Eliminate the A/R Tug of War...Stress-free Cash Flow

Eliminate the A / R Tug of War

Nobody wants to go to collections. Not the business owner and certainly not the customer or patient.

When you own a business or medical practice, there are times when bills will go unpaid longer than 30 or 60 days. These delinquent payments can have a negative impact on your account receivables process and could result in your business to have financial setbacks. After all, if your customers or patients are not paying, how do you expect to pay your bills?

Depending on your type of business, the time frame you decide when a payment is late could vary. Most businesses extend 30 day terms. As a business owner or medical practitioner, how do you handle payments that are past due?

• Calling the customer or patient
• Sending out notices and multiple statements
• How much time are you spending out of your day attempting to recover the past due payments?

Many business owners and practice administrators feel they can recover the money while working to build their business and maintain a good relationship with their customers or patients. The moment you stop trying to remind a customer or patient of a late payment and start trying to collect on a debt is when you need to hire a professional collection agency.

The benefit of a professional collection service is that their team understands how to successfully collect the money that is owed to you. Recovery rates are higher than tackling the collection process yourself. Professional collection agencies should also understand the laws and regulations that govern the collection industry.

The thought of turning a customer or patient over to collections can be difficult, especially if, like most business owners, you feel it is important to maintain a healthy and professional relationship with your customer or patient. Make sure your collection agency values your client or patient relationship as much as you do.

Try a professional agency if you want to free up time to work on your business, reduce your account receivables and maintain your relationships. The next step is just a phone call or email away to a Cash Flow and Delinquency Management Specialist for a no-obligation analysis of your Accounts Receivable needs:

Lin Engie, specialized in positively impacting cash flow for businesses and medical practices everyday

Transworld Systems on the Gulf Coast

lin.engie@transworldsystems.com

850.266.7791

Turkish Delights

Recently, I went on a fascinating trip to Turkey and thoroughly enjoyed the rich history and the beautiful, varied landscapes. We (my husband, Kean, and friends from California) joined a tour that took us to Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadoccia, down to the Mediterranean Sea, and then back west to the Aegean Sea, and up to Istanbul again. Prior to the trip, I was not aware that we would be travelling through mountain ranges that were still covered in snow, and within the next day, we would be travelling through desert-like landscapes. I was obviously quite ignorant about the country and all it has to offer.  If you love fruits and nuts (and Turkish Delights), Turkey is the place to be.  I had my fill of dried apricots, figs, pomegranates, olives, chickpeas, walnuts, pistachios, and fresh almonds.  Breakfast buffets were fabulous with fresh yogurt, molasses, honey, and tahini.

Turks are hardworking and industrious people. One interesting thing we learned from our Tour Guide was that farms in Turkey are operated almost as co-ops.  Individually-owned family farms are clustered together, with central villages where the farm families in that area reside together.  Farmers in each area share large equipment to save costs, and help one another throughout the growing and harvesting seasons.  The Turkish government fixes pricing, and handles the sale of farm produce, so farmers can focus on cultivating and harvesting the best produce. As long as they have a harvest, they are guaranteed a sale of their produce at a fixed price to the government. The government then sells the produce on the market to factories or exports them.

Seems like an elegant and efficient way to handle farm operations; farmers can focus on what they do best, without any worry on the business side of operating the farm.  Streamlining this farming process allows Turkey to be one of the world leaders in the production of agriculture.  According to Wikipedia, as of March 2007, Turkey is the world's largest producer of hazelnut, cherry, fig, apricot, quince and pomegranate; the second largest producer of watermelon, cucumber and chickpea; the third largest producer of tomato, eggplant, green pepper, lentil (they make the most delicious lentil soups) and pistachio; and the fourth largest producer of onion and olive.  Other major products are tea, apple, cotton, and almonds.  Turkey has been self-sufficient in food production since the 1980s. Did you know that Turkey is a major exporter of textiles, automotive, steel, iron, and pharmaceuticals?  How about Turkey being a major shipbuilding country?

Many studies show that you can be more productive by focusing on your core skills, and outsource the secondary tasks to other experts.  If you operate a business and you extend credit to your clients, or if you are a medical doctor or dentist, it is often more cost-effective to outsource some of your back office operations to specialized companies who can do them more efficiently, more effectively, and at a lower cost. One such function is managing cash flow and delinquent accounts.  Are you and your staff stressed about following up with slow-paying and non-paying clients or patients?  Do you know that there is an alternative to a high percentage collection agency - one that offers a diplomatic approach, so you can retain your client or patient relationship?

Transworld Systems is a national cash flow and delinquency management company that has been helping businesses of all sizes effectively collect for over 41 years.  Our innovative in-house tools allow you to professionally and diplomatically collect without alienating your clients or patients.  You maintain control and keep 100% of what is collected. If you are tired of clients or patients ignoring your monthly statements, let's chat and see if you qualify for our services. Give me a call @ 850.266.7791, send me an e-mail, or message me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TransworldSystemsOnTheGulfCoast.

Where have you traveled to recently?  What exciting travel plans do you have this summer?  I would love to hear from you.

May you have a fabulous summer!

Lin Engie
Cash Flow and Delinquency Management Specialist
Transworld Systems on the Gulf Coast
850.266.7791

Spring Festivals

'Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others
cannot keep it from themselves.' - Sir James M. Barrie

I wish all of you can enjoy the beautiful sunshine we have in Pensacola this time of the year - warm sunny days, cool nights, with some occasional rains.  We are truly blessed with beautiful Spring weather here, and with a really mild winter this year, we are enjoying an exceptionally long Spring season.

