When people picture running their own bookkeeping practice, they picture the work. Finding the first clients. Getting the systems right. Building something that lasts.
What they rarely picture is the part that turns up every month afterwards. Chasing money.
It is one of the least enjoyable jobs in a small practice, and it is not really about the money. It is about the awkwardness. Following up someone you have a good relationship with. Sending the third reminder. Wondering whether to say something at the next catch up.
That is why First Class Accounts partners with Pinch, an Australian payment platform built to take invoice chasing off the desk entirely.
Why chasing payment costs more than the money
Late payment does two things to a practice. It makes cash flow unpredictable, and it eats time that nobody is paying for.
For a solo operator or a small team, that time adds up quickly. An hour a week following up invoices is a working week a year spent on something that generates nothing, and it tends to land on the person who can least afford to lose the time.
It is the same problem as the hidden cost of messy business systems. The visible cost is small. The hidden cost is everything it stops you doing.
How Pinch changes it
Pinch removes the follow up rather than automating it.
With Pinch Pre-Approvals, your client’s payment details are securely saved once. From then on, invoices are paid without anyone needing to chase, and the payment reconciles automatically in your accounting software.
The practical difference is that getting paid stops being a task. It becomes something that has already happened by the time you look.
As Emily Emberson, Partner Success at Pinch Payments, puts it:
“The biggest change Pinch makes is eliminating the stress of wondering when, or even if, you’re going to get paid. With Pinch Pre-Approvals, it just happens. We securely save your clients’ payment information, so every invoice is taken care of, you get paid, and it’s automatically reconciled in your accounting software too.”
It can also become a revenue line
Pinch runs a partner referral program for accounting professionals. If you refer a client and they come on board, you earn 10 per cent of the fees back each month.
For a bookkeeper, that turns a recommendation you were already comfortable making into an additional source of monthly revenue, while you stay the person your clients trust for advice.
Why this matters when you are starting out
Nobody starts a bookkeeping business because they want to run a collections process. But in the first year, when you are building the client base and doing everything yourself, the admin is exactly what pulls focus away from the work that grows the practice.
Solving it early means it never becomes a habit you have to break later.
Thinking about starting your own bookkeeping business?
When you join First Class Accounts, you get access to the tools, partnerships and support that let you spend your time on clients rather than admin.
From payment automation through partners like Pinch to training, community and ongoing support, you are backed by a network designed to help your business grow.
Explore franchise opportunities: https://www.firstclassaccounts.com/franchise-opportunities/
Get in touch with the team: https://www.firstclassaccounts.com/franchise-opportunities/contact/
Find out more about Pinch
Pinch Partner Hub: https://getpinch.com.au/partner-hub
