To follow up with a client about data you need for their books, name the exact item and say what it holds up. “I still need your Amex statement ending 1009 for September. It’s the last thing before I can close the month.” Give the date you need it by, make the reply one step, and send it in the same thread as your first ask. Say what already arrived before you say what hasn’t. That’s the whole email.
The harder part is the second and third time. A good follow-up system for a bookkeeper decides those in advance: when each reminder goes, what changes in it, and when email stops being the right tool.
- One ask, one item. The account, the last four digits, the month, and the date you need it.
- Three emails at most. A request, one reminder, and one that says what happens to this month’s books.
- The fourth touch is a call. Or a text, or a portal link, or getting the statement without the client at all.
- A standing fix for the client you chase every month, so next month starts with the statement already in.
Why this month’s statement didn’t come
Most missing statements have an ordinary cause. It helps to guess which one before you write, because each one wants a different ask.
| What’s going on | What it sounds like | What the ask needs |
|---|---|---|
| The statement isn’t out yet | Nothing, they just haven’t looked | The card’s closing date, so you ask after it |
| They can’t get in | “I’ll have to ask my husband” | Whose login it is, and a direct ask to that person |
| They sent the wrong one | “I sent it last week” | Which account you got, and which you still need |
| They think the feed covers it | “Don’t you already see everything?” | One line on why the statement matters |
| It’s in a pile | Silence | A smaller errand: one account, one PDF, one reply |
The first row catches a lot of bookkeepers. A checking account usually closes at month-end. A credit card often closes mid-month, on the 18th or the 22nd. Asking for a card statement on the 1st asks for something the bank hasn’t issued. Put each account’s closing date on the client’s file, and ask the day after.
The fourth row is worth one sentence to the client. The bank feed shows transactions. The statement is what you reconcile against: the opening balance, the closing balance, and anything the feed dropped or doubled. Clients who understand that send it faster.
Why documents go missing more broadly, and what a first request should contain, is covered in managing client document requests.
Email reminders for bookkeepers, set to your close date
A monthly cadence works backward from the date you promised the books. Here’s one for a client whose September books are due on Thursday, October 15, with a checking account that closes at month-end.
| When | What goes out | What changes from the last one |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, October 1 | The monthly request | It’s the first ask, sent the same day every month |
| Tuesday, October 6 | Reminder one | It says what arrived, and names only what’s left |
| Friday, October 9 | Reminder two | It says what the missing statement holds up, with a date |
| Monday, October 12 | A call or a text | The channel changes, and the ask gets smaller |
| Thursday, October 15 | The close note | You close on the feed and say what’s still open |
Three things make this cadence hold up.
Count business days. Three business days between messages is enough for a client who reads email daily. A client who answers once a week needs the request earlier, not reminders closer together.
Each message changes something. A reminder that repeats the first ask word for word has already been read and left. The second adds what arrived. The third adds a consequence. The fourth changes the channel.
The calendar does the remembering. Put the dates on your calendar when you send the first request. Then the reminder goes out on Tuesday because Tuesday came, not because you happened to remember.
How long to wait between follow-ups in general is covered in how long before following up.
The email follow-up for bookkeepers, in four messages
Each one goes in the same thread as the last, so the client sees the whole ask in one place. The words in brackets change per client.
The monthly request, on the 1st
Subject: September statements for [Lakeside Bakery]
Hi [Maria],
Time for September. I need two statements:
- [Chase checking ending 4417], September 1 to 30
- [Amex ending 1009], the one that closes [September 22]
A PDF from the bank's website is perfect. Reply with them attached,
or drop them in [your upload folder].
If I have both by [October 8], your September books will be done by
[October 15].
Thanks,
[Sam]Reminder one, three business days later
Hi [Maria],
Got the Chase statement, thank you. That account is reconciled.
I still need the [Amex ending 1009] statement that closed
[September 22]. That's the last piece for September.
[Sam]Reminder two, with what it holds up
Hi [Maria],
The [Amex ending 1009] statement is the only thing left for September.
Without it I can code the card charges from the feed, but I can't
reconcile the card or confirm the balance.
If it's here by [Monday], September closes on time. If not, I'll close
on the feed and finish the card when the statement comes in.
If getting into the Amex account is the hard part, tell me who has the
login and I'll ask them directly.
[Sam]The close note, when it never came
Hi [Maria],
Your September books are done, with one item open. The [Amex ending
1009] charges are coded from the bank feed, but the card isn't
reconciled yet.
When the statement comes in, I'll reconcile it and tell you if
anything changes. Usually nothing does.
October's request goes out on [November 2].
[Sam]The close note is the important one. It tells the client the truth about the month. It also takes the pressure off the chase, because the books aren’t blocked. They’re done, with one line marked open.
Line-by-line wording for a missing-document email, including the subject line and what to cut, is in writing the follow-up email for a missing document. Six general follow-ups are in the follow-up email that gets answered.
What you can do while the statement is late
A late statement doesn’t have to stop the month. Most of the work runs off the bank feed:
- Code the transactions. The feed has the dates, amounts and payees.
- Match receipts and bills. Those don’t wait on the statement.
- Reconcile the other accounts. Close what you can, one account at a time.
- Leave the one account open. Mark it “reconciled through August” on your client file.
What you can’t do without the statement is prove the balance. The feed can miss a transaction, or show one twice. The statement is the bank’s own record, and the reconciliation checks your books against it. So the account stays open until it arrives, and the close note says so.
Some months this changes the tone of the chase completely. “September’s done except for the card” is an easy email to read. “I can’t finish September” puts the whole month on the client.
