Using QuickBooks software comes with many perks; you can manage your sales, expenses, and purchases with this tool. Besides that, this software is also famous for managing your taxes as well as invoices. However, if you’re new to QuickBooks Online or Desktop, you might need help to create an invoice using it.
This accounting software helps you create many invoices without wasting your time. In addition, QuickBooks is known for its consistency in creating all your invoices correctly without making any mistakes. So, if you want to learn how to create an invoice in QuickBooks, this step-by-step guide will surely help you. This guide consists of the purpose of the invoice, what you need to keep in mind while creating an invoice, and how you can use QuickBooks to help you with invoice creation.
What Is An Invoice And Its Purpose?
Starting with a basic question, what is an invoice? Well, an invoice is a bill or document that is given to a buyer (customer) by a seller (you) in order to collect payment. So, whenever someone purchases a good or service, you can give them an invoice mentioning the cost of the good and service. This is quite a crucial document that every business creates.
If your invoices are made correctly, you can use them as tools for communicating with your customers as well as for record-keeping. So, if you ask what is the purpose of an invoice, personalized and effective invoicing can help in the following ways:
- Help boost the cash flow
- Aid in strengthening your bond with clients and customers.
- Save your time from bookkeeping
- Help reinforce your brand.
QuickBooks help you create error-free invoices in no time. Furthermore, this accounting software is not all about automating the invoice creation process. With QuickBooks, you can:
- track the time customers take to make a payment
- know the time payment is scheduled to reach your bank
- figure out the invoice payments that are overdue
This software helps you successfully fulfill the purpose of an invoice.
What Are Some Standard Invoicing Tips?
While QuickBooks can help you create multiple invoices, you should be aware of some basic invoicing tips by which you create great invoices. So, while creating these invoices, here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Always cross-check that the customer’s name and contact details are clearly mentioned in the invoice. This helps in matching invoices to particular accounts.
- Provide easy-to-understand payment terms. This helps your customers know when and how to make a payment.
- Offer different options for payment so your customer can pay you easily and quickly.
What Components To Keep In Mind While Creating An Invoice?
Although we mentioned some basic invoicing tips in the previous section, you should know that it is not all about creating a good invoice. Whether you’re an independent contractor or someone who works for an organization, while you create invoices, here are some things you should always include.”
Header
Well, the header of your invoice matters for many reasons. You must add the word “INVOICE” on the top of the document in capital letters. It’s possible that your customers go through multiple documents every day. If they see the word invoice on the top of a document, they will easily know they are required to pay.
The Name And Address Of The Payer
It is important to mention the name and email address of the person or company that is issuing the payment on the invoice. Going through these details will make it easier for the customer to understand that the invoice is meant for them.
The Name And Address Of The Payee
The name and email address of the person or organization that is being paid should be mentioned on the invoice. These details will help the customer when they need to make a payment.
An Itemized Listing Of Products Or Services
It is essential that the invoice has the details regarding the work being billed and what was done. Suppose you’re creating an invoice for a particular good. In that case, you should mention the name of the products, per-unit price, total price, and quantity on the invoice.
Now, if you’re making an invoice for a service, you should mention the project name, flat or hourly rate, and a brief description of the work. In addition, if your service was based on an hourly rate, mention the total number of hours you worked.
Also, to avoid confusion between you and the customer, here are some other things you should consider while creating an invoice.
Date
In the invoice, include the date you issued the invoice, when the products or service were ordered & delivered, and when the work was completed.
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Invoice Number
While having an invoice number is not always necessary, keeping your invoices organized is still a good practice. If you’re working in a large organization, having an invoice number becomes quite essential because of their complex billing systems.
Terms
Well, you can’t forget to add the payment terms to the invoice. Your customers need an idea about the payment period when they have to make the payment. Generally, invoices carry a 30-day term, meaning the customers have to pay within 30 days to avoid any penalties or late fees. The term part is mostly mentioned as “Net 30” on the invoice.
How To Create An Invoice In QuickBooks Desktop?
After learning how to make a comprehensive invoice without missing details, we will help you create an invoice in QuickBooks Desktop. Well, there are many ways to create invoices using QuickBooks Desktop. However, don’t worry; we’ll help you create these invoices from scratch.
Creating Invoices From Scratch
Your A/R workflow will start with making an invoice if your business doesn’t require creating estimates or sales orders.
- Firstly, head to your “Home” screen or the “Customers” section.
- Then, choose the “Create Invoices” option.
- Next, pick a customer job or customer using the “Customer: Job” drop-down. Tap on “Add New” if the job or customer is not on the list.
- After that, enter the required details at the top, such as “Terms,” “Date Invoice #,” and “Bill to/Sold to.
