Dunning management is the sequence of reminders a business sends as an invoice goes from due to overdue to seriously overdue, and for a small seller on account it is the single practice that most shortens the days between the sale and the cash. It is not collections; it is the polite, dated record that the customer was reminded, at the right intervals, with the right figures. This page is about the reminder schedule that works for a business with a few dozen accounts, what the overdue invoice email should carry, and what dunning software has to hold so the reminder is always right.
The dunning management system schedule: from the due date, not from memory
A reminder a few days before the due date, one on the day after, one a week later with the statement attached, and one at thirty days that says what happens next. Every step keys off the due date on the invoice record, so a dunning management system needs the invoice, its due date and the payments applied against it, and nothing more. The tracker on this site reads the overdue share from exactly those fields.
What the overdue invoice email carries
The invoice number, its date and due date, the amount still open after any part payment, the days overdue, a copy of the invoice and the statement, and the way to pay. The tone is a statement of fact, not a complaint. The past due invoice email template that works is short because the figures do the talking, and the figures are only right if they come from the record rather than from a spreadsheet someone updated last week.
Invoice reminder software and the payment that already arrived
The reminder that damages a relationship is the one sent to a customer who paid yesterday. Invoice reminder software has to read the payment applied against the named invoice before it sends, which is why dunning belongs on the same record as the invoices and the payments rather than in a separate mailing tool. On the paid record on this site the reminder fires from the invoice's own status, so a paid invoice cannot be chased.
Past due invoices and what comes after dunning
When the schedule is exhausted the seller decides: hold further orders, agree a plan, or refer the debt out. That decision is the seller's and is outside what this site does. What dunning gives the seller at that point is the dated history of every reminder and every part payment, which is what any next step asks for first.
Questions people ask about dunning management
What is dunning software for?
The scheduled reminders sent as an invoice passes its due date, each carrying the open amount and the days overdue, keyed off the invoice record so a paid invoice is never chased.
How many invoice reminders should a small business send?
Typically one before the due date, one just after, one a week on with the statement, and one at thirty days stating what happens next. Set the intervals to your terms and keep them the same for every customer.
What should an overdue invoice email say?
The invoice number, dates, open amount after part payments, days overdue, a copy of the invoice and statement, and how to pay. Facts, briefly.
Does this site send reminders?
The free tracker shows what is overdue and for how long. The paid record sends the statement and the reminders on your schedule from the invoice's own status.
Is there a past due invoice email template to copy?
The lines are in the section above and they are short on purpose: the invoice number, the amount, the date it fell due, how to pay, and one sentence saying what happens next. A past due invoice email template that opens with an apology or closes with a threat gets the same result as sending nothing, which is why the schedule matters more than the wording.