Take a moment to picture your email inbox in your mind and imagine 10 or so unopened emails.
Now take a moment to consider the order in which you will open them.
Does the following order look about right?:
- Emails from people you know
- Emails from people you don’t know
- Emails from robots (email newsletters, automated emails)
The problem with automated payment reminders is that they are easy to identify as belonging in the 3rd category. And since it’s clear that there isn’t another person on the other end awaiting a response, they are also easy to ignore and/or trash.
Tell-tale signs of an automated email:
- The “from” field is not a persons name but a department or brand instead
- The “via” field is routed through a 3rd party email provider
- The language and tone of the body of the email is more formal than normal emails written by people
- There is no email signature from a real person at the bottom of the email
To increase the chances of getting those late invoices paid, all you have to do is dump the automated reminders in favour of the personal touch.