How Your Digital Agency Can Go Above and Beyond Standard Invoices

What's the secret to getting your clients to pay in a timely manner? There's no doubt you and your digital agency put your all into delivering the best service for your client. Between balancing the jam-packed calendar of meetings, monitoring your inbox, and the endless to-do list, sometimes people just skip over the invoice.

The invoice is a critical way to remind your clients of the hours of effort you and your team put into ensuring that the project was completed. So, make sure that it leaves a spectacular impression that makes it unforgettable and showcases the great work your team did.

Here are three ways digital agencies can go above the standard, lackluster invoice and get paid on time:

1. Don't Be Shy! Highlight Your Accomplishments

This is the part where you can emphasize and focus on the work detail. Be intentional about the information you share, e.g., if you're planning to share work logs, include the time logged or spotlight the fact it was this particular team member, who did this specific work on this date. You're doing yourself and your team a disservice when opting for just one-page invoices straight out of an accounting system without providing supportive information about the value you've provided for your client. Don't miss this important opportunity to put the work you and your team did center stage.

2. Send One Neat, Comprehensive Package

Bring together all the work you've accomplished - projects, milestones, tickets, and retainers into the same invoice. By highlighting the phases of your work you deck out your invoice, and show your client just how much value your team provided them, and in turn, the client will be more likely to approve it and pay on time. By sending the invoice in one package, instead of separate invoices one by one, you make it easier on your clients to easily view the work that was done and the amount owed.

3. Streamline the Process with Automation

Creating invoices is time-consuming when you rely on manual efforts, but with automation, it doesn't have to eat up your time and make for an end product you're proud to send to your clients. With automation, there are two ways to utilize it and take advantage of it:

• Automating invoice creation with a wizard makes the process really simple. You can decrease the manual lift with bulk invoicing and the use of templates. It helps you to create invoices in much less time but they are consistently well-done.
• Automation gives you the power to not only control the look and feel but manage the level of information you want to share. No two clients are the same, some will want thorough details while others a brief overview. Templates allow the basic starting point to shape each invoice accordingly.

Invoices are key to your business' success and survival. Instead of treating them like a chore or haphazardly creating them just to get it off your plate, use them as an extension of the work you were excited to deliver to them. Give it a try and sign up for Accelo!