If you’re wondering what does a (professional) invoice look like and how each invoice element can be important for your business, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll explain the typical professional invoice template elements and their role in getting paid earlier and building relationships with your clients and customers.
It’s been thirty, sixty, maybe even ninety days, and you still haven’t received payment from several clients. You sent out the invoice. You’ve sent reminders. But, instead of payment, you receive more questions and comments from your clients about the invoices. What’s going on? How do you get your small business out of this invoicing nightmare?
Aside from some shady customers, all you may need to do is create a professional invoice template. Read on to learn how you can use invoicing to demonstrate your professionalism and assert yourself in the business world. And in case you haven’t done it already, be sure to try our iPhone invoice app or Android invoice app to utilize the beautiful and functional invoice templates we created for you.
What to Include on an Invoice
Are you wondering what should an invoice look like? At the minimum, you’ll want to include your name, the name of your company, the company address, and the company phone number.
You need to include these items for a number of reasons. For one, your clients need a way to contact you in case they have questions about the invoice. Secondly, you want to show that your company is legitimate.
Client’s Information
You’ll then want to include the client’s business address, business name, and phone number. Don’t forget to also add the name of the person you’re making the invoice out to.
Ask the accounts payable department about who’s name to direct the invoice to. As some companies may want you to address the invoice to the owner; others may prefer the employee who’s in charge of dealing with your business.
Logo
Like we said, invoicing is a way to demonstrate your professionalism. A large part of this is incorporating your logo on your invoice.
Traditionally, the logo would go in the top left corner of the invoice. But, depending on your professional invoice template, that doesn’t always have to be the case.
Overall, you want the logo to be large enough for the customer to know who the invoice is coming from. But you don’t want it too large where it’s the focal point of the invoice.
List of Services
Preferably underneath your and your client’s company information, you’ll want the service description and price.
By description of services, we mean 2-5 words describing what services your business did for the client.
For instance, if you’re a paper company and sold the client 1,000 boxes of paper, insert the type and quantity of paper your client received.
Plus, as mentioned in the example, you can include the quantity in the description or have a separate box next to the description that lists the amount.
In the next column, you’ll want the price per quantity. So, if you charged the client $50 per each paper box, mark “$50/box.”
The column after that would be the total. Continuing with our example, $50/box multiplied by 1,000 boxes would come out to $50,000.
If this is the only product the client purchased, include the total at the bottom plus any taxes or other costs that came with the purchase.
Remember Who Your Client Is
Depending on the client, you may need to include your tax identification number (TIN). According to Entrepreneur, industries such as the nonprofit and childcare service sectors may require this information.
Speak with your client beforehand to see if this information is needed. Depending on the country you operate in, local legislation my require using a different invoice name (e.g. VAT invoice in the UK or tax invoice in Australia or New Zealand).
Boilerplate
Every professional invoice template has a space for your business’ boilerplate. Or, in other words, fine print.
This is the section that lists your terms and conditions. Normally, you’ll want to include the number of days before the invoice is due, the method of payment that’s accepted, and any fees or penalties if the invoice is late.
Typically, businesses will give clients two weeks minimum to 30 days maximum to pay the invoice.
Remember that, at times, some clients may pay late on an invoice. So, you’ll need to give yourself a 1-2 day window to prepare for impromptu lateness while still making payroll.
Why This Is Important
You need to specify your terms and conditions for a number of reasons, the most important being you want the invoice to be paid within a designated timeframe.
If you didn’t include any terms or conditions, technically, your client could take months (even years) to pay your invoice…without any repercussions. That’s why these terms need to be stated no matter how your invoice looks like or what services you are invoicing for.
That being said, terms and conditions are a way to make your client accountable. It also ensures you’re not in financial trouble come payroll. And, it makes your business come across as professional and responsible.