If you already rely on invoicing as part of your billing process, but are looking to add some efficiency and automation, you might want to consider recurring invoices. Recurring invoices are invoices that are automatically generated and sent to customers at regular intervals, such as weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually.
Autobooks offers an easy way to create recurring invoices that can be sent to customers via email. These invoices can be paid online with a credit or debit card or even by ACH payment.
Recurring invoices are ideal when you need to bill a customer for the same amount on a regular, predetermined basis. They’re commonly used by many kinds of businesses, but especially those that sell through subscriptions, lease or rent properties, or provide ongoing services (to name just a few).
The benefits of recurring invoices are many. By relying on recurring invoices, your business can save time, gain some clarity around cash flow, and even make it more convenient for paying customers.
Most Autobooks users can simply click on Send an invoice inside their online or mobile banking dashboard, then quickly create a new recurring invoice from there. If that option is not available, just select Autobooks from the main menu.
In the Customer field, add the name of your customer or select them from the list if you’ve billed them before.
Note: Once you’ve input your customer’s information, your invoice will be automatically saved as a draft (and labelled as such). You can access your draft at any time from your list of invoices, accessed inside the Invoices tab.
In the Schedule menu, select from the list how often you would like to bill your customer: weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly or annually.
Weekly - Send an invoice every week, on the day of the week you choose.
Bi-Weekly - Send invoices every 2 weeks, on the day of the week you choose.
Monthly - Send invoices every month, on the day you choose.
Quarterly - Send invoices every 3 months, with the flexibility to choose the months and a specific day.
Annually - Choose a specific day and month to have an invoice send each year
In the Start date field, choose the date that the recurring invoice will be sent. Note: if you select a specific date/day of the month for delivery, the invoice will not begin until that qualifying date.
In the Payment Terms field, enter the number of days before the invoice is due (sometimes called a grace period).
In the How long field, provide the number of times you would like to send this invoice to your customer. Or you can instead choose a specific date to end the recurring invoice (invoicing will stop on this date and the schedule will no longer run).
The rest of the recurring invoice template is identical to the regular invoice template.
At bottom, you will need enter the Product/Service in the field provided, as well as the Quantity (Qty) and Price.
Although you are not required to provide a Description, this information can go a long way in helping your customer to make sense of your invoice.
You also have the option to add line items, a service charge, and even a sales tax. Just click those respective links to add those options to your recurring invoice. Note: When sales tax is turned on, you can decide which line items have sales tax applied.
Because your recurring invoice is saved automatically as a draft, you can always exit the template screen and return to it at any time. To access a recurring invoice draft, select the Invoices tab. You will see your draft in the list provided.
When you click a specific draft, you will see several options to the right of the list:
If you wish to return to your draft, click the first option, Edit Draft Invoice.
After you have completed your recurring invoice template, just click Send invoice to email your customer. Before sending out, be sure to click the Preview Invoice option to see what your customer will see when receiving this invoice.
After sending your invoice, you can always review it in your invoices list inside the Invoice Schedules tab.
Get started today by logging into your financial institution checking account, and click Send an invoice or just select Autobooks. If you’re new to Autobooks, you’ll see a few prompts to help you get started!
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Want to learn other ways to use invoices? Be sure to visit the Autobooks Support Center for more information. If you have more questions about these updates, let us know. Get help from an Autobooks small business specialist online: Submit a Support Request. |