A complex billing process takes time away from delivering better services. With the right invoice document templates for business, however, you’ll be able to bill clients much faster. In this post, we’ll show you how invoices (especially pre-made ones) can help your company.
The Benefits of Using an Invoice
Not every business uses an invoice. However, even if you’re just privately offering your services to single clients, these are essential. Without them, you’ll lose track of how much people owe or find it harder to pay taxes. Here’s why it’s always better to use an invoice:
- Legal record: Your invoice is, above all else, proof of a transaction. It also highlights that you’ve completed the work, letting you fight potential fraud claims.
- Track costs: An invoice lets you clearly set out the price of individual goods. Your clients will know more about what they’re paying for.
- Cash flow management: Similarly, invoices show how much you’ll be getting from your clients. Good documentation helps you budget how to use this money.
- Dispute resolution: A clear record of a transaction also helps you get around payment issues. You’ll be able to prove the costs of specific goods.
- Easy reporting: You can easily combine your invoices to see differences in work trends. For example, if work is drying up, your invoices will reflect this.
- Professionalism: An invoice can even help your business look more professional. The clients you work with will know you’re serious about your billing.
- Inventory checking: Depending on your services, invoices let you monitor stocks. You’ll know how many goods you’ve sold and how many remain.
Offering Multiple Payment Methods
You could streamline billing even further by giving several payment options. If you have a client who prefers to avoid typical bank transfers, they might appreciate the choice. Here are the main options you should consider:
- Bank transfer
- PayPal
- Stripe
- Cash App
- Venmo
- Zelle
- Checks
- Cryptocurrency
Without ample options, clients might not pay the invoice right away. These delays can harm your monthly budget. However, be careful about accepting certain platforms. If someone asks to use one you’re unfamiliar with, check that it isn’t easy for someone to reverse transactions.
Tracking Your Invoices
It’s worth setting up a spreadsheet with all of your invoices. You could arrange these by month, by client, or both. You can even link the documents together. This makes it much simpler to see individual invoices at a moment’s notice.
Each invoice you send should also come with a reference number. You can then search for this in your documents or spreadsheet for easier retrieval. If you use templates, these will give you a space to add one of your choosing.
How Online Invoice Templates Help
Making an invoice takes a lot of time. Getting everything perfect and professional-looking might even take days. With an online template, you’ll have all you need in minutes. Here are six great benefits of using invoice templates:
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- They fit your needs: Online invoice sites let you customize each template’s details. You can add discounts, contact details, tax information, and more.
- They’re consistent: With these templates, each invoice you make will fit the same style. You’ll look much more professional and reduce manual errors.
- They’re cheap: Most accounting or invoicing software charges a high fee. A template is usually much cheaper while still fitting all the key requirements.
- They have everything you need: These invoices already include every field. All you’ll need to do is provide details about your specific situation.
- They’re easy to edit: Even after downloading the document, you can change it. This is essential when a client might make last-minute changes.
- They suit different industries: Similarly, you can change the template to suit your field. You’ll be able to include extra spaces for any other necessary information.
You can also keep these documents entirely online. Once you download the document, you just need to email it to your client. Make sure you keep copies of them, preferably on a hard drive or cloud platform.
Addressing Late Payments
Make sure your invoice gives a clear deadline. If you still don’t have the payment by then, you’re well within your rights to charge extra. Make this clear in your invoice.
You should also send a reminder close to the deadline. It’s entirely possible your client has been busy or forgot to send the money. The late fees you add are up to you. However, 1% per month is usually a fair amount.
You might choose to be more lenient with first-time or regular clients. Ultimately, you’ll still need to chase up late payments and stop them from happening again.
Conclusion
A simpler billing process lets you make custom invoices quickly and cheaply. These are then far easier for clients to pay. With the right invoice templates, you’ll have everything you need to stay ahead of your finances.
