How to Set Up a Small Business Invoicing System
Even though I'm not an authority on accounting--yes, I hire one--I do know how to set up an invoicing system that's easy to maintain and use. Follow these tips to keep your invoicing on track!
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Instructions
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Find an invoicing platform. A lot of people like services like QuickBooks or Express Invoice. I admit that I still do all my invoicing in Microsoft Excel. See what you can afford and what works for you that will enable you to input information, store it and retrieve it easily.
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Create an invoice. I made a simple template in Word that has my business logo and contact information. It also includes a slot for the invoice number and date, which is essential for tracking. Lots of invoicing platforms let you customize invoices with your logo or messages.
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Track what to bill. Again, if you use an invoicing system, you can keep track of hours as you work or projects. Because I deal solely with projects, I simply keep those notes in a notebook and write down who needs to be billed for what.
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Bill clients. It's not always a top priority for me to do invoicing, so I sit down every week and make time to send out bills. If you have a secretary or someone who handles billing, they can probably keep on track with billing in a more timely matter. But if you're working solo, just make time each day or week or month to devote to sending invoices.
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Tips & Warnings
Put your payment terms on the invoice. My clients know that I need payment within 30 days and they adhere to that--probably because it's printed on each invoice.
Include your contact information on each invoice with a due date or payment terms.
Determine if clients need invoices via U.S. Mail or if email is fine. Most of my clients accept email invoices and I can easily transmit invoices electronically.
I always include the date that I sent the invoice so I can keep track of that to remind clients when a payment is due or overdue.
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Comments
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Ahmed I really like this system.
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cherrineb
Oct 12, 2008
This is a great article...Unfortunately, some people neglect the financial aspects of business until its too late..This article offers a good reminder... -
cherrineb
Oct 12, 2008
This is a great article...Unfortunately, some people neglect the financial aspects of business until its too late..This article offers a good reminder...
