For me, one of the most challenging aspects of freelancing is the occasional financial uncertainty. Because let’s face it -- there is no guaranteed paycheck on the 1st and the 15th.

Consistently looking for work and meeting your daily income goals can help ease some of this uncertainty. But you still don’t have a lot of say over when your clients pay you.

My freelancing income often comes in waves, with some clients paying me almost immediately, and others taking anywhere from 30 to 60 days to pay. It all tends to work out over time, but there have definitely been a few nerve-wracking moments over the years.

And it’s likely that at some point, you’ll have to deal with a non-paying client. I still haven’t found a way to avoid this scenario, although I’m happy to say it’s pretty rare.

5 ways freelance writers can get paid every time

Fortunately, there are ways you can protect yourself as a freelancer and set yourself up to get paid every time. Here are five tips to help you get started.

1. Be really choosy about your clients

I have found that the best way to deal with bad clients is to identify them and avoid working with them from the get-go. Clients give you very clear signs as to what they’ll be like to work with right from the start.

For instance, low-paying clients are often the most difficult and high-maintenance to work with. You would think that clients with low budgets would be happy to take whatever they can get but I’ve found it’s usually the opposite.

Clients who lowball you often have absurdly high standards and expect written perfection from every blog post. And they’re also more likely to do things like refuse to pay.

2. Demand payment upfront

Another way to make sure you always get paid is by demanding payment upfront before completing any work for the client. Or at the very least, you can request 50% upfront and the remainder upon completion.

Personally, I don’t do this with any of my clients. Mostly because I write for a number of blogs, well-known publications, and large companies. Many of those clients pay per word and have pretty strict invoicing guidelines they follow.

However, I do think this strategy would work well for small business clients that you have on retainers. If you choose to do this, my advice is simply to tread lightly. You don’t want to lose a potential client by being too inflexible about your payment terms.

3. Keep careful track of your invoices

Pick a time every week to review your finances and see what invoices are currently pending or overdue.

I know the idea that you could ever overlook an invoice may sound crazy at this point but it’s possible.

I currently have 15 active clients right now, and since I’m always focused on finding new work, I constantly bring on new clients as well.

I send a lot of invoices throughout the month so it’s important that I have a system to track these things.

I recommend using some type of accounting software to automate following up on invoices. You can send an invoice reminder a few days before the invoice is due, as well as a follow-up reminder once the invoice becomes late.

4. Don’t ignore obvious red flags

In 2017, I wrote weekly blog posts for a large marketing company. I really enjoyed the work and liked my client so I was willing to overlook the fact that they constantly paid me late.

The payments were usually late by about a week, so I never stressed about it too much. Then I noticed it started taking them longer and longer to pay me. Stupidly, I continued to do new work for them in the meantime.

Finally, I was fed up with the overdue payments and reached out to my client. She didn’t answer any of my emails, and I couldn’t get any response when I contacted the AP department.

Turns out, that company filed for bankruptcy. Needless to say, I never got paid the $700 they owed me.

If clients fall behind on paying you, don’t be passive about it or assume that they’re planning to pay you eventually. And definitely don’t do more work for them.

Just because you’re a freelancer doesn’t mean you work for free -- you deserve to get paid.

5. Use a freelancing platform like Upwork

Anytime you invoice clients, you always run the risk that one of them won’t pay you. My experience has shown that non-payment is rare, but it does happen.

That’s why I love using a freelancing platform like Upwork. When someone hires you on Upwork, they fund the milestone right from the start. That means you know you’ll get paid every time.

If you’re curious about Upwork but not sure how to get started, I recommend checking out my free Upwork webinar. This webinar will teach you the five things you need to know to find high-paying clients on Upwork.

What should I do if a client doesn’t pay me?

The reality is, even if you do everything I’ve outlined in this article there’s still a chance that at some point, a client won’t pay you.

So what should you do if that happens?

First of all, don’t freak out because it won’t help the situation at all.

Don’t get so distracted by this one client who owes you money that you stop looking for work or neglect your other paying clients.

One thing that can be helpful is to call clients who are overdue on their invoices. It’s harder for someone to blow you off over the phone than it is if you’re just emailing back and forth.

But at some point, you may have to cut your losses and move on. That’s what I had to do with my client who went out of business. It sucks, but just know that these types of setbacks are only temporary.

And just know that while client non-payment issues do happen, they are pretty rare. I’ve only had this happen twice in my four years of freelancing.

Once because the company went bankrupt, and the second time during the pandemic when tons of companies were losing money and going out of business. These are obviously extreme scenarios and not at all the norm.

The bottom line about getting paid

Freelance writing can be uncertain, but there are steps you can take to protect yourself. Choose your clients carefully and come up with a system to automate invoicing and following up with clients.

If you have questions about invoicing clients or anything else about getting started as a freelance writer, I’d love for you to hop on a Next Client Coaching Call with me. During this completely free, 30-minute call we’ll talk about any current challenges you’re facing as a freelance writer.

And most importantly, we’ll identify one action step you can take to move forward in your business. You can grab your spot here:

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