Failed payment follow-up and escalation

Purpose

1.1. Automate identifying failed customer payments for gas supply and initiate an automated escalation workflow.
1.2. Minimize manual intervention in monitoring overdue invoices, sending reminders, notifying escalation parties, and tracking follow-up status.
1.3. Standardize automated, timely payment reminders and escalation to collections, legal, or account suspension as required.
1.4. Maintain audit logs for all automated communication attempts and escalations for compliance.

Trigger Conditions

2.1. Automate workflow initiation when a payment fails or an invoice is overdue by a configurable period (e.g., 7 days).
2.2. Trigger on real-time webhook from billing software or daily automated query for failed payment status.
2.3. Detect and act upon specific error codes returned by payment gateway APIs, automating follow-up logic.

Platform Variants

3.1. Twilio
• Feature/Setting: Programmable Messaging — configure automated SMS reminders for failed payments.
• Sample: Use Twilio API `Messages.create()` with logic to personalize message content.

3.2. SendGrid
• Feature/Setting: Automated transactional emails for overdue invoices.
• Sample: Configure SendGrid API `mail/send` for dynamic templates and escalation notifications.

3.3. Stripe
• Feature/Setting: Failed payment webhook and automated dunning management.
• Sample: Use Stripe API `checkout.session.completed` and `invoice.payment_failed` webhooks.

3.4. Salesforce
• Feature/Setting: Automated task and case creation for overdue accounts.
• Sample: Use Salesforce Process Builder or Flow with "Record-Triggered Flow" for automation.

3.5. Microsoft Power Automate
• Feature/Setting: Automate failed payment alert routing and escalation.
• Sample: Configure trigger: “When an item is modified” in SharePoint billing log.

3.6. Freshdesk
• Feature/Setting: Automated ticket creation for follow-up on failed payments.
• Sample: Use Freshdesk API `/api/v2/tickets` to assign to the collections team.

3.7. Slack
• Feature/Setting: Automated notifications to collections or finance channel.
• Sample: Automate using Incoming Webhooks for custom notifications.

3.8. Zendesk
• Feature/Setting: Trigger automated ticket and escalation rules for overdue invoices.
• Sample: Use Zendesk Triggers with target: failed-payment escalations.

3.9. QuickBooks Online
• Feature/Setting: Automated overdue invoice reminders.
• Sample: Configure QuickBooks API `sendInvoice` and webhook monitoring.

3.10. HubSpot
• Feature/Setting: Automated workflows for overdue payments and escalated follow-up.
• Sample: Workflow automation with payment failure enrollment triggers.

3.11. Mailgun
• Feature/Setting: Automate transactional and escalation emails for payment failures.
• Sample: Use Mailgun API `/messages` for bulk personalized reminders.

3.12. Zoho Books
• Feature/Setting: Automated customer reminder emails for failed payments.
• Sample: Set up Workflow Rules with triggers on failed/overdue status.

3.13. Monday.com
• Feature/Setting: Board automations for overdue invoice tracking and reminders.
• Sample: Use “When status changes to overdue, notify person” workflow.

3.14. Pipedrive
• Feature/Setting: Automated deal stage movement for overdue payments.
• Sample: Configure Workflow Automation for failed-payments in pipelines.

3.15. Intercom
• Feature/Setting: Auto-triggered in-app and email notifications for unpaid bills.
• Sample: Use Intercom "Outbound Messages" and "Custom Bots."

3.16. SAP ERP
• Feature/Setting: Automate dunning and collection follow-up.
• Sample: Use SAP Dunning Procedure rules via automated business workflows.

3.17. DocuSign
• Feature/Setting: Automated follow-up requests for payment and contract enforcement.
• Sample: Automate envelope send with templated escalation notices.

3.18. Google Sheets
• Feature/Setting: Automate change detection and notification for overdue payment rows.
• Sample: Apps Script automation for monitoring “Overdue” status.

3.19. Trello
• Feature/Setting: Card automation for tracking invoice statuses.
• Sample: Butler automation: “When label overdue is added, post escalation checklist.”

3.20. ServiceNow
• Feature/Setting: Automated incident management for critical overdue cases.
• Sample: Configure “Business Rules” to open and escalate cases on failed payment detection.

Benefits

4.1. Automates routine collection tasks, freeing staff for higher-value work.
4.2. Reduces customer churn by automating timely reminders and escalation.
4.3. Ensures no overdue payments are missed using automated synchronization.
4.4. Delivers compliance with audit-trail features for every automated customer contact.
4.5. Improves cash flow by accelerating payment recovery using industry-standard automation.
4.6. Minimizes manual escalation errors via standardized, automatable workflows.
4.7. Enhances customer experience through professional automated communications.
4.8. Automates multi-channel notifications (SMS, email, in-app, and phone) with complete tracking.
4.9. Enables easy integration and scale for gas utilities with pre-built automator logic for failed payment follow-up.
4.10. Automating escalation dramatically reduces time-to-resolution for critical overdue accounts.