A plumbing company in Phoenix invoices $80,000/month but collects $65,000. The missing $15,000? Late payments that slip through the cracks. The owner sends invoices via QuickBooks, then manually tracks who hasn't paid in a spreadsheet, then writes follow-up emails one by one. By the time she chases a 60-day overdue invoice, the customer has forgotten the job was even done.
Late payments cost US small businesses $825 billion per year in cash flow gaps. The average SMB has 24% of invoices paid late. For service businesses with thin margins, chasing payments is the difference between profitability and bankruptcy. But accounts receivable automation is built for enterprise: Invoiced ($500+/mo), Chaser ($49-369/mo scaling with volume), and Tesorio target mid-market to enterprise.
QuickBooks and Xero have basic AR features — send a reminder email when invoices are overdue. But there's no intelligent escalation: the first reminder should be friendly, the third should be firm, and eventually it should offer a payment plan. The gap is an AR automation layer at $29-49/mo for SMBs using QuickBooks/Xero: smart reminder sequences that escalate over time, payment links in every email, overdue dashboard, and automatic payment plan offers for chronically late payers. Not collections agency work — just automated follow-up that gets invoices paid faster.
What People Are Saying
Real voices expressing this pain point
Expand automation beyond accounts payable to reconciliations and accounts receivable invoicing
💰 Revenue Blueprint
Three-tier value ladder to monetize from day one
50 invoices/mo, automated reminders, payment links, overdue dashboard
200 invoices/mo, smart escalation, payment plans, QuickBooks/Xero sync, reporting
Unlimited invoices, custom sequences, API, multi-user, priority support
📊 Market Evidence
🏆 Competitor Landscape
How existing players stack up in this market
| Competitor | Pricing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chaser | $49/mo (50 invoices) to $369/mo (400 invoices) | UK-based. QuickBooks/Xero integration. Good for SMB but pricing scales with volume. |
| Invoiced | Enterprise pricing ($500+/mo) | B2B focus. Customer portal. Overkill for small business. |
| Invoice Sherpa | Lower than Chaser | Budget alternative. Customer portal. SMB focused. |
| FreshBooks/Zoho Books | $15-50/mo | Full accounting with basic AR. Not specialized. |
| Centime | SMB/mid-market pricing | Cash planning + AR. Comprehensive. |
| Gaviti | Enterprise | Analytics-driven collections. B2B focus. |
| Chargebee Retention | Part of Chargebee | Built into billing platform. Pre-dunning + smart retry. |
UK-based. QuickBooks/Xero integration. Good for SMB but pricing scales with volume.
B2B focus. Customer portal. Overkill for small business.
Budget alternative. Customer portal. SMB focused.
Full accounting with basic AR. Not specialized.
Cash planning + AR. Comprehensive.
Analytics-driven collections. B2B focus.
Built into billing platform. Pre-dunning + smart retry.
🛠️ Recommended Tech Stack
Suggested tools and technologies to build this idea
Why this stack: Integrate with existing accounting software. Smart escalation sequences. Payment links for instant collection.
Score Breakdown
Good market signals with room for growth
Market (20%) + Revenue (20%) + Trend (15%) + Competition (15%) + Build (15%) + Pricing (15%)
🚀 Start Building
Copy a prompt into your favorite AI coding tool and start building this idea right now.
Build a SaaS product called "AR & Collections Automation for SMBs". ## Product Overview Automated accounts receivable and collections workflow that chases invoices, tracks payments, and escalates overdue accounts for small businesses ## Problem SMBs struggle with late payments and manual invoice chasing. Dedicated AR tools start at $49+/mo and get expensive fast. ## Solution Build AR & Collections Automation for SMBs ## Target Audience indie hackers, small businesses, and solopreneurs ## Tech Stack - Next.js 15 (App Router) with TypeScript - Tailwind CSS v4 for styling - Supabase for auth, database, and storage - Vercel for deployment - shadcn/ui for UI components - Framer Motion for animations ## MVP Features to Build 1. Landing page with clear value proposition 2. User authentication (sign up, sign in, forgot password) 3. Core product functionality based on the solution above 4. Dashboard for users to manage their data 5. Pricing page with at least 2 tiers (free + paid) 6. Basic settings/profile page ## Known Competitors Chaser, Invoiced, Invoice Sherpa, FreshBooks/Zoho Books, Centime, Gaviti, Chargebee Retention ## Key Risks to Address Standard market entry risks ## Deployment 1. Set up Supabase project and configure environment variables 2. Deploy to Vercel with `npx vercel --prod` 3. Set up custom domain 4. Configure Supabase RLS policies for security ## Instructions Start by creating the project structure, then build the landing page first. Use server components where possible. Make it mobile-responsive from the start. Focus on getting the core value loop working before adding polish.