What should you do when a brand pays late?
Check the payment terms and your payment records, then confirm that the correct billing contact received the invoice. Send a concise follow-up with the invoice reference, outstanding amount, and agreed due date, and ask for a specific payment update.
For a product-based approach, explore brand deal payment tracking in StarlightIQ. The steps below also work with your own documents or tracker.
Why it happens
A delayed payment can involve a missing invoice, a billing handoff, or an unresolved question about the work. Those are possibilities to investigate, not assumptions about a particular brand. Start by identifying what is actually missing so the next message asks for an answer the recipient can provide.
In StarlightIQ’s 2026 Creator Brand Deal Research, a survey of 154 creators who completed 5+ paid brand deals in the past 12 months, 59% said a brand paid them late in the past 12 months.
Fielded online October 5–6, 2026 through a paid, opt-in research panel. The final sample of 154 passed attention checks and duplicate-response screening. Responses and eligibility were self-reported, not independently verified; results are not weighted to represent all creators. The survey did not measure StarlightIQ’s effect on payments or time spent.
Follow up with a clear record
- Verify the due date. Read the payment schedule and check what starts the payment period: an invoice, approval, publication, or another agreed event. Confirm that event happened and check your payment records for a transfer already received or still being reconciled.
- Confirm invoice delivery. Check the billing address, invoice reference, required purchase details, and amount. Ask whether the invoice has been received and accepted for processing. If something is missing, send the corrected information and keep the response with your records.
- Send a factual follow-up. State which invoice remains outstanding, when it was due, and what you need to know. Attach the invoice again if useful. Ask for the expected payment date or the specific issue preventing processing, rather than sending only a general reminder.
- Record the reply and next action. Keep the contact’s response, any promised date, and your follow-up history together. If the date passes without an update, reply on the same thread and ask the campaign contact to identify the person responsible for resolving the payment query.
Keep the message easy to answer
A useful follow-up contains enough information to locate the invoice without a long account of the campaign. Use a clear subject, one invoice reference, and a direct request. If the brand raises a question about completion, refer to the relevant approval or delivery record and ask what remains unresolved.
Maintain the outstanding balance
When a partial payment arrives, record the amount received and the balance still open. Keep any new payment update alongside the original schedule so you can see what has changed. A follow-up routine supports recordkeeping and communication; it cannot ensure that an overdue invoice will be paid.
Example (illustrative)
Maya confirms that invoice M-014 passed its agreed due date and has not been paid. She writes: ‘Could you confirm the expected payment date for invoice M-014? I have attached it again. Please let me know if your billing team needs any further information to process it.’ She records the response and next follow-up date.
Frequently asked questions
What should I check before chasing an invoice?
Check the agreed payment trigger, due date, invoice delivery, and your payment records before sending a follow-up.
What if the brand says it never received my invoice?
Resend it to the confirmed billing contact and ask for receipt confirmation. Keep that exchange with your payment record.
Will a follow-up guarantee payment?
No, a follow-up does not guarantee payment. It helps establish the current status and a documented next step.
Can StarlightIQ show overdue brand payments?
Yes, StarlightIQ shows recorded outstanding and overdue payments so you can review which items need attention. Explore brand deal payment tracking.
Keep your brand deal details together
Explore StarlightIQ and choose the next step for your brand deals.
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