Payment promise tracker

“We’ll pay on Friday” feels like progress, and it often is. But promises are easy to lose track of: they arrive by email, on the phone or in passing, and the date comes and goes without anyone checking. A week later you are chasing the same invoice from scratch.

Writing the promise down does two things. It gives you a date to check instead of a vague sense that the customer is “sorting it”, and it gives your next message something specific to refer to if the money does not arrive.

Customer and invoice number(s)

Who promised, and for which invoices. One row per promise, even if it covers several invoices.

Amount promised and currency

The amount they said they would pay — not the invoice total if they only promised part of it.

Promised payment date

The date they gave. “End of the month” becomes the last day of the month.

Who promised and how

A name and the channel: email reply, phone call, in person. A written promise is easier to refer back to.

Status

Waiting for the date, Paid – seen in ledger, Part paid, Missed, Replaced by a new promise, or Disputed.

Payment seen in ledger and amount received

Only filled in when you can see the money in your bank feed or accounting software.

Still owed and days past promised date

Calculated in the Excel version. They tell you what is left and how late the promise is.

Next action, owner and next check

What happens next, who does it and the day you will look again — normally the promised date.

The Excel version has a drop-down for Status and formulas for what is still owed and how late a promise is. The CSV version has the same columns without formulas, for Google Sheets, Numbers or any other tool.

The three rows below are made up, and they are included in the file so you can see how it works. Delete them before you start.

Coastline Freight is the useful case. They paid part of what they promised, so the row is not paid: it shows what is still owed, and the next action asks for a date for the rest.

1. Look for the payment in your bank feed or accounting software — not just in your inbox. A remittance email says a payment was sent; the ledger says it arrived.
2. If it is there in full, set the status to Paid – seen in ledger and record the date you saw it.
3. If part of it is there, record the amount and set Part paid. The rest is still owed.
4. If nothing is there, give it one working day for bank processing, then follow up and mention the promise.

A missed promise is different from silence: the customer has already agreed they owe the money and when they would pay. Refer to that, calmly, and ask for a new date.

Hi [Name],

On [Date of promise] you let me know that [Amount] for invoice [Invoice number] would be paid by [Promised date]. I haven't been able to see the payment yet.

Could you confirm when it will be made? If it has already gone, the date and reference would help me find it.

Thanks,
[Your name]

If the new date is missed too, log it as a new row and change the old one to Replaced by a new promise. Two missed promises in a row are worth a conversation, not another reminder.