I think that requesting payment upfront is a good idea in some circumstances, but for the most part, I give a new company the benefit of the doubt.   I require payment in advance when I have a good reason to be suspicious.  I prefer to assume that most people in this business are honest people.

I figure that if it is a new client, I don't want to delay their order waiting for their payment.  I want to show them that we can do the job and give them an idea of the turn-around time they can expect from us in the future. 

Net30 terms are customary in this business and I think that is a good policy.  The problem is that it has been abused by companies that have stretched that to Net45, Net60 or worse.  Those clients, I would just rather not work for.

Best,
Robert A. Franco
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