SiteDec7
Want to get paid on time? Pay up.
Want to get paid in a timely manner? Apparently, some publishers are offering this “perk” — for a fee. You can wait 60 days or more to get paid, or you can forfeit a percentage of your earned fee to get paid quickly. I smell scam. What do you think? [llf]
7 Responses to “Want to get paid on time? Pay up.”
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Ed
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 9:38am:It reminds me of the trend toward “rebates” in retail sales. Now every industry wants to be a bank, but without the regulation or oversight.
quinn
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 9:53am:What’s next? We get paid with scrip and buy our groceries at the company store?
Angie
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 10:49am:From the contract posted in the story: “In the event that you elect to discount your fees and errors in processing your payment cause a delay in payment, invoices will default to a payment term of a 2% discount and payment in thirty (30) days from the date of the receipt of the invoice.”
So…they screw up in paying you within 15 days and still get to charge you to pay you later than agreed upon. Lovely.
DianaBurrell
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 11:44am:Good timing, as I’ve spent the morning having to wear my Gambino crew badge to beat money out of publishers.
Some writers have been pointing out that taking discounts is “standard business practice” in the business world. It’s then worth pointing out that standard business practice for professional services is that the vendor sets the payment terms and offers the discounts, not the client.
Gwynneth
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 4:40pm:One way to battle this is to simply add on another 4%-5% to the overall invoice.
However, the red flag from a prior analyst’s life would alert me to find new markets. When companies start doing this, it means cash flow is more cramped than what executives are letting on to the shareholder public.
LindaFormichelli
Said this on December 7th, 2009 at 8:54pm:Thanks for your comments, everyone!
Gwynneth, the bad news is that with magazine assignments is that writers sign a contract that gives them a set fee, so you can’t tack on a percentage. However, you could always negotiate a higher fee in anticipation of maybe having to shell out a certain percentage for prompt payment.
Karen Elliott
Said this on February 8th, 2010 at 6:16pm:Oh, I do not like this idea about giving up a percentage for prompt payment. We pay to get paid on time? I have never even heard of this before. I certainly hope it’s not the trend. Quinn – liked your response!