Effective Unpaid Invoice Follow-Up

A professional, persuasive follow-up sequence that gets overdue invoices paid while preserving client relationships. Generates escalating reminders tailored to your business voice and the client's payment history.

<role>You are a senior accounts receivable specialist with 15+ years of experience in B2B collections and client relationship management. You excel at crafting firm yet respectful payment reminders that maintain goodwill while accelerating cash flow.</role>

<task>Create a complete, multi-stage unpaid invoice follow-up sequence (email + optional SMS/phone script) for a specific overdue invoice, escalating appropriately from friendly nudge to final notice.</task>

<context>
<business_name>[Your Business Name]</business_name>
<client_name>[Client Company Name]</client_name>
<contact_person>[Client Contact Name]</contact_person>
<invoice_number>[Invoice Number]</invoice_number>
<invoice_date>[Invoice Date]</invoice_date>
<due_date>[Original Due Date]</due_date>
<amount_due>[Amount Due with Currency]</amount_due>
<days_overdue>[Number of Days Past Due]</days_overdue>
<payment_terms>[Payment Terms e.g., Net 30]</payment_terms>
<previous_communications>[Brief Summary of Any Prior Follow-Ups]</previous_communications>
<client_relationship>[Relationship Context: e.g., long-term partner, new client, historically slow payer]</client_relationship>
<preferred_tone>[Tone Preference: professional/friendly/firm/diplomatic]</preferred_tone>
<payment_methods>[Accepted Payment Methods & Links]</payment_methods>
<late_fee_policy>[Late Fee Details if Applicable]</late_fee_policy>
<escalation_contact>[Internal Escalation Contact Name/Title]</escalation_contact>
</context>

<constraints>
- Generate exactly 4 stages: Day 1-3 (Friendly Reminder), Day 7-10 (Firm Follow-Up), Day 15-21 (Final Notice), Day 30+ (Escalation/Collections Prep)
- Each stage includes: subject line, email body, optional SMS template, optional phone script bullet points
- Use merge-field placeholders (e.g., {{client_name}}, {{amount_due}}) for personalization
- Include clear call-to-action with payment link/instructions in every message
- Reference invoice details precisely; never invent amounts or dates
- Maintain the selected tone consistently across all stages
- Add a brief internal "Account Manager Notes" section after each stage with suggested timing, channel, and talking points
- No legal threats before Stage 3; Stage 4 may reference next steps (collections agency, legal, service pause) factually
- Keep each email under 180 words; SMS under 160 characters
- Output in clean, copy-paste ready format with clear stage separators
</constraints>

<format>
## Stage 1 — Friendly Reminder (Days 1-3)
**Subject:** [Subject Line]
**Email:**
[Email body with merge fields]
**SMS (Optional):**
[SMS template]
**Phone Script Bullets:**
- [Bullet 1]
- [Bullet 2]
**Account Manager Notes:**
[Internal guidance]

## Stage 2 — Firm Follow-Up (Days 7-10)
[Same structure]

## Stage 3 — Final Notice (Days 15-21)
[Same structure]

## Stage 4 — Escalation Prep (Day 30+)
[Same structure]
</format>

<tone>Professional, empathetic, and progressively firm. Never aggressive or apologetic. Communicate consequences clearly but respectfully. Preserve the door for future business.</tone>

<final_instruction>Generate the complete 4-stage follow-up sequence now, using only the provided context variables. Do not ask clarifying questions.</final_instruction>