Guide
When a brand does not pay: the polite chase that works
You delivered the work. It performed. The invoice went out, the due date came, and nothing arrived. Late payment is not a rare insult: a 2025 creator survey reported 41% of creators named payment delays as the biggest problem in brand work. It is the normal failure mode of brand deals, and the cure is boring: a steady ladder of polite, specific messages, sent on a schedule, not in a spike of frustration.
First, rule out the boring causes
Before the first chase, spend two minutes on the unglamorous explanations. Did the invoice actually send, to the person who approves payments, not the person who briefed you? Does the brand need a tax form, a vendor setup, or a purchase order number before finance can release anything? Did you agree to net 30 while assuming net 14? A surprising share of late invoices are stuck on one of these, and the ladder's first message surfaces all of them.
The ladder: day 1, day 7, day 14, day 30
Each step has one job. The tone firms up; the shape never changes: name the amount, name the due date, make one clear ask. Copy these, swap in your numbers, and send from the same thread as the original invoice, so the record stays in one place.
Day 1
The gentle float-up. Assume an inbox problem, because it usually is one.
Day 7
Ask for the payment date. A specific date is a promise you can hold them to.
Day 14
Name it plainly: two weeks past due, and no payment date yet.
Day 30
Firm, still polite. Escalation and a pause on new work join the message.
Day 1: the gentle float-up
Assume an inbox problem, because it usually is one. Short, warm, zero edge. This message exists to get your invoice seen by a human.
Subject: Quick float-up: invoice for [the project]
Hi [brand] team, hope you're well.
Floating this back up: the invoice for [the project] ([$ amount]) was due [due date], so it is a day past due. It may well be moving through your system already. Could you confirm it arrived safely?
Happy to resend it if it went to the wrong inbox. Thanks so much.
Day 7: ask for the pay date
A week in, stop asking whether they got it and ask when it lands. A specific date is a commitment you can hold them to.
Subject: Checking in: payment date for [the project]
Hi [brand] team, following up on the invoice for [the project] ([$ amount]), due [due date]. It is now a week past due.
Could you confirm it is in the payment queue, and the date it will land? A specific date helps me plan on my side.
If anything is missing from me, an invoice copy or tax paperwork, tell me what you need and I will send it the same day.
Day 14: name it plainly
Two weeks past due, drop the softeners. Still factual, still kind. The missing payment date is now the subject.
Subject: Two weeks past due: invoice for [the project]
Hi [brand] team, the invoice for [the project] ([$ amount]) was due [due date] and is now two weeks past due.
I have not had a payment date yet. Please treat this as the priority this week: confirm the date it will be paid, or tell me exactly what is blocking it.
The work is delivered and live, and I am glad it performed well. I just need the payment side closed out.
Day 30: firm, still polite
At a month, consequences join the message, stated calmly and in advance: escalation, a pause on new work, holding further usage of your content. Stated this way, they are professional terms, not a threat.
Subject: One month past due: invoice for [the project]
Hi [brand] team, the invoice for [the project] ([$ amount]), due [due date], is now a month past due, and I have not received a payment date despite following up.
Please escalate this with your finance team today and confirm when it will be paid. Until it is settled, I will have to pause new work and hold any further usage of the content.
I value the relationship and want to keep working together. Closing this out is what makes that possible.
Make the next chase easy before the work starts
The easiest chase is the one the agreement does for you. Put the payment terms in writing before you film, in the contract or the email summary. One sentence is enough: “Payment of [$ amount] is due 14 days after delivery of the final content.” Counted from delivery, in days, with a number. No “net whenever”, no guessing.
A late fee line strengthens it: “Invoices paid after the due date carry a 5% late fee.” Be honest about what that line is: a late fee binds only if the brand agreed to it in writing beforehand, and enforceability varies with the contract and where you live. Its real value is deterrence: brands pay the invoices that cost more to ignore.
If any word in your agreement is fuzzy, net 30 included, Brand deal words, in plain English translates the full set the same way.
Two habits finish the setup. Invoice the day you deliver, not at month's end: the clock starts when the invoice lands. And print the due date on the invoice as a date, not just “net 14”, so nobody does arithmetic to know they are late.
Before the chase, the price
Chasing is the second half of getting paid. The first half is a price and terms you can point at later: How to price a brand deal walks through it, and the free calculator, What should you charge?, turns it into your numbers in about a minute.
Questions, answered plainly
How long should I wait before chasing a late invoice?
Start the day after the due date. At day one, most late payment is an inbox or approvals problem, not a refusal, so a gentle float-up costs nothing and usually gets a quiet fix. Then climb the ladder: a specific pay date at day 7, plain naming at day 14, calm consequences at day 30.
Will chasing a brand hurt the relationship?
Polite, specific chases are normal business; brands with real finance teams expect them. What hurts relationships is silence, then one frustrated message a month later. A steady, factual cadence reads as professional: the amount, the due date, one clear ask.
Can I charge a late fee?
Only reliably if the brand agreed in writing before the work started; enforceability varies by contract and jurisdiction. Agreed up front, a late fee line still earns its place as a deterrent. Added after the invoice is already late, it rarely holds and often starts an argument instead of a payment.
What if the brand ignores me completely?
Work through the ladder anyway, in writing, so there is a record. At day 30, state the consequences calmly: escalation to their finance team, a pause on new work, holding further usage of your content. If the amount justifies it, a collections service or small claims court is next. The written record is what makes those possible.
What payment terms should I agree to before the next deal?
Four things, in writing, before you film: the amount, what it covers, when the invoice is due (counted from delivery, say 14 days), and what happens if it is late. Short terms you choose beat long terms you accept by default. Invoice the day you deliver, and print the due date on the invoice.
This ladder, kept for you
Chasing works when nothing depends on your memory or your mood. BravoDM watches every due date, counts the days, and drafts each step of this ladder with the real amount and dates filled in. You read, edit, and approve before anything is sent. Join the waitlist and we will reach out as spots open.
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