Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Running a Web Hosting Business : What to do with a non-paying customer

[vito]

This one is kind of in a grey area.

Last year I designed a site for a local customer. I also host her site. Whenever she needs to update the content in her site, she pays me to do it. Seemingly, every time I finish the work and send her an invoice, she takes 1-2 weeks to process payment (and I always have to hound her about it).

Two and a half weeks ago, I sent her a request for payment for $240 for the last update I did in her site. Still not paid. Every time I send a reminder, she answers with a lame "Link doesn't work to the payment page" or "I lost the link, send it again" or "I've had a really busy week".

Frankly, I'm tired of the hassle. This is one of those "high maintenance" customers who incessantly asks for your time way over and above matters related to hosting or design. She tends to milk people who offer a helping hand. I'd just as soon see her go elsewhere.

So the question is how do I collect? She recently paid a year in advance for her hosting. So I have about $140 in prepaid services. And although it's tempting to take that and apply it to her outstanding debt, cut my losses and walk away, clearly the $140 was paid towards hosting, not design work.

So what "ultimatum" (aside from legal action) can I give her? If it was non-payment for hosting, you just pull the plug. Easy. In this case, do I just tell her I will be putting her old content back in if she does not pay?

Vito

[jasonkw]

Warn her again, and if she still doesn't pay, put the old content back in . Next time, you should probably have her pay before updating her site.

[cywkevin]

Well you could credit the prepaid to the bill and suspend the account until she pays then unsuspend it.

[advantagecom]

That's a tough call you have to make there. Prepaid hosting service and unpaid bill-after-service services.

In this case, do I just tell her I will be putting her old content back in if she does not pay?

That would likely just cause pain for the customer and you could easily lose the account *and* end up with a refund request for the unused portion of the prepaid service. That depends on your terms of service, of course.

Probably your best bet would be to institute a "late fee" policy and make sure it is clearly communicated to the customer. Then, just make sure you keep after her by phone, email, and postal mail until she pays. Squeaky vendor gets paid.

Of course, that is all in addition to refusing additional service requests until she pays for the last one.

[blue27]

Are your design services and hosting services two totally seperate entities? If they are not, or even if they are not, send a little spook letter saying that the site will be suspended for non payment if the bill is not settled within X amount of time. You don't necessarily have to follow through, just get your point across.

[vito]

When I think about it, how can I put her "old" content back in? When I update a page for her, I open up DW, make the changes, upload the file. No archive of the old content.

The hosting is paid through my hosting site and design work is paid through my design site. So they are in fact separate. I don't see how I can use her hosting payment towards the design work.

Late fee? I suppose that is an option. But frankly, at this point I'd rather not make provisions for the future. I'd rather get paid and then ask her politely to look elsewhere for services.

Vito

[Jon FB]

Originally posted by vito
When I think about it, how can I put her "old" content back in? When I update a page for her, I open up DW, make the changes, upload the file. No archive of the old content.

The hosting is paid through my hosting site and design work is paid through my design site. So they are in fact separate. I don't see how I can use her hosting payment towards the design work.

Late fee? I suppose that is an option. But frankly, at this point I'd rather not make provisions for the future. I'd rather get paid and then ask her politely to look elsewhere for services.

Vito

Vito I think your best bet is to warn her by saying what the other guys are saying "you have so much time or your account will be suspended" If she doesnt pay just ex her and take a loss. Or if she does pay then say thank you and please find someone new to be your host (or how ever you want to say it)

It isnt easy to get people to pay up, but you dont want thoughs types of people in your business. There is enough out there that do pay.

Vito best of luck!

[Mekhu]

Vito,

I first want to commend you from a customers standpoint for not mixing the two payments together. Using her hosting payment to pay for her outstanding design amount isn't very professional in my book.

You definately are in a sticky situation. I actually got into the business doing design/hosting combo work and when I ran into things like these, I basically delivered the content, cut all design ties and told them I had no more time for design.

It all depends on how you look at it. For me, I lost out on about $400 USD the other day as a matter or fact. I could have gone and cut his hosting off, but like your situation, he had paid for it.

I don't know. It's a piss off knowing people actually take advantages of others this way, but it's life... You've just got to be truthful and walk away.

[vito]

I know, it's a real pickle.

I have just sent her an email telling her that if she does not make payment by 1 PM tomorrow, I will replace all original content, removing all the updates. I'm taking a chance since I don't have any archived files to restore. But I'm sure she doesn't realize that.

Hopefully that will be the push she needs to make payment. The updated content is pretty important since any sales she makes on the site depends on having current info on the site.

Vito

[JWise]

Since im a designer myself, and I can feel what your going through, I would have told her that I will be removing all of the content on her site, leaving her with a blank page, until she decides to pay me for the work i've done. I believe thats fair.

[Mrdredd]

What kind of site is it?
If its one she depends on or holds in high regards, suspending the account will result her in wanting to get it back up at a faster pace then not.

So if she wants to keep making sales, she needs to pay the people who keep her business running.

Plain and simple, pay up or suspension and your business is down.

[vito]

I appreciate your suggestions. But I want to stay focused on the difference between monies paid for hosting versus monies paid for design work. Muddling the two will cause headaches. She has indeed paid for hosting. So how can I justify suspending the site? I think the actions I take should affect and only affect the relevant parts of my services.

Hopefully she will see the light by the deadline tomorrow.

Vito

[Mrdredd]

Ok, since you made the design, take the design and everything you created for the site down.
Seeing as you made it, and its not fully hers until she pays for it; you have the right to do it.

Leave her hosting up, but take the content off.

[RH Robert]

Hey Vito, you probably have backups, right? Just restore a backup from the day before the changes were made. I made changes for a clients site live at his location, and he asked me to send the bill. He kept putting off paying for it and I let him know that since he chose not to pay for the work, I would reset it the way it was before we modified it. He kind of smiled and said since the changes were done live there was no way to do that. Wow, did he wake up to a surprise! Of course he called to say a payment was waiting and I could pick it up if I would like..... we then restored the new backup that I made the night before and everyone was happy... I now take invoice forms with me, and he pays on the spot without a problem.

[DynamicHost]

Hi Vito,
I hear where you are coming from, I ran into a very similar situation a few months back, price for the updates had been agreed upon, normally work requires 50% up front, invoiced her, and didn't keep on it, before you know it work was done and I still hadn't collected the deposit, she was the wife of a friend who had done favors for me in the past, and had referred some really good clients for design and hosting over so I didn't want to seem harsh on the collections.

She was happy with the design, I sent her the bill for the remaining half and she began negotiating the price and was unwilling to pay the set amount In the end I was able to restore her old site (Thank you Google Cache ) and walked away from it taking a loss of a few days work, gaining a lesson. Sounds like your situation is a little better with a decent potential for her paying, as long as you make it urgent for them. The key to collections is making it as urgent for them to pay it as is it for you to collect it.

Cheers,