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- Bankruptcy and Bankruptcy Code
- Business Entities
- Departmental Operations
- Credit Practices
- Legal
- Risk Analysis
- Understanding Accounts Receivable Costs
- Accounts Receivable Forecasting
- Informing Customers of their Credit Limits
- Authorization for Bank to Release Credit Information
- Authorizing Release of Credit Information
- Bank Loans and Bank Credit
- Expediting Bank Reference Requests
- Understanding Banking Relationships
- Bounced Checks; Collecting on Bounced Checks, NSF Checks
- Business Credit; Trade Credit; Open Account Credit Terms
- The Five Cs of Credit Analysis
- Check Acceptance
- Check Kiting
- Classification of Risk; Customer Risk Score
- COD Terms; Slow Pay; High Risk; Risk Mitigation;
- Code of Ethics
- Confidentiality Agreement
- Consumer Credit Granting
- Commercial Credit Application; Necessary Components
- Credit Approval Process
- Credit Associations
- Credit Decision-Making
- Offering Open Account Terms; Credit Extension
- Customer Credit File; Credit File
- Credit Granting Authority
- Credit History and Strategy
- Credit Insurance; Trade Credit Insurance; Export Credit Insurance
- Credit Line or Credit Limit
- Credit Policy Checklist
- Credit References
- Credit Reporting Agencies
- Credit Risk Environment
- Credit Risk Management
- Credit Role/Strategy
- Credit Decision Making: Is it Art or Science?
- Customer Purchase Orders, Errors on POs and their Impact on Collections
- Customer Retention
- Grace Periods and Cash Discounts
- Direct and Indirect Credit Investigations
- Unearned Discounts; Unearned Cash Discounts; Cash Discounts
- Enterprise Resource Planning
- Ethics for the Credit Manager
- Evaluating Financial Health
- Exchange of Credit Information
- Extended Dating Terms
- Credit File Documentation
- Fraud Signs and Prevention
- History of Credit
- Cargo Insurance
- Insurance Brokers and Credit Insurance
- Internet as a Source of Credit Information
- Late Charges
- Minimum First Order Without Credit Investigation
- New Account Checklist
- Non-Disclosure Agreement
- Open Account Sales; Open Account Terms; Extension of Credit on Open Account Terms
- Order Approval; Order Hold; Credit Reviews; Pending Order Review
- Order Controls / Order Approval
- Pro Forma Invoices
- Requesting Financial Information from Customers
- Restrictive Endorsements
- Returned Checks
- Return Merchandise Authorizations
- Root Cause Analysis of Past Due Balances
- Safeguarding Accounts
- Security Agreements; Secured Debts
- Seller's Invoice
- Terms and Conditions
- Terms of Sale
- Terms of Sale: Examples
- Types of Credit: Consumer Credit; Bank Credit; Commercial Credit; B2B; Business to Business
- Written Credit Policy Manual
- Handling Post Audit Claims More Effectively; Post Audit Claims
- Do's and Don'ts of Business to Business Debt Collection, Debt Collection Practices
- Bad Debt Reserves
- Advantages and Disadvantages of Purchasing Credit Insurance
- A Letter of Introduction
- Addressing Chronic Slow Pay Customers
- More about Cash Forecasting
- Streamlining Order Processing
- Collection Practices
- Financial Analysis
- Financing Methods
- International Credit
- Laws and Regulations
- Payment Methods
- Performance Measures
- Security Instruments
- Career Management, and Job Change
- Credit Website Tools
- Upcoming Educational Events
- Credit and Collections Tools and Tips
- Tips on Creating Better Emails
- Generating Effective Credit Correspondence
- Exporting
- Accounting
Open Account Sales; Open Account Terms; Extension of Credit on Open Account Terms
In order to maximize or more precisely to optimize sales and profits, most companies have no choice but to accept a certain amount of risk by offering open account terms to customers that would be considered marginal credit risks. A competent and qualified credit manager and a well-trained and managed credit and collection department can significantly increase the likelihood that a creditor company will receive payment sooner rather than later. The risk management and collection functions are essential to the success of any business that offers open account credit terms to marginal customers.
Open account terms can be thought of or defined as sales made by the seller to a customer for which the seller must await payment from the buyer. Payment is scheduled based on predetermined repayment terms established by the seller and accepted or agreed to by the buyer.
Contrary to popular opinion, the duties and responsibilities of a credit manager and the collection department are not limited to chasing past due balances. In fact, the most important work performed by the credit department is done before orders are released. It can be argued that the most important work done is the decision about what terms to offer to a marginal account, and that the second most important task is to ensure that credit terms and credit limits are adjusted as the risk associated with doing business with a particular customer increases or decreases over time.
© 2011. Michael C. Dennis. All Rights Reserved. Michael is the author of "Credit and Collection Handbook."
Edited by Michael Zininberg