Online invoicing

Online invoicing
Learning outcomes
In this lesson, you’ll learn how to:

1. Recognize how to utilize the features of online invoicing

Topics

 Key features
 Creating an invoice
 The customer view of an Online Invoice

The story so far

For some of his larger landscaping projects, Craig invoices his
customers and they pay him after the work is complete.
Getting paid quickly is vital to Craig's cashflow. He has heard that
online invoicing can speed up the invoicing process and is keen to see
how it could benefit his business.

How can QuickBooks Online help?

Online invoicing helps you and your clients to get invoices to
customers quickly and efficiently, and allows your customers to
message your client about the invoice (and for them to reply).
The more control you and your clients have during the invoicing stage,
the faster they can request payments and solve any queries or
problems. With QuickBooks Online’s smart invoices, customers can
pay in an instant—anytime, anywhere.
Real-time alerts let you know when customers view and pay invoices,
and automated reminders let customers know when payment is due.

Key features
For Craig and most small businesses, it's essential to stay on top of
invoicing and make sure they get paid within the agreed terms of the
invoice.
QuickBooks Online has powerful features that mean Craig can do just
that. Let’s look at them.
Select the tabs/steps in turn.

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An invoice allows customers who haven’t paid at the point of sale to

pay later. Craig’s business workflow is best suited to a simple accrual-
basis service.
The Invoice screen in QuickBooks Online is a sales form. The income
is recorded as earned even though no cash has been received yet.
In basic terms, creating an invoice increases the amount Craig is owed
from his customers on account in QuickBooks, because it’s an
increase in accounts receivable.
Let’s look at how we can create an invoice for the work Craig has just
done.

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If your client has enabled online invoicing, QuickBooks Online will

send one email per invoice directly to the customer. This email
includes a link to the invoice and, if enabled, a button to take the
customer to online payments.
As a one-stop location to raise and view outstanding payments and
connect with the customer, online invoicing simplifies and removes
the pain of invoicing.
Your clients will be able to see when an invoice has been opened.
Even if they have to wait for a check to arrive, this adds transparency
to the process.

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 Online invoicing

QuickBooks Online Advanced lets you create and send multiple invoices at
the same time. You can save time by sending the same invoice to multiple
customers, or work on multiple invoices in a single window at the same time.
When ready, you can send all your invoices with one button.

Creating an invoice
Let’s help Craig prepare his invoice. Craig just finished installing a new
water feature in the yard of Travis Waldron, a current customer.
Creating invoices for Craig is simple because his QuickBooks Online
company has already been set up with his default sales settings, client
details, and the Products and Services he sells. In fact, QuickBooks
does most of the work for Craig. Let’s take a look.
Watch the video to see how it’s done. The individual steps are below
for you to follow.

1. From the + New button, select Invoice from the Customers column
2. Select the customer from the drop-down. It’s Travis
Waldron. Notice how the customer information already inputted
by Craig into QuickBooks Online pre-fills the screen, including
the email address
3. Then enter the invoice date
4. Notice that Craig’s standard terms (30 days) are added and used
to calculate the due date for payment of this invoice
5. Leave the Crew # blank
6. In the Item grid, choose Installation under Products and Services
7. Set the quantity at 10. This rate is already set by Craig in
QuickBooks Online and the full invoice amount will be calculated
automatically: $500
8. Now select Save and Send to view the draft of the invoice
9. It all looks good, so select Send and Close

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The customer view of an online invoice

The invoices we sent have gone out to Craig’s customers.
For an idea of the customer view, look at the email details in the
preview before selecting Send. There you’ll find details including what
Craig charged Travis Waldron for hardware and installation.
When the customer opens the email, a green button gives them the
option to view the Online invoice.
There’s also a Pay Now button. This will be active because QuickBooks
Payments is set up for Craig. If it QuickBooks Payments weren't set
up, this button would be grayed out and inactive.

Take our ProAdvisor challenge

Craig is installing a new fountain for Diego Rodriguez. He needs to
create the invoice when he gets back to the office but may run late in
getting the job completed today.
Can you create an invoice for him?
Task
Create an invoice for Diego Rodriguez.

 Terms: Net 30
 Invoice date: today
 Product/Service: Installation
 Description: Install a new fountain
 Qty: 7
 Rate: $50

Open Craig’s QuickBooks Online

Check your work

To see whether your invoice has been sent and is correct,
select Sales from the Left Navigation Bar and enter the Invoices tab.
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Your invoice for the fountain should appear in the list. To check the
details, simply select the record and the invoice will reopen.
The invoice should have a due date of 30 days from today and a status
of Open.
Hints and tips

1. From the + New button, select Invoice from the Customers column
2. Select the customer from the drop-down. It’s Diego Rodriguez. Notice
how the customer’s information already inputted by Craig into
QuickBooks Online, including the email address, pre-fills the
screen
3. Then, enter the invoice date
4. Notice that Craig’s standard terms (30 days) are added and used to
calculate the due date for payment of this invoice
5. Leave the Crew # blank
6. In the Item grid, choose Installation under Products and Services
7. Set the quantity at 7. This rate is already set by Craig in
QuickBooks Online and the full invoice amount will be calculated
automatically: $350
8. Now select Save and Send to view the draft of the invoice
9. If it all looks good, select Send and Close
ProAdvisor tip
Craig’s Landscaping is the sample company on QuickBooks Online test
drive. It’s designed for you to explore and try out new things without
worrying that you will break something or make a mistake.
Once you close this QuickBooks Online test drive company it is
completely refreshed, so please remember to allow sufficient time to
complete each activity. Don’t worry if you have to close the test drive
before you are finished—you can always begin again.