How to Invoice a Freelance Sample
When prospective clients request samples of your work to determine whether to hire you, they often don't expect you to charge them. Yet as a freelancer, your income depends on the amount of time you put into each project --- one free sample can mean hundreds of lost dollars, especially if you don't get the contract. Use an invoice to gently remind the prospect of the value of the work you provide.
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Instructions
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1
Open a new document in a word processor and type "INVOICE" at the top of the page. This will alert the reader to what he's reading as soon as he sees it. Press "Enter" twice to skip a line.
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2
Type "To:" and follow it with the prospect's name (or company name) and contact information. For example, you might type the following:
To:
Wee Toys, Inc.
1234 Kidd Ln.
Alexandria, VA
(703) 555-5555
Skip another line on the page.
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3
Type "From:" followed by your name (or the name of your freelancing company) and contact information. Your contact information may be the physical address, post office box, email address or website where you receive correspondence for your business. Include your phone number if you will accept phone calls about the invoice. For example:
Mary Murray
369 Inkblot Ct.
Honolulu, HI
mmurray@freelancewritersite.com
Skip a line.
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4
Type today's date and an identification number for the invoice. If you've never typed an invoice, you might type "Invoice #0001." The number you choose will be the first in a sequence of invoice numbers as you make more invoices in the future. Skip a line.
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5
Type "Sample --" then name the sample you provided the prospect, your rate and the total fee for the work you provided. For example:
Sample -- "Surfboard Marketing in Hawaii"
500 words @ 10 cents/word = $50
Press "Enter" once to move to the next line and repeat this for each sample you provided. Skip a line.
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6
Type "Total =" and type the total fee for your samples. For example, if you provided two 500-word samples at the rate from Step 5 you would type:
Total = $100
Skip a line.
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7
Calculate the applicable taxes and type them. Add the taxes to the total fee and type the sum. Skip a line.
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Type the due date for the prospect's payment and the acceptable means of payment. For example, if you accept payment only through PayPal, say so. Skip a line.
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9
Type any special instructions to the prospect, such as who to name as the payee on the check. Skip a line and close the invoice with a "Thank You."
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10
Save the invoice to your computer with a clear file name, such as "invoice-weetoys.doc." Print a copy to mail to the prospect and another for your records, as a backup in case your computer crashes.
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Comments
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Great looking order form guidelines to help small businesses manage their finances. I referenced these before moving onto the templates that I found here.
