Cash In Advance

If you've ever bought something online, you're familiar with "cash in advance." It's a stipulation (sometimes via contractual agreement between the buyer and seller, sometimes via the buying platform setup) that indicates the buyer must pay before the seller ships the item. When you pay with a credit card and the charge hits your card the moment you click "YES" or "HURT ME" or whatever the phrase is that pays...you've paid with cash in advance. (You may pay the credit card later, but the seller gets the cash first...from the credit card company.)

Say you buy 1,000 giant inflatable rubber ducks to sell at a carnival from a merchant online. If you buy them "cash in advance," you'll have paid for the flock before they're shipped to you. The alternative to this is "cash on delivery," which is just what it sounds like: the item is paid for when it's delivered.