Spring, of course, is a time of rebirth, and renewal, and is celebrated around the world with joyful and colorful festivals. Hindus in south Asia herald in Spring with the Festival of Colors, Holi. They celebrate by throwing colored powder at one another, and with bonfires, bidding farewell to dreary Winter, and welcoming the abundant and vibrant colors of Spring.  In Thailand, the Songkran or Water Festival is a 3-day celebration of the Thai New Year.  The ritual symbolizes the cleansing of the body, spirit and mind.  No one escapes being drenched (or 'cleansed') during these 3 days of celebration! The Japanese, always associated with delicacy and beauty, celebrate hanami - cherry blossom viewing - by having picnics under cherry blossom trees in parks, usually between March and May. And of course, the most important Spring event for Christians is Easter, the resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

How do you celebrate Spring?  I invite you to share in the comment box below.

Spring brings a new cycle of life and hope, and it is also the perfect time to reflect, review, and renew goals. Do you have recent successes to celebrate?  I hope you do.  Are there areas in your life or business that needs sprucing up? What can you do to add some 'color' and enthusiasm? Are you on track with your personal, health, or financial goals? If not, why not?

As a business Cash Flow coach for businesses, I can offer some suggestions on one aspect of your business financial health - your cash flow.  This is an article on Ways to Maximize Cash Flow that I contributed to the March/April 2012 issue of The Bulletin, published by the Escambia Medical Society.  The principles can be applied to any business.  Enjoy!

It's never too late to plan for your own successes.  Since Spring brings new energy and warmth to the whole environment, I hope it energizes you to re-visit areas of your business or career that stayed dormant, like the Winter that just passed. Go out, re-connect, and network with friends, colleagues, and mentors.  Catch the excitement that Spring brings, and celebrate the season!

Lin Engie
Delinquency Management Specialist
lin.engie@transworldsystems.com
850.266.7791
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May the Luck of the Irish be Yours Today!

May your blessings outnumber

The shamrocks that grow,
And may trouble avoid you
Wherever you go.
~Irish Blessing


While we celebrate and associate St. Patrick's Day with parades, pub crawls, green beer, shamrock, and donning everything green, I thought it might be interesting to note that most of these traditions were invented in the United States by Irish-Americans, according to this article in the National Geographic Daily News, St. Patrick's Day 2012: Facts, Myths, and Traditions. In Ireland, March 17th was a minor religious holiday to commemorate its patron saint's birthday. St. Patrick devoted the latter part of his life converting Irish native pagans to Christianity.  However, it is now celebrated in full force with parades, lots of beer drinking, and revelry in Ireland, and really, everywhere around the world.  How are you celebrating St. Patrick's Day?  I would love to hear about your family traditions.


Now, if you are running a business, don't just rely on this one day of Irish luck to grow your cash flow.  Follow these few easy tips to ensure that your cash keeps flowing into your own Pot of Gold:

1. Have a written credit policy
2. Make sure your staff and clients/patients are aware of this policy
3. Train your staff to consistently enforce your established credit policy - be polite but firm
4. It's often better to negotiate and agree on a payment plan instead of agreeing to delay payments past 30 days.
5. Intervene early and frequently with professional billing reminders (every 10 to 14 days)
6. When your internal efforts are no longer effective, outsource it to a professional and reputable collection service.  Consider a low fixed fee service that allows you to keep 100% of your collected revenue, such as Transworld Systems.  If you have a need, I can help.

May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live. - Irish saying

Happy Valentine's Day!

Today is dedicated to all the people (family, friends, clients, colleagues, classmates, etc.) we love. So, to all you,  Happy Valentine's Day! Many of you may be giving and receiving heart-shaped chocolates (hopefully the dark kind), along with flowers, etc. Do you know that there are approximately 38 million heart-shaped chocolate boxes sold each year for Valentine's Day? That's a lot of chocolates - 58 million pounds, to be exact.

February is not just for chocolate hearts.  It's American Heart Month.  According to the CDC, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. - 2,200 deaths per day due to heart disease and stroke. I hope you will take this to heart - enjoy your family, your work, eat a balanced, healthy diet, and do some exercise everyday (walking and stretching around your office counts).  I was just at a health seminar on maintaining a healthy heart, and guess what?  The cardiologists there confirmed that dark chocolates are actually good for you and your heart - of course, in moderation. So, enjoy the chocolates from your special Valentine, and add some red wine and fresh fruits for a healthy, romantic evening!

A little stress is supposedly good at getting your heart  pumping and keeping you on your toes, but undue stress is definitely detrimental to your heart health.  Look at what you can delegate and outsource, so you can fully focus on what you do best and enjoy, and bring you the most value. If you have challenges with open accounts and collecting from your clients or patients, and the processes you are using now are not getting you the results you want, then consider outsourcing this unpleasant, but very vital, function to a professional and reputable collection service. It can do wonders to your cash flow and your heart health!

Transworld Systems, the nations's largest Cash Flow and Delinquency Management company, provides a suite of innovative cash flow tools to help clients recover four times the national average of a standard percentage collection service.  We have been doing this successfully since 1970.  Over the past decade, we've resolved $6 Billion for over 200,000 clients nationwide.  Just like maintaining heart health, intervene early, and your chances of recovery will be much more successful. If you are interested in learning how I can help you improve your cash flow quickly, without alienating your clients, and still get to keep 100% of what we collect for you, contact me here:
lin.engie@transworldsystems.com
850.266.7791
850.366.2328
or
Connect with me on : http://www.linkedin.com/in/linengie
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