Invoice Generator

Welcome to the Free Invoice Builder Blog!

Vered Ben Aroya — Thu, 25 Jan 2018 12:18:20 +0000

This blog is an educational hub for our growing user community, as well as for those of you who are first-time visitors that wish to learn more about invoicing for your business. Here you’ll find a body of useful resources on topics like online invoices, invoicing essentials, starting a new business, accounting, payments and so on. Even if you’ve never read about those topics before or you feel that finances are not your strong suit, you’ll find that our articles are clear, to the point and easy to understand.

In this blog, you’ll find updates about our online invoice generator, a thorough invoice guide, guides on using the invoice generator’s various features, tips for effective invoicing, definitions of invoicing terms, etc. As we strive to help new businesses starting out, you will also find here guides on starting a new business, financing your business, maintaining a positive cash flow, writing up a business plan, defining business objectives, etc. We hope to make this blog your one-stop-shop when you’re looking for solutions, tips and guides on various aspects of your business.

Are you having difficulties finding articles on a certain topic? Do you have an idea for more topics we should write about? We are constantly trying to improve our blog so we’d love to hear from you! Hop over to our “Contact Us” page and share your thoughts with us.

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Invoices Intro: 7 Essential Rules & Requirements Invoicing Process

saleem — Sat, 28 Oct 2017 22:59:31 +0000

Every business, large or small, must invoice clients in order to ensure their payment for the services or products provided. This is an integral part of every business transaction, and it has another vital goal: maintaining proper cash flow for the business. However, invoicing is often regarded as a tedious task: it requires attention to detail, allows no room for error, and most importantly, demands strict follow-up, since it is the habit of many clients to defer payment until a later, unknown date. Nevertheless, there are several ways to make the invoicing process easier, quicker and more effective:

Discussing payment terms ahead of time: Before going into any kind of transaction with the buyer, both seller and buyer should agree on the timeframe of payment (payment upon receipt, 30 days, 60 days, etc.). This way buyer will know when the seller expects to be paid.
Avoiding confusion regarding the price: The amount to be paid should also be agreed on beforehand. The buyer should be made aware of the price of the product/service he is purchasing, either by the seller listing his prices on the website (and/or brick&mortar business) or by his sending the buyer a written quote. The buyer should also be made aware of any amounts that will be added to the price such as VAT, shipping costs, etc.
Listing the accepted types of payment on the invoice: Making sure the buyer knows how he can pay helps in speeding the payment process. Therefore, the buyer should list the types of payments he accepts – credit card, check, PayPal, etc. – on the invoice, and also include any instructions or limitations pertaining to these types of payment (for example, which type of credit card is not accepted, or the name of beneficiary that should appear on the check).
Addressing the invoice to the right person: Many invoicing mishaps are the result of addressing the invoice to the wrong person or entity. Sellers should provide the buyers in advance with the correct contact details (full name, role, email address, telephone number, etc.) to which the invoice should be sent, to avoid any delays in payment or risk the invoice getting lost.
Invoices should be numbered: In order to keep track of payments, both for tax purpose and in case an invoice gets misplaced, it is vital to assign numbers to invoices and keep them organized accordingly. All paperwork pertaining to business transactions should be organized and easy to track down, including contracts, price quotes, receipts, etc.
Following up on payments: To make sure buyers don’t forget to pay or try to avoid paying at all, sellers should follow up on the payment after issuing the invoice. This can done by resending the invoice with a reminder, calling the buyer or, if all else fails (the buyer avoids both emails and calls) – taking legal action. However, that is an extreme measure that should be taken after all other options have been exhausted.
Automating the invoicing process: Today, many businesses opt for an automatic invoicing system. Such a system allows making templates for regular clients so that invoices are sent to them automatically on a recurring basis. Such a system can also send automatic reminders in the case payments haven’t been transferred. Automatic invoicing systems have many innovative features which make invoicing simple and effective.

The post Invoices Intro: 7 Essential Rules & Requirements Invoicing Process appeared first on Invoice Generator.

From Biblical Times to the 21st Century: The History of Invoicing

saleem — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 00:14:01 +0000

Invoices aren’t a new invention. According to the Tradeshift blog, they date back thousands of years to the region of Mesopotamia, which encompasses modern-day Iraq, Kuwait and parts of Syria and Turkey. To manage business efficiently, merchants in Mesopotamia had used clay tablets on which they carved IOUs. In more recent centuries (the 1500s to the 1700s) invoices were written on paper and were simply letters detailing the transaction.

The Industrial Revolution, which began in the late 18th century, required the creation of a more sophisticated form of invoices: that was when the invoices similar to those we use today had emerged. They included the details of the buyer and the seller, the issuing date, a list of the goods including their quantities and prices, and so on. By the early 1900s, some invoices were being printed by printing machines and featuring logos of the companies that issued them. Some companies were using typewriters to issue invoices.

Invoice example from 1888:

[Image credit: flickr, Wystan]

The age of eInvoicing (electronic invoicing) had begun in the 1960s, when the first EDI (electronic data interchange) system was developed. EDI systems link together companies and their trading partners, allowing both sides to transfer documents like invoices and purchase orders. Invoices still needed to be printed out and sent by mail, but the systems eliminated much of the paperwork and time required to type in the data. In the 1970s, the IBM 3800 Laser Printer had become commercially available, and was used for high-volume printing of documents, thus making it easy to create invoices.

Invoices Today

In the 1990s many companies began to use invoicing web applications, which were used to upload EDI files and were compatible with PDF, CSV and XML formats. These applications allowed suppliers to send customers invoices for approval before formally issuing them. In addition, a supplier or a customer could use the application to see all their invoicing history, enabling them to search for past invoices if such a need arose.

Today the use of e-Invoicing web apps, with which one can easily create an invoice online, is prevalent among all types of companies, businesses and even those who are self-employed. According to the 2012 Global E-Invoicing Study, 73% used e-Invoicing to some degree. In addition, governments in many countries are actively encouraging businesses and municipalities to adopt the use of e-Invoicing.

[Image credit: flickr, Invoy]

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