Invoicing Software Should Not Be Stand-Alone

Invoicing software is all about money - just money.  But are you billing your clients for projects or products and finding that the money you bring in is not covering all the costs of doing business associated with that invoice?  Perhaps your current financial software is not thorough enough to capture the "little costs" and "extras" that should be attributed to each client. 

Most financial software will cover accounts receivable, accounts payable, basic overhead costs, shipping and handling, taxes and profit but will it give you feedback on other expenses?  Of course, this may be all you need if you just have one or two clients or products to handle.  Here are a few ideas to ponder and questions to ask yourself if you are interested in growing your business.

• CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software is an integrated, powerful tool to be able to "tie" your business together with your bottom line, all in one system.

• When you get a lead on a new client, can you give them ideas for growing their business by calling up similar projects that you have had in the past, which might expand your relationship and future sales?

• To service a client, in most cases, they will ask you for quotes.  With strictly financial information you will have to go back through your invoicing system time and time again for each quote. What if you had the ability in invoicing software to produce a quote, with several options, very quickly? 

• Your invoicing keeps your business alive but integrated business management software can make your business GROW!

• By combining project management software, timesheets, expenses and a product catalog with invoicing software you get the full picture and are able to adapt charges to encompass real-time changes to your products or services and it is harder to overlook lost billing information.  Look for invoicing software that integrates projects, CRM, time sheets, products and expenses into an overall program, which will cohesively wind its way through to the actual invoice.

• What if you add an employee or give an employee a raise, will your invoicing software capture these expense changes and adapt them into new pricing?  If you use a comprehensive business management software you will be able co-ordinate your time sheets, project progress, productivity and expenses, all with a single tool.

• When looking for a billing program, try a web application program with a monthly fee based subscription with no contract or set-up fees and a free trial period.  One that also allows you to access your information from any Internet connection and can be upgraded as your needs expand is less expensive than buying a package that may not have the support you need.

• If you have a complete CRM invoicing software program, think of the possibilities!  You can offer discounts to clients that appreciate you and even offer commissions to prime customers.  You can create your own subscription products and have these billed and shipped at regular intervals with a drag-and-drop calendar.   You can view all outstanding balances and create reminder-notices with a single click.

• One thing to look for in invoicing software is the ability to create invoices compatible with PayPal Express, Google Checkout, Authorize.net and 2Checkout, and not just by a banker's check, cashier's check or a credit card.

CRM, projects or products management with your invoicing software can give you the flexibility of viewing all unbilled charges across your business at a glance, instantly knowing how much money is ready to be invoiced, creating invoices by selecting and assigning a customizable invoice template which can be sent by e-mail or print to PDF.  This will give you the peace-of-mind that you yearn for in the business world.