Know the process — and the lingo

With a lockbox service, customers mail payments directly to a post office box. A bank employee collects those checks — often several times a day — and processes them electronically so that funds are shifted from the customer's account to yours more quickly.

I recommend: See an example of the process at M&T Bank. Customers might ask why the payment appears as an ACH (Automated Clearing House) payment on their bank statement, so be ready to explain it.

Determine whether you are a good lockbox candidate

Restaurants and other businesses that receive all of their revenue at a retail location make poor candidates for lockbox adoption. What's more, you need to look at the size of orders that customers place and pay for by check; organizations that perform lockbox studies typically suggest that if you receive payments of $1,500 or more by mail, you could benefit from such a service.

I recommend: For a bank to complete a lockbox study, you need these four things listed on market researcher PhoenixHecht.com's FAQ: your current deposit location, a sample of payments received (with dollar amount and Zip Code of origin), the length of your typical billing cycle and your cost of capital (how much interest you're losing by not having access to funds). Also see lockbox studies.

Contact banks and other providers for details

Many, if not most, banks provide lockbox services.

I recommend: Lockbox service providers include Bank of America, Center Bank, CitiBank, FirstBank, Independence, North Shore Bank, Ocean National and Scotiabank. Don't forget to contact your own bank and ask for price and benefits as well. Some financial-services firms, such as Merrill Lynch, Emdeon and RemitStream, also provide lockbox services.