Often, in the process of carrying out any economic activity, the question arises: which calculation for the work performed or the services provided is of the two popular: is prepayment and postpayment better? Let's try to understand this article with these two terms.
Comparison of different forms of payment
To the question: “Which form of payment is better?” - any businessman finds an individual answer for himself. Also, each of the business entities can choose a convenient calculation for themselves. This can be both a prepayment and a postpay. What it is can be determined from the meaning of the word itself. For a deep understanding of this term, it is necessary to consider it on the example of some areas of activity of business entities.
Prepayment
So what is prepayment? This is a certain amount that is transferred to the seller at the initial stage as an advance for the work performed or delivered goods in the future. A positive aspect in this form of payment is the seller’s confidence that they will not “throw him”. It’s more fun to work with that feeling. However, this creates a sense of duty, and sometimes customers begin to get bored with questions about the status of the work performed. Especially this situation may arise if the buyer has an unformed reputation in the domestic market. An experienced businessman, in general, has established relationships with serious partners who trust him.
There are various sizes of prepayment: 30%, 50%, and sometimes 100% of the agreed amount. The best option is considered to be an advance payment in the amount of half the cost of the order. If you focus on 100% prepayment, then you can lose potential customers, especially at the initial stage of development of professional activity.
Postpay
What is it, and how to use this form of payment correctly? Often companies practice this form of payment within a few days (sometimes up to 20) after receiving goods or services. Firstly, the effectiveness of postpayments is associated with a significant reduction in labor costs, since the supplier only needs to submit one package of documents, and the buyer needs to go through the internal procedures once when making the payment. A sufficient condition for successful interaction is the mentioned postpay in the contract. Secondly, this form of payment can significantly reduce the risk of non-receipt of goods or services of the required quality. And, finally, thirdly, many financiers argue about such a form as postpay, that this is exactly the effective tool that allows you to organize financial flows. Therefore, financial stability can be achieved only by comparing cash receipts with financial liabilities.
Thus, the importance of high-quality financial planning for any business entity is very large, and postpayments have a role to play in this process. The same financial reliability and the ability to manage their own financial flows is expected from another participant in the economic relationship - the supplier.
Custom products
When making purchases, each buyer is faced with the question of which payment terms to choose. In other words, when exactly to pay for the goods: before it is received or after. Most people believe that postpay will be better, that this should guarantee the receipt of goods on hand. However, often stores (for example, on the World Wide Web) operate only on full prepayment, which causes a certain mistrust on the part of customers.
Postpay in the advertising business
Unfortunately, this form of payment is one of the main factors that hinder the development of the advertising industry. This is due to the inability to complete a new order until payment is received for a completed previous project.
Postpay is able to create such a problem in the advertising market as a lack of working capital. Of course, there are cardinal ways to deal with it: non-payment of rent, delayed wages, attempts to postpone vacation or
borrow money from friends. However, all of these methods will ultimately lead to the closure of the business.
Therefore, as a "lifebuoy" you can suggest the use of factoring, in which all problems can turn into advantages.
Firstly, when factoring, no collateral is needed when applying for a loan. As supporting documents are invoices or acts of work certified by the parties. For the factor, such documents are recognized as confirming the obligations of the customer, and under such paper he will be able to issue funds.
Secondly, many advertising agencies have one or two large customers. It is not difficult for a factor to verify solvency. Therefore, this fact significantly increases the chances of an advertising agency to receive the necessary funding.
Thirdly, the advertising agency immediately after the completion of the order can receive 90% of its value. And the remaining money is transferred after the factor collects the full amount from the customer and withholds the commission.
Summing up the material presented in this article, it should be noted that the use of both prepayment and postpay is the choice only of the participants in economic relations themselves.