5 Proven Billing Tactics to Get Paid Faster

Getting paid is an essential part of any business. 

Many private practices know that their billing process absorbs valuable time. But because it still needs to get done, they can fall into the habit of treating it as a necessary evil—the task that takes too much time but can’t be dropped.

Fortunately, your billing process doesn’t have to be a slog. These five proactive billing tactics can help you get paid faster.

Track your billable services properly

If you’re putting off tracking billable services because there are so many to keep track of—well, that “so many” part probably means you do not remember to jot them all down. Yes, even if you just wait until the end of the day. 

Human memory is not perfect. If you put off tracking services because you don’t like data entry, here are a few hacks:

• Use a billing tool like CompanyOn to easily invoice services on the go
• Passive time tracking tools, like CompanyOn— let you track, review and decide what to bill for—make an excellent last resort for those who struggle with tracking

Streamline to stay on top of client costs

Private practices often need to cover client care costs out of pocket, such as gas costs, equipment, and printing services for example. Remember to track them as part of your overhead costs.

With client costs, both accounting and billing entries need to be made, and if there’s a lag between the two processes, it’s easy for an item not to make as part of your services or business expenses.

You can use a practice management tool like CompanyOn with integrated billing and accounting—allowing you to track services and send invoices to a client and record all business expenses in one place. 

Automation saves time

Automate what you can in your billing process to save time. It can create space for more billable services.

For instance, premade invoice templates and batch billing increase efficiency. 

Likewise, opt for email delivery. CompanyOn can let you track how often an invoice was sent and if it’s been read. Take advantage of CompanyOn Payments to bill your clients electronically and get paid online.

Get out ahead of collection issues

Stressing about following up with a client wastes valuable energy—and time. Instead, taking a proactive approach to collections can reduce the number of clients with outstanding bills. 

Use these forward-thinking steps to get ahead before getting paid becomes an issue:

• Bill consistently and on time. Clients will have an easier time paying if they know the bill is coming.
• Use clear, straightforward invoices so that clients can quickly review and understand the charges.
• Know where balances stand on client matters, even ones that haven’t been billed for yet. If a balance is getting too big, bill the current amount now.
• Take advantage of your practice management system’s ability to send out automated reminders for overdue accounts. This one’s a time-saver and a stress-reducer.

Know where you’re at with billing insightful metrics

Insightful reports can help you know where your private practice stands financially. They paint a picture of profitability and productivity.

The more integrated your billing and accounting systems, the easier this information is to track.

With a modern practice management system, you can easily track the following metrics:

• The proportion of billable services
• The financial picture of what funds are available, what will be billed for, and what’s overdue
• Utilization, or time that makes it onto a bill, versus realization, or the amount of the invoice that gets paid
• Billing and collection by party

Tracking metrics also opens the possibility of being able to measure the success rate of your practice goals.

Change your billing habits with better tracking, integrated billing and accounting, automation, and metrics—and get back your time for billable services that can better sustain your practice health and growth.

The good news is that CompanyOn provides you with every single of the above tasks for the management of your practice ❤️.

At CompanyOn, we’re committed to supporting our community of solo practitioners, no matter where they are in pursuing professional independence. If you are interested in a particular topic you would like us to discuss, please let us know at [email protected].

Related Resources:

British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives

College of Nurse of Ontario

College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta

College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta

College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba

College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Manitoba

Canadian Nurses Association

Canadian Nurses Protective Society

Canadian Association of Foot Care Nurses