Nudge a 'Friend' - or Disable a Classic Excuse

You can use e-mails in two ways - to nudge 'friends', or to make it more difficult for people to deny that they have received more formal reminders. 'Lost in the post' is a classic delaying tactic, but e-mails rarely go astray - and you can ask for confirmation of receipt when you send them.

Nudging e-mails to 'friends' are much more difficult to ignore than standard reminder letters - and you can start the nudge process (and so set the ball rolling) much sooner. Most reminders go out at 14 days overdue: you can send a nudge to your contact in the Accounts Department a week earlier - and yes! - you should attach a copy of your statement or invoice to it.

The reply - or the fact that you don't get one! - will either reassure you and produce full or partial settlement, or put you on notice that there might be a problem and that you should nudge your other contact right away.