit terms without running financial checks. Unfortunately, this trust was broken time and time again.<\/p>\r\n
Every Friday afternoon, as the managing director, I would call the accounts payable (AP) teams of companies with outstanding debts. Over time, I built relationships with the AP teams. I learned who was sincere and willing to help and who would make excuses. Despite offering 30-day terms, payments often took 60, 90, or even 120 days.<\/p>\r\n
The most common excuse? “We haven\u2019t received payment from our client yet.” My response was always the same: “My contract is with you, not your client.” Yet, this reasoning rarely worked.<\/p>\r\n
As a small business owner, these delays caused sleepless nights worrying about cash flow and whether we could meet our obligations. The breaking point came when we extended over \u00a3250,000 of credit to produce a major retailer\u2019s Christmas TV advertising campaign. We agreed to 14-day payment terms, with the final balance to be settled by the end of January. By the following June, we were still chasing the last \u00a325,000. The retailer\u2019s excuse? \u201cThe invoice hasn\u2019t been approved yet.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Ultimately, we had to involve a solicitor to recover the money. Although we were paid in full, the retailer\u2019s inability to honor their agreement damaged the relationship beyond repair. Just three years later, they went into administration.<\/p>\r\n