The time problem
Most non-profits don’t have an in-house finance team. There’s a good chance the person responsible for chasing overdue invoices is also responsible for everything else.
That makes consistent chasing difficult to find time for. Ad-hoc chasing is better than nothing but less effective than a consistent sequence.
Trove’s data shows companies can reach a 98% collection rate within 4 months by keeping things consistent: emails sent on schedule, for every invoice, with no exceptions.
For a small team (or person) already stretched across multiple roles, building that consistency is difficult. It usually means keeping a spreadsheet, checking it regularly, writing individual emails, and doing all of this while the rest of the job keeps moving.
The tone problem
If the person handling collections does find the time, they hit another obstacle. Non-profits often have warmer, less transactional identities than commercial businesses. Payment terms are often fuzzier, and sending a blunt “your invoice is now 30 days overdue” email can feel out of character. This means reminders get softened, delayed, or quietly dropped.
The goal is to find a tone that’s professional and persistent without feeling out of character. Reminders should do three things:
- Be polite and firm
- Assume good faith on the part of the recipient
- Make paying as easy as possible
Something like this can work well:
Example reminder
Hi Annabel,
This is a friendly reminder that invoice INV-1800 for £800 was due for payment on 2 May 2026. I just wanted to make sure you had received it on your end and there were no issues with it.
If you’ve already arranged payment, please ignore this. If not, you can pay via [insert link to invoice] or just reply to this email if you have any questions.
This kind of message is a helpful nudge, which is exactly what most overdue invoices need. The majority of late payments aren’t intentional (Trove’s data shows that 80% get paid after just 2 reminders). They’re the result of someone’s inbox, an approval process running slow, or an invoice landing with the wrong person. A friendly reminder usually sorts it.
Where you do need to escalate, the tone can shift, but gradually. You can be firmer without being hostile. Our late payment email templates cover the full sequence, from a first gentle nudge to a formal escalation notice.
How to build a system that runs itself
The best solution to both problems - the time problem and the tone problem - is the same one: automate the work.
Automatic reminders mean every invoice gets followed up consistently regardless of what else is going on that week. You also only have to write the templates once, in your tone, instead of rewriting the message slightly differently each time depending on how stressed you are or how much you like the client.
Trove connects to Xero and handles this automatically. You set the sequence - when reminders go out, what they say, how the tone changes as an unpaid invoice gets older - and Trove sends them on your behalf, from your own email address.
Trove already works with not-for-profits
For a small non-profit team, getting Trove can mean saving hours of work every month. The team at Culinary Tourism Alliance, a Canadian not-for-profit organisation, experienced these time savings, giving them a healthier bank balance and more time to re-invest in the organisation.
“We are beyond thrilled with Trove - the functionality is exactly what we need and the customer service is fantastic. Highly recommend!”
Nicole Brown, VP Operations at Culinary Tourism Alliance, See review on Xero
Registered charities and non-profits receive a permanent 20% discount on the Trove list price. If you have read this far down our content and you’re doing good for the world, you deserve it.
You can start a free trial here or book a demo if you’d like to see it first.
