Do you know how many customers you have that are past due right now? How many bad checks are sitting on your desk that you dont know what to do with? How many dunning letters do you send out a month?

How would you like to answer those questions with none, or very few? In a new book, Become the Squeaky Wheel, Michelle Dunn, explains and outlines some easy procedures you can use to erase bad debt, and prevent it in the future.

One thing that is often overlooked is how to prevent future credit issues, says Michelle Dunn. I am always amazed at how creditors will hire someone to collect the bad debt they have but do nothing to prevent future problems.

Business owners should implement a credit policy before they start their business, it should be included in their business plan, says Dunn. If youre an existing business with bad debt, you can create a credit policy and implement it with existing and future customers right now.

If you have a pile of bad debt, it is never too late to implement a credit policy. The sooner you do it, the better your chances are of collecting what is already owed to you and preventing future bad debt, so you wont be in this situation again.