VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[JCDunn]

Hey Folks,

This is the first time I've been paid with an eCheck through PayPal and I'm looking for suggestions on how to handle my client.

I explained to my client that I required 50% of the project cost to be deposited to my PayPal account before I started recording. I received notification from PayPal that money was on the way but it was being held for a number of days. I'm scheduled to start this project tomorrow and deliver the files on Friday. At which point, I'll be paid the balance.

This is a new client and I feel uncomfortable starting the project without the funds actually in my PayPal account. Furthermore, by the time I'm scheduled to deliver the files, the first payment still won't be in my account.

I'm thinking of replying with, "I received notification of your payment to my PayPal account and since an eCheck was used, it is being held until
8/9/10. Since I require 50% up front before I start recording, this has pushed the start date to 8/9/10. It is possible the check will clear before then. Please advise on how you would like to proceed."

Thoughts?
-JCD
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J. Christopher
Your words deserve a clear voice.

[Mike Sommer]

Sounds good to me. Rules are rules.
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The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

[bransom]

My suggestion, before booting the job and possibly angering the client, is to take a good long look at the client company and the likelihood of the payment being good. Here's why:

First off, I'm making the assumption that your client is a real company, and U.S.-based, and not, like, some dude in India that wants DJ drops or whatever. So anyway: Many, if not most, companies aren't set up to pay by PayPal. They pay their bills the old fashioned way: Net 30 (or 60 or 90 or whatever). And often the employees of said company don't have corporate charge cards to buy stuff with. So your buyer may be left with two options to satisfy your payment requirements: to pay using his/her own charge card and then try to expense the charge back to the company, or request a company check. In this case, it's an e-check but to most accounting departments, that's still a check. And so to the client, they've satisfied your stated terms: 50% up front via PayPal.

Did you specify that e-checks would have to clear or that payment was required by credit card or direct PayPal debit? If so, then forget the previous two paragraphs — the client obviously ignored your stated terms — and bounce the job.

But if not, you might want to do a little research on the company to see if they appear likely to be credit worthy. Maybe if the job or client relationship is worth it, pull a Dunn & Bradstreet report on the client company (http://smallbusiness.dnb.com/). In the end, you might decide it's worth it to roll the dice and go ahead without complaint. Or explain to them your normal policy but that you'll give them a pass on it this time.

Maybe I've been lucky, and I'm knocking on wood right now, but I've only been stiffed once in nearly 20 years of self-employment.

Bob
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Bob Ransom
"I really need a pithy quote here."

[Michael Schoen]

Believe me, I am not setting myself up as the "standard" but I don't like asking for payment up front -- and I have never been burned.
Services rendered, payment on completion.

The Only non payment I ever experienced came from a "reputable" company that just suddenly became a dead beat but that was 11 years ago.

In this case, why not do the job?
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http://MichaelSchoen.com

[Jeffrey Kafer]

Agreed. If the client paid by echeck, your chances have increased that they're not going to screw you. If they wanted to stiff you, they probably wouldn't go to the trouble of bouncing an echeck. They would just bail on you and find some other sucker.
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Jeff
http://JeffreyKafer.com
Voice-overload Web comic: http://voice-overload.com

[Bruce]

PayPal holds payment like that to protect their rear end in case something goes wrong, but the fact that your client has opened their checking account, in a manner of speaking, to PayPal would say to me that they're serious about their commitment to you. That money is no longer in their account; it's in PayPal's. Also, how big is the total bill to you? If it's huge and you'd be heartbroken to get stiffed then maybe you should wait. If it'd just be an annoying, small life lesson, I'd say let 'er rip.

Another thought: if you're getting bad vibes from this guy or what you're reading about is iffy kind of stuff, that's a reason to wait, I suppose. But if there's neutral to positive feelings about the situation, then I'd say proceed.

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[JCDunn]

I'm a flexible kind of guy and open to new possibilities so I've decided to proceed with project. I've built up enough Karma so I feel some what shielded from something bad happening.

Seriously, I got the feed back I was looking for and I thank you all for replying. I wanted to make sure that I was not missing something I hadn't considered.

Thanks!
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J. Christopher
Your words deserve a clear voice.

[ConnieTerwilliger]

Just make sure that PayPal tells you that the deal is done. I had someone back out of a payment one time after it looked like everything was good. They were just punks as it turns out - a one time only never to come back to anyone again for voice work kind of client.

First and only time that has ever happened.
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