The real numbers from my own business, and the lesson every business owner needs to hear.

First, Thank You

Before I get into the numbers, I want to start with something important.

To everyone in my community:

I appreciate you being here.

If you paid in full, thank you.

If you’re on a payment plan and keeping your agreement, thank you.

This message is not about something you’ve done wrong.

This isn’t meant to embarrass anyone, condemn anyone, or complain about our clients.

This is a teachable moment.

Even if you’re doing everything right, there’s still a lesson here for you.

As a business consultant, I believe the most valuable lessons I can share don’t come from a textbook.

They come from running my own company.

And this one is worth discussing:

Should your business offer payment plans?

And if you do, how do you protect your business while still helping your customers?

Why I Offered Payment Plans in the First Place

My intention was simple.

I wanted to help.

I want everybody to win.

I wanted the Legacy Builder to be within reach for business owners who understood its value but couldn’t make the entire investment at once.

That’s why MAC Enterprise Consulting has offered payment plans with no interest and no financing fees.

If a client needs several months to pay, they can spread the investment out without paying more for choosing installments.

We also did something else:

we started working before clients finished paying.

I didn’t want anyone making payments for months while nothing happened with their business.

My heart was in the right place.

But good intentions still require good business policies.

That’s where the lesson begins.

The Receipts

This isn’t emotional, and it isn’t hypothetical.

These are facts, the actual numbers from my business.

Totals only.

No names.

• 2024 (Wix website): $207,019 in unpaid payment plan balances
• 2025 through March 2026 (Wix website): $59,167 in unpaid payment plan balances
• March 2026 to today (new WordPress/WooCommerce website): $72,379 past due, with 46 payment plans currently on hold

That’s $338,565 in unpaid balances since 2024.

I’m not sharing that number for sympathy.

I’m sharing it because if I’m going to teach business owners how to run a business, I believe you should see what business ownership actually looks like, including the lessons that cost money.

Where the Money Goes

When a client makes a payment, that money doesn’t sit in an account.

It goes right back out to serve that client.

Depending on the service, that can include:

• Secretary of State filing fees
• Registered agent costs
• Our team’s time and labor
• Professional services and other up-front expenses

Many of those costs have to be paid up front by MAC Enterprise Consulting.

Now picture the problem:

1. A client buys a program on a payment plan.
2. They make payment one. We complete everything.
3. They make payment two.
4. Then the payments stop.

We’ve already paid the costs, done the work, and delivered the value.

Now, instead of serving clients and growing businesses, we’re spending our time trying to collect money for work that’s already done.

No matter how successful anyone thinks I am, no business can survive planning around money it hasn’t collected.

I never started a consulting firm to become a collection agency.

Payments Unlock Progress. Full Payment Unlocks Completion.

This is the principle we’re making much clearer going forward.

If you pay in full, your work begins right away and moves through every phase to completion, without waiting on future payments.

If you choose a payment plan, we still begin working. You’re not waiting until your final payment for anything to happen. But the work moves forward in phases as payments are received, and the final payment unlocks completion.

If a scheduled payment is missed, work may need to pause until the account is brought current, according to the terms of your agreement.

That’s not punishment. That’s business.

It’s Also About Fairness

Imagine two clients buy the same program.

One pays the full investment up front.

The other chooses a payment plan and has made one or two payments.

Would it be fair for both to expect the same work, completed on the same timeline?

I don’t believe it would be.

Both are valued clients.

But they chose different payment arrangements, and the workflow has to reflect that difference.

Otherwise, it isn’t fair to the client who paid in full, and it isn’t fair to the team doing the work.

“Then Just Stop Offering Payment Plans”

Some people will see $338,565 and say, “Dewayne, get rid of the payment plans.”

I get it.

These numbers would make anybody say that.

From a purely financial point of view, requiring payment in full would remove most of this risk.

But I must admit, there’s more to this decision than numbers.

In March 2027, my book will be released by Forbes Books.

I’m also a regular contributor on Forbes.com and Entrepreneur.com, and a member of the Entrepreneur Leadership Council.

I’m sharing that with humility, not to brag.

It means our audience is changing, and the way we serve clients will likely change with it.

I also know that some people may never want to work with me because of that.

So I’m choosing full transparency.

We’re sharing everything we offer, what it costs, and how our payment options work.

That isn’t about chasing more money. It’s about working with clients who understand the value and who are ready for what’s ahead.

This comes from my heart.

