{"id":"acct-ar-collection-templates-buckets","audience":"accounting","category":"finance-work","track":"finance","technique":"constraints","level":"intermediate","title":"Write AR collection templates for three aging buckets","free":false,"task":"Your AR team needs reusable emails for the 1-30, 31-60 and 61-90 day buckets, following the collections practice. Write a prompt for three templates headed exactly \"1-30 days:\", \"31-60 days:\" and \"61-90 days:\", each using the fields [Customer], [Invoice #], [Amount] and [Due date]. Riverbend stopped charging late fees in 2025 and never mentions collection agencies. Plain text, under 300 words in total.","materialLabel":"Collections practice and old template (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"Riverbend Supply Co. - Collections practice (AR team wiki)\n\nBuckets and what we do:\n1-30 days past due: friendly reminder. Assume it was missed. Attach a copy of the invoice.\n31-60 days: firmer. Ask the customer to reply with a payment date in writing. Offer to resend remittance details or our W-9 if that's the holdup.\n61-90 days: the account goes on credit hold. New orders pause until the balance is paid or a payment plan is agreed. Copy the customer's sales rep.\n90+ days: no more emails from AR; the controller decides next steps.\n\nPay by ACH (details on the invoice) or check to PO Box 4410, Dayton OH.\nQuestions: ar@riverbendsupply.example, (937) 555-0148.\n\nOld template from 2023 (still on the shared drive):\n\"Dear Customer, Your account is seriously past due. A 1.5% monthly late fee has been applied. Failure to pay within 10 days may result in referral to a collection agency.\"","rules":[{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":300}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Names the three buckets","patterns":["1-30","31-60","61-90"]},{"label":"Lists the fields","patterns":["\\[customer\\]","\\[invoice","fields","placeholders"]},{"label":"Rules out late fees and threats","patterns":["late fee","collection agenc","legal","threat"]},{"label":"Follows the practice","patterns":["practice","credit hold","payment date","wiki"]},{"label":"Sets length and format","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","plain"]}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Reusing the old template","why":"The AI picks up the 2023 wording, late fee and collection-agency threat included.","fix":"Say: \"We stopped late fees in 2025 and never mention collection agencies or legal action.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Generic escalation","why":"The AI invents its own escalation steps instead of the team's actions per bucket.","fix":"Ask: \"Follow the practice for each bucket: reminder, ask for a date in writing, then credit hold.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"No reusable fields","why":"The AI writes for a made-up customer with made-up amounts.","fix":"List the fields: \"Use [Customer], [Invoice #], [Amount], [Due date] in brackets.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Markdown and long emails","why":"Templates come back with bold headers and long paragraphs.","fix":"Say: \"Plain text, each template under 70 words, headed exactly 1-30 days: etc.\"","checks":["plainText","maxWords"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"Three emails easily run past a total word limit.","fix":"Cap each template on its own, well under a third of the total.","checks":["maxWords"]}],"hint":"The material mixes the current practice with an old, harsher template. Tell the AI which one rules, what changed, and exactly which fields and headers to use.","rubricLabels":["Has exactly three templates headed \"1-30 days:\", \"31-60 days:\" and \"61-90 days:\", and every template uses the fields [Customer], [Invoice #], [Amount] and [Due date] in square brackets","Follows each bucket's action: 1-30 is a friendly reminder with the invoice attached; 31-60 asks for a payment date in writing; 61-90 says new orders are paused (credit hold) until paid or a payment plan is agreed","No template mentions a late fee, interest, a collection agency or legal action"]}