visa

[Ron Lindeboom]

[johnsabbath d’urzo] “i have a merchant account i dont have a signature and he has the product for 3 weeks. he said he was going to fax me a signature for the last 3 weeks and nothing. i called him twice and his accountant 3 times and sent him 2 emails and still nothing.”

Nothing? You must be joking, John. That callus disregard and failure to deal with you in good faith IS the answer, man. The trouble is, you are not listening.

This guy sees you as a real sap and he knows he can work you and treat you like dirt and you will let him. As Steve Wargo said, you are like a battered wife who keeps going back to the bastard and yet wants sympathy for the abuse.

You are NOT going to get the past monies you are owed, John. That is the fact of the matter. He is using it as bait to keep you on the hook and the taste of that worm has you shoving the hook right through the roof of your mouth.

Look at the track record. Look at the way he has treated you. Look at the fact that on one of your jobs he withheld payment because he wanted it at half price — which you stated in the opening post you made. Look at the fact that he is airing a job that he promised to pay you for and has not even given you the courtesy of a reply when you contact him or his accountant.

Write this off as tuition in the Business School of Hard Knocks (from its’ freshman Business Basics course track, btw) and learn from it.

Move on and get real customers.

Oh, and for fear of sounding like a broken record, go read Client or Grinders: How Understanding the 3 Market Types Affects Success. You really need to understand what is in that article.

Ron Lindeboom
creativecow.net

[Ron Lindeboom]

[moody glasgow] “You either put your foot down now, or give up and admit he owns you.”

Moody is right.

If you watch HBO’s “Oz” series about life in prison, to paraphrase Moody’s comment in the parlance of Oz, you are going to be his bitch or you are not. The choice is yours.

That is the simple choice of the matter and all of the smokescreen of future work and losing clients is pure bull, this guy is NOT a client, he is a certified grinder — oh, and at this point he owns you.

Pardon the crude speech in this post but in the spirit of the business magazine I worked on back in the mid- to late-80s, this one is Straight Talk for Small Business.

Ron Lindeboom
creativecow.net

[Johnsabbath D’urzo]

Thanks for the help. I will read the link tonight. What are some good steps in setting up a company for a new account if they want 30 day tearms. I have to restructur my business and be more stricked with clients. It’s hard to put on all the hats. He owns about 20-25k from the past and his client is gone and he never got paid. He is out a lot more than me.

[Ron Lindeboom]

[johnsabbath d’urzo] “He owes about 20-25k from the past and his client is gone and he never got paid. He is out a lot more than me.”

This line is often used by grinders who want out of a bill and if you know the originator of the project and you call them after months of being strung along, you may find out that your “friend” is being less than ethical.

I am NOT saying that all people in that situation are liars but sometimes they are.

One of the best ways to avoid this in the future is to get 1/3rd down, 1/3rd half-way through the project (or at a specified point outlined in your contract — you are using contracts, right?), and the final 1/3rd upon delivery.

Most good companies will not bat an eye at a policy like that. I have found that it’s the grinders that do raise a stink.

You are not a financial institution, you are an editor. Don’t confuse the company roles and missions.

Best regards,

Ron Lindeboom
creativecow.net

[Johnsabbath D’urzo]

thanks Ron, yes I do use contract but would love to see one from another video post production company. Would you know where i can find some samples. I charge an hourly rate, now i’m finding some people would like a flat rate. I guess the right thing to do would be a flat rate with 2 changes then goes into an hourly…well everybody has a different way. Would you know the most common way to work?

[Greg Ball]

Hey Mark, here’s a question on PayPal. I also use PP when I have a client who needs to pay me to get the job shot. However PayPal charges a fee. Do you pass this fee onto the client? If so how do you let them know?

My take on this is that if they had made the decision to use my services earlier they could have paid by check, but now they must use PayPal. Why should I be stuck giving some of that money to PayPal?

[Todd Terry]

Well, if you accept credit cards, whether through PayPal or if you have a merchant account and take credit cards directly… you are going to pay a fee for the privilege. It’s not limited to PayPal, no credit card usage is free.

We do not take credit cards, but if we did I would just eat the CC fee, just like most any other store or business does. It would be more than worth it to have the funds quickly rather than having to hound clients about paying.

T2

__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com

[David Roth weiss]

[Greg Ball] “PayPal charges a fee. Do you pass this fee onto the client? If so how do you let them know?”

You have two elegant choices Greg and a few bad ones. The elegant choices are:

1) Disguise the surcharge by pumping-up your day rate.

2) Write off the PayPal commission as good will.

Bringing the surcharge to the attention of your client just isn’t an elegant business proceedure. How do you feel when merchants try to lay a credit card surcharge on you?

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™

A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, and Indie Film & Documentary forums.

[Mark Suszko]

Greg, I would just fold it (paypal fee) into my other operational costs, and not break it out on paper as an expense to the client. Yes, he’s paying for it, it’s just hidden in with any other costs like xeroxes, blank tape, whatever. You’re not eating the cost of blank stock, are you? Surely, you add that in to the bill somewhere. Same for postage or for Fedex, if they don’t want to give you their Fedex account number. Is this any different then?

You can make one guy pay for all of it, or a lot of guys pay for a fraction of it, if they ever use it or not… it is really up to you. Just be consistent about it, is my opinion. If everybody on your client list is paying a little fraction for it, then be as generous in a applying it as you can, I would say, so all will get the benefit if they ever need it some day.

[Greg Ball]

Hi Mark,
My problem lies in the fact that I give me clients a detailed proposal with everything itemized. Once they approve of the cost, and as we go to contract, we discuss deposits and other items like shipping etc. Only then do we see how they wish to pay. Are you suggesting I build in a 3-5% fee on top of our rates to cover PP fees?