Have you ever had that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach that your small business has extended credit to the wrong customer?

It’s happened to plenty of small business owners and is becoming more frequent because of the impact of the economy.

Someone who had previously been a consistent payer all of a sudden disappears into never, never land. What in the world can you do when this happens?

According to Michelle Dunn, author of  The Guide to Getting Paid: Weed Out Bad Paying Customers, Collect on Past Due Balances, and Avoid Bad Debt, you open up the lines of communication and give them a call. Your job is to collect the money you are owed.

In this interview, Michelle shares a ton of tips you can use to 1) make sure your company has prepared properly for the day a customer doesn’t pay their bill, and 2) techniques you can use to get your money when it happens.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Just click the player to start listening (or you may download and listen later).

Michelle advises every business to find a collection agency before you need them — that’s the same way I feel about you having a small business accountant and attorney. And it makes a lot of sense. You’ll learn why about half way through the interview.

In addition to the tips and techniques Michelle shared when we talked, you’ll find her book full of useable forms that you can put to work in your business.

Here’s my video review of Michelle’s book.

If you can’t see the video, click here.

To get you started, hop on over to Michelle’s site and pick up your free copy of a credit application you can start using right now in your small business.

And don’t forget to listen to the interview!

Here’s that link to her book again — The Guide to Getting Paid