Act on every reply to your payment reminders

Fields

• Reminder this reply answers (first, second or final)
• Customer's reply, without the quoted reminder

Questions

1. What is the customer mainly telling us about the overdue invoices in this reply? Choice

   Choose the one option that best fits the whole reply. When the reply gives different answers for different invoices, for example a dispute on one and a payment date on another, choose Different answers for different invoices.

   • Promise to pay The customer commits to paying the overdue invoices, with or without a date, and raises no problem with them.
   • Already paid The customer says the payment has been made or sent, in their own words, without a list of the invoices paid.
   • Remittance advice A list or notice of the invoices paid and the amounts, usually sent by the customer's payment system or accounts team.
   • Dispute The customer disagrees with the invoices, the price, the quantity or the goods or service, and holds back payment until it is sorted out.
   • Invoice not received The customer says they never got the invoice or cannot find it.
   • Needs documents The customer asks for a copy invoice, a PO number, a proof of delivery or a statement before they can pay, without disputing anything.
   • In approval or a payment run The customer says the invoices are in their internal approval or scheduled in a payment run, without disputing them.
   • Asks for time or a plan The customer asks to pay later, in parts, or on different terms.
   • Wrong contact The person says they are not the right contact for invoices, or that the contact has left.
   • Automatic reply An out of office, a no-reply notice or another message no person wrote.
   • Different answers for different invoices The reply says one thing about one invoice and something different about another, such as a dispute on one and a payment date on the other.

2. If the reply disputes any invoice, what is the reason? Choice

   Look at every invoice the reply mentions. When the reply raises more than one reason, pick the one the customer puts first. Choose No dispute when the reply disputes nothing.

   • Price The price billed differs from the price agreed, quoted or on the order.
   • Quantity or short delivery The customer was billed for more than they received, or part of the order is missing.
   • Damaged or defective The goods arrived damaged, were faulty or did not work.
   • Not ordered The customer says they did not order the goods or service billed.
   • Service not delivered The work or service billed was not done, or not finished.
   • Duplicate billing The customer says they were billed twice for the same goods or service.
   • Contract or terms A disagreement about the contract, a discount, a rebate, the payment terms or a charge such as late fees.
   • No dispute The reply disputes nothing on any invoice.

3. Does the reply give a date, day or week when a payment will be made or sent? Yes / No

   Count a date, a weekday, a week, the end of a month or a named payment run for any invoice in the reply. Code reads the date itself. Yes: The reply names when at least one payment will be made or sent. No: The reply names no date, day, week or payment run for a payment.

4. Does the reply say that only part of an invoice has been or will be paid? Yes / No

   Count a short payment, a deduction for a claim, a payment on account, or paying one line of an invoice but not another. Holding back a whole invoice is not a partial payment. Yes: The reply says less than the full amount of an invoice has been or will be paid. No: The reply mentions no payment of part of an invoice.

5. Does the reply ask us to send a copy invoice, a statement, a PO number, a proof of delivery or another document? Yes / No

   Count a request for any document about the invoices, whatever else the reply says. Yes: The reply asks for at least one document. No: The reply asks for no document.

6. Does the customer mention cash-flow trouble, being unable to pay, or insolvency? Yes / No

   Count cash-flow problems, being unable to pay, waiting on their own customers to pay before they can, and any mention of administration, liquidation, restructuring, a creditors' arrangement or bankruptcy. Yes: The reply mentions at least one of these. No: The reply mentions none of these.

7. Does the reply name another person, team or address to send reminders or invoices to? Yes / No

   Count a new contact name, a different email address, an accounts payable mailbox or a supplier portal the customer asks us to use. Yes: The reply tells us to send reminders or invoices somewhere else. No: The reply names no other contact or address.

8. Is the customer upset about the reminders themselves, or threatening to stop buying from us? Yes / No

   Count complaints about how often or how we chase, a tone of anger at being chased, and a threat to move their business or stop ordering. A dispute about the goods on its own does not count. Yes: The customer is upset about the chasing, or threatens the relationship. No: The customer raises no complaint about the chasing and makes no such threat.

9. Does the reply ask a question or raise a point that needs a person to answer? Yes / No

   Count a question, a complaint, a dispute or a request that a logged update or an automatic resend cannot settle. Yes: A person needs to write back or act. No: The reply can be settled by logging it or by an automatic step.

Lens columns

reply_type, reply_type_probability, dispute_reason, dispute_reason_probability, payment_date_given, payment_date_given_probability, partial_payment, partial_payment_probability, documents_requested, documents_requested_probability, financial_difficulty, financial_difficulty_probability, redirects_contact, redirects_contact_probability, relationship_risk, relationship_risk_probability, human_reply_needed, human_reply_needed_probability