I agee absolutely. One client of ours failed to pay and refused to pay. We issued a notification that if they use our delivered product, then they will be in breach of the law and liable to us for civil claims and that they could face criminal penalties under iinternational copyright conventions. Naturally, we included citiations of state and federal statute as well as the specific provisions of the Bern Convention that applied. They never paid, but our threat of legal action sent their administrative and legal teams scrambling like screaming lemmings.
Payment in advance was proposed on these forums recently as a solution, which is sounding more and more reasonable to me. The internet provides easy online (PayPal) payment solutions. The competition may not provide this option, so I'm not sure if this is a marketing disadvantage, but as Tsun Tzu said (paraphrased): the key to victory is turning disadvantage into advantage.
This concept also dovetails well into the principle that I almost universally enforce; get it in writing. All of my clients are required to send snail mail or email to me to detail their service needs. If there is a change, then documenting every phone call (date, time, names, duration and content) or keeping every email is vital to avoiding confusion and being able to justify your work. Either payment in advance or written documentation of the client needs certainly is critical to securing the fruits of your labor.
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