I’m being as honest and as open as I know how to be.

I want as many people as possible to have the chance to get on board before things change.

That’s exactly why I’d rather not take payment plans away right now.

I still believe payment plans help business owners.

I still want the person who sees the vision but needs time to make the investment to have that opportunity.

And I still don’t want to charge interest just because someone needs more time.

Here’s the reality: payment plans can only continue if people keep their agreements.

The model has to work for both sides.

Clients honor their payment commitments, and MAC clearly communicates what each payment unlocks.

That’s the balance.

I Have to Own My Part, Too

Accountability works both ways.

My focus was so strongly on helping people get started that we didn’t do a good enough job explaining what a payment plan meant for the timeline of the work.

That’s on us.

A client shouldn’t have to guess.

If a payment unlocks a stage, that should be clear.

If work pauses when an account is past due, that should be clear.

If certain deliverables require full payment, that should be clear.

So we’re fixing it.

You’ll see clearer language on our website, at checkout, in our agreements, and throughout onboarding.

Good businesses don’t just point out where customers need to do better.

They point out where they need to do better, too.

We’re Fixing Communication

I’ve also heard the concerns about communication.

As MAC Enterprise Consulting has grown, email alone hasn’t been able to keep up with the volume of client requests.

So we changed the system.

We’ve launched a new support ticketing system.

Instead of an email getting buried under hundreds of others, every request now:

• Gets a ticket number
• Is tracked from start to finish
• Is routed to the right team member

That gives our team more accountability and gives you a clear way to get help and follow up.

We’re asking our clients to honor their commitments.

It’s just as important that we keep improving how we honor ours.

How to submit a ticket:

1. Go to macenterpriseconsulting.com/contact
2. Select the option that best fits
3. Enter your name, phone, and email exactly as they appear on your MAC account so your ticket connects to the right account
4. Check the verification box and click Submit

Now Let’s Make This About YOUR Business

Forget MAC Enterprise Consulting for a moment.

Look at your own company.

Take the emotion out of it and ask yourself: Where is your energy going?

• Are you spending your time serving the customers who have already paid you?
• Or are you spending much of it chasing money for work you’ve already delivered?
• Where’s the balance?

Before you offer a payment plan in your own business, make sure you have these six things in place:

1. Understand your cash flow.
   • Know exactly what it costs to start fulfilling an order. Don’t confuse contracted revenue with collected cash.
2. Define what each payment unlocks.
   • Don’t just split a $10,000 service into five $2,000 payments. Decide what your business can responsibly deliver at each stage.
3. Put the terms in writing.
   • Spell out what happens when a payment fails, when work pauses, what happens to deadlines, and which deliverables require payment in full.
4. Build it into onboarding.
   • Don’t assume customers understand your payment structure just because it makes sense to you. Walk them through it and have them sign off.
5. Automate reminders and collections.
   • Your most valuable people shouldn’t spend their days chasing failed payments.
6. Know your boundaries.
   • Decide before there’s a problem how many missed payments are allowed, when services pause, and what happens next.

And here’s a seventh lesson I’ve learned the hard way:

Don’t confuse being helpful with taking on unlimited financial risk.

You can have a heart for people and still have policies.

You can give flexibility and still have boundaries.

You can want everyone to win while still protecting the business that makes those wins possible.

If You’re Currently on a MAC Payment Plan

If you’re making your payments according to your agreement: thank you.

This isn’t meant to make you uncomfortable about choosing a payment plan.

If you’ve fallen behind, this isn’t about shaming you.

Life happens.

What matters is communication and getting back on track.

Please submit a ticket so our team can review your account, your payments, and where your project stands.

Once your account is current, your work can keep moving forward according to your program’s terms.

The Bigger Lesson

I could have looked at these numbers privately and quietly changed the policy.

Instead, I chose to share them.

There’s probably a business owner reading this right now who’s thinking about offering payment plans because they want to help their customers.

I understand.

That’s exactly why I did it.

But before you do, build the systems around your generosity:

• Have the agreement.
• Have the collection process.
• Have the automation.
• Have the boundaries.
• Have the communication.

And remember: money you’ve invoiced is not the same as money you’ve collected.

My intention hasn’t changed.

I still want everybody to win.

We’re simply building better systems so that helping our clients doesn’t put the business that serves them at risk.

Payments unlock progress.

Full payment unlocks completion.

That’s a lesson I’m applying at MAC Enterprise Consulting, and I hope it’s one you can use in your business too.