Dont Be Taken For A Ride Develop solid credit and collection strategies to make sure you get the money you've earned.

It's every business owner's nightmare: Your new business is doing well. You've filled a niche, feeling like you've established rapport with your customers along the way. Then, inevitably, someone doesn't pay.

You wait. You send another bill. Maybe you even call. Still nothing. It's clear the check is not in the mail. So what do you do?

Persevere, says Dr. Jeff Labinger, co-owner of Landin-Labinger Chiropractic in North Highlands, California. Labinger, who has been in business 13 years, religiously sends out bills on past-due accounts and follows up with phone calls. Most people, he has found, will pay with some prodding. In fact, one former patient, whose account was several years past due, finally paid recently after receiving another phone call about his bill.