When clients fail to pay

There's an interesting discussion over at Rob Haggart's A Photo Editor blog about collecting from overdue clients. It's one of those things you don't think much about when you go into business for yourself, but at some point it's an issue that's going to come up for just about everyone.

I am not a professional photographer, but I am self-employed and as I've expanded my client base I've also begun to run into a few issues with outstanding balances. It's a tricky problem, because in many cases you don't want to alienate a potential long-term client. In some cases, the laggard is a referral from a highly valued client, so you want to handle the issue with some finesse. On the other hand, you've got bills to pay and a family to feed.

I don't think there are any easy answers. A lot of it depends on your relationship with the individual client. In my experience, most delays are bureaucratic in nature -- someone in a chain of individuals in a large organization forgets, or neglects, to communicate, and it can take a long time to get things back on track. Frustrating? Of course. But expressing that frustration directly rarely helps, in my opinion.

My preferred approach is to be persistent but remain professional and unemotional throughout the process. Don't assume a client is deliberately trying to get out of paying. In fact, don't assume anything. Don't get emotional, don't escalate the issue into a virtual (or actual) shouting match. Just make it clear to the client that you expect payment for services provided and you're not going to go away.

How do you deal with overdue payments? Are freelance photographers treated differently from other professionals?