When email stops being the right tool
Two reminders that changed nothing tell you something. The client isn’t reading this kind of email, or the errand is harder than it looks. A third email rarely fixes either one.
Call. A two-minute call finds the real reason. Often it’s the login, or a statement they think they sent. You can sometimes walk them to the download while they’re on the phone.
Text. If the client has agreed to texts, one line works: “Just need the Amex PDF for September when you get a sec.” Keep it to the ask, with no account numbers.
A portal or an upload folder. Some clients find a link easier than an attachment. Use one place per client, and put it in every request.
Write to the right person. At a small business, the person who answers your email is often not the person with the bank login. Ask once who handles the bank, then write to them.
When the same client needs a call every month, that’s a pattern worth a conversation about how the books work, not a better email. That conversation is covered in chasing a client who won’t reply.
Getting the statement without asking at all
The best follow-up is the one you never send. For the clients you chase every month, ask once for a standing setup.
Statements inside the bookkeeping software. Some banks let you get statements straight from QuickBooks Online. Intuit’s help page says the View statements option is there when the connected bank supports it, and that it’s:
“especially useful if you’re reconciling accounts for multiple clients, or reconciling several statements for the same account.”
Support depends on the bank, and Intuit says it’s still adding banks. Check each client’s accounts once. Where it works, that account leaves your chase list for good.
View-only access at the bank. Many business banking sites let the owner add another user. Ask the client whether their bank offers a view-only user for their bookkeeper. It’s the client’s decision, and some will prefer not to. For the ones who agree, you download the statement yourself on the 1st.
A standing habit. For clients without either, agree on one simple routine. The client forwards the bank’s “your statement is ready” email the day it arrives. Or they save the PDF to a shared folder with the month in the name. Put the routine in writing, and mention it in the monthly request.
What a bookkeeper actually holds when bank data arrives by email, and what the client expects of them, is in bank data in a thread.
Keeping a dozen chases straight
With twelve clients, the hard part is remembering who owes what. A short list does it:
| Client | Account | Closes | Asked | Got it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeside Bakery | Chase 4417 | Sept 30 | Oct 1 | Oct 2 |
| Lakeside Bakery | Amex 1009 | Sept 22 | Oct 1 | |
| Ortega Landscaping | Wells Fargo 2280 | Sept 30 | Oct 1 | Oct 5 |
| Bayview Yoga | Capital One 7731 | Sept 18 | Sept 21 | Sept 24 |
One row per account, not per client. A client is rarely all missing or all in. Usually one card is late, and the row shows which.
Confirm each statement the day it arrives, and fill in the row as you do. “Got your Chase statement, thanks” takes ten seconds. It saves the client asking “did you get it?” next week. Ready answers for that question and the others clients repeat are in the same question again.
How Point keeps the chase for you
Point reads your mail as it lands, on the Gmail or Microsoft 365 account you already have. It holds the waiting part of the chase, so the list above can live in your inbox.
- The thread comes back when they stay quiet. After you send the request, say “follow up Tuesday if Maria doesn’t send the Amex statement.” Point makes it a task with that date. If Tuesday comes with no reply, the thread returns to the top of your feed (bringing back the email nobody answered).
- You hear the moment it arrives. Tell Point “let me know when Lakeside’s Amex statement comes in.” Point checks every incoming message against it, and tells you when it lands (notify me when).
- The reminder is drafted in your voice. Point writes it from the thread, so it knows what already arrived. Nothing is sent until you read it and press send (reminded to chase).
- The confirmation is ready too. When the statement lands, the “got it, thanks” reply is drafted and waiting. It goes from your own address, threaded under the request.
You choose how far Point goes for each kind of action. Out of the box, everything waits for your review (setting how much your inbox does on its own). More on what Point does is on the benefits page.
When a portal or a calendar suits you better
If you have thirty or forty clients, a document-request tool with a client portal and automatic reminders may suit you better than email. Those tools track each requested item and remind the client on a schedule. The trade is that clients have to use the portal, and some won’t.
If most of your clients’ banks support statements inside your bookkeeping software, start there. The chase disappears for those accounts, and email is only for the rest.
If you have four or five clients, a calendar reminder and the table above are all you need.
Common questions
How do I write an email to follow up with a client about data required for accounting?
Name the exact item: the account, the last four digits and the month. Say what it holds up and the date you need it by. Thank them for anything that already arrived, then ask only for what’s left. Send it in the same thread as your first request, and keep it to a few lines.
How many times should a bookkeeper follow up for a missing bank statement?
Send the request and two reminders by email. Each reminder should add something: first what arrived, then what the missing statement holds up. After that, call or text instead of sending a third reminder.
How many days should a bookkeeper leave between reminders?
About three business days between messages works for clients who read email daily. Set the dates from your close date and the account’s closing date, not from when you remember. For a client who answers slowly, send the first request earlier.
Can I close the month without the bank statement?
You can code the month from the bank feed and reconcile the other accounts. The account without a statement stays unreconciled until it arrives. Tell the client in the close note which account is open and that you’ll finish it when the statement comes in.
Should I use a client portal instead of email for statements?
A portal helps when you have many clients and they’ll use it. Keep one method per client and put the link in every request. Where the bank supports it, getting statements straight into your bookkeeping software removes the request altogether.
Can I automate reminder emails to bookkeeping clients?
Yes. Portal tools send reminders on a schedule. An assistant such as Point can bring a quiet thread back on the date you set and draft the reminder in your voice. By default, nothing goes out until you read it and send it.