I feel your pain, brother.
I'm in my 21st year of doing engineering, producing, session playing and studio owning.
You are exhibiting excellent business acumen.
The #1 reason small businesses fail is not because of long-term viability, it is because of cash flow problems. Cash and carry addresses this because you MUST have the same terms with your cash in as your cash out, ie with your clients as with your utlities,, rent, insurance, repair people and your stomach.
If the latter are due and the former are not forthcoming, you better have some backup funds!
Recently I've been tempted to tell clients:
"Think of me as your mechanic. Not because I'll fix your career but because you ain't getting your ride til you pay your bill!"
or
"Sure, your face looks honest but I can't fit it into my cash register!"
I've told several employees:
"Here's the single most important part of your job engineering here: GET THE MONEY!"
Am I saying that money is my sole or even my main motivation for doing this throughout the years? NO! It is not. I would've continued my education through law school if money was such a motivated.
But cash flow is the river from which all things in any small business drink. Won't be much art happening when the electricity is shut off!
This brings up a problematic logistic:
When you give a client a 16 bit ref and withhold the 24 bit files or 1/2 inch tape until full payment, you expose yourself to the risk of them mastering off the 16 bit files (which I dither w/ UV22 which doesn't sound half bad) and not paying you.
Recently I was owed about 10K on a project that was nearing conclusion when the band started nonchalantly talking about how they were going to shop it and how they KNEW they'd immediately get some big advance to pay the balance, fly here and there, buy gear, etc.
I thought: "Uh oh! Actually their songs ain't that great and I can't seem them getting ANYTHING but dissapointed and when that happens and they don't realize their past dreams (these guys were older musicians who had had success in the 80's... but no way now! my wife heard it and called it Viagra Rock!), who do you think they will blame? and who do you think they'd use that to justify not paying?
Yeah, that's right, lil ol me!
Problem was, they wanted 16 bit refs immediately and said that they HAD to have them to sign off on the mixes. But I KNEW they would usethe refs to shop thereby negating their motivation for paying me the balance.
So I was sitting at my mac, scratching my head, thinking: "Damned if I do, damned if I don't!"
And then there it was: right in front of me! The perfect solution! I-TUNES!!!!!!!
When you want to see if you like an album on I-Tunes, you hear 10 or 15 seconds as a sample. Hey, the right 10 or 15 seconds of a mix tells you a lot about drum sounds, vocal levels, etc.
So I did up refs of 15 secs of each track and gave them to the clients.
BOY WERE THEY PISSED!!!!!
I got threatening and abusive e-mails, was accused of more treachery then Saddam Hussein and Donald Rumsfield combined, etc. I stuck to my guns and kept saying:
The simple solution is to pay your bill, which is due. If you'd like me to sign something that says if there are any TECHNICAL defects in the mixes I will fix them for free, I'll do so.
This went on for weeks so I added the pressure of taking them to court on a certain date if they didn't pay. I had early e-mails in which they had promised payment on a certain date.
Finally they paid in full.
A double win for me: I'm paid and they are no longer my clients!
THEY HAD NO INTENTIONN OF PAYING THIS BALANCE!!!!!
Try to keep return clients. But the ones you "lose" over payment are NOT ones you want to keep!!!
Also, I STRONGLY suggest you do P.O.'s for each clients that stated rates and terms of payment and delivery. Short of this, have them reply and confirm their acceptance to an email of yours that states these things.
I have never NOT been paid by a major label but there have been many times with major labels that the A&R said, "No we discussed this and it was..."
At which point I just forward them the emails from prvius weeks that in fact shows that NO, IT WAS THIS...."
sorts it every time!
MORAL: GET IT IN CASH FROM BANDS OR SMALL BUSINESS, GET IT IN WRITING FROM MAJOR LABELS