- Now, once you’re in the detail area, choose the items.
Note: When you pick an item, the amount and description will be filled automatically based on the unit cost and description you entered while setting it up. But you can modify or delete these details when creating the invoice.
Moreover, if you’re looking to apply for a discount, you must make a discount item.
- Firstly, head to the “Lists” section from your “Home” screen.
- Then, tap the “Item List” option.
- Next, press your mouse, right-click, and select the “New” option.
- After that, click the “Type” drop-down and hit the “Discount” option.
- Now, type “Item Number/Name” with a brief “Description.”
- Also, enter your discount percentage or amount in the “% or Amount” field. However, if these discount amounts vary, simply leave the % or Amount field blank. You can type in the amount straight on the sales forms.
- Next, using the “Account” drop-down, select the income account that will allow you to track customers to whom you have given discounts.
- After that, pick the right “Tax Code” for your item.
- Now, hit “OK.”
- Finally, hit the “Save & Close” button.
Creating Invoices For A Sales Order
If you have fulfilled a sales order, the next thing you need to do is make an invoice. You can use two ways to achieve this:
From the Sales Orders Window
- Firstly, head to the “Sales Order” primary tab.
- Then, tap on the “Create Invoice” option.
- Next, a prompt will appear on your screen:
- Tap on “Create invoice for all of the sales order(s)” in order to add all sales order items to your invoice.
- Tap on “Create invoice for selected items” to add only specific items to your invoice.
- After that, you can make all the required changes to your invoice.
Note: In the items lists, type in the quantity for each item in the “To Invoice” section. You can also enter “0” as your quantity if you don’t need to invoice any listed item.
- Finally, hit “Save & Close.”
From The Invoice Window
- Firstly, head to your QuickBooks “Customer” section or “Home” screen.
- Then, tap the “Create Invoices” option.
- Next, pick a customer job or customer using the “Customer: Job” drop-down.
- After that, select sales orders with items you need to add to your invoice.
- Now, make all the essential changes in your invoice.
Note: In the items lists, type in the quantity for each item in the “To Invoice” section. You can also enter “0” as your quantity if you don’t need to invoice any listed item.
- Finally, hit the “Save & Close” button.
Creating Invoices For An Estimate
If the customer has accepted the estimate and is willing to pay out a fixed amount, you can turn the whole estimate into an invoice.
From The Estimate Window
- Firstly, open the right estimate.
- Then, tap the “Create Invoice” button present on the estimate form top.
- Next, if you have turned on the progress invoicing, you’ll receive a prompt asking about the quantities and items to mention on your invoice. Make sure to specify what you want to include.
- After that, when your invoice appears on the screen, edit the details per your needs.
- Finally, hit the “Save & Close” button.
From The Invoice Window
- Firstly, head to your QuickBooks “Customer” section or “Home” screen.
- Then, tap the “Create Invoices” option.
- Next, pick a customer job or customer using the “Customer: Job” drop-down. An available Estimates window will appear on your screen.
- After that, select the estimate you need to add to your invoice. Know that QuickBooks allows you to pick one estimate only for the invoice.
Note: If you have turned on the progress invoicing, you’ll receive a prompt asking what you want to include in your invoice. Simply specify what you need to add as it prompts on your screen.
- Now, once your invoice appears on the screen, edit the details per your needs.
- Finally, tap on the “Save & Close” button.
How To Create An Invoice In QuickBooks Online?
So, in the previous section, we came to know about how to create an invoice in QuickBooks Desktop. However, if you’re a user of QuickBooks Online, the steps can differ a bit. Furthermore, whether you’re using the old experience or new experience in QuickBooks online will also matter while creating an invoice.
So, here are all the steps to help you create invoices in QB online.
Step 1: Create And Send An Invoice
There can be a bit of difference between steps for creating and sending an invoice using QB online based on what experience you’re using currently.
For Old Experience Users
- Firstly, tap on “+New.”
- Then, choose the “Invoice” option.
- Next, head to the “Customer ▼” drop-down, and choose a customer. Don’t make any mistakes in the details of the customers, especially their email.
- After that, analyze the “Invoice date.” You can change the due date by tapping on the “Terms ▼” drop-down if you want to.
Note: Your Net will be set as 30 days by default. If you want to change this payment due date, make sure you edit that section.
- Now, head to the “Product/Service” section. Then, click on a service or product.
- Also, write the rate and quantity, and change the amount if required.
- Next, click the “Tax” checkbox if your product or service charges sales tax.
- After you finish this, you’ll get many options for sharing or saving your invoice.
- If your invoice is ready, tap “Save and send” to email your invoice to the customer. Make the necessary changes, and then hit “Send and close.”
- To send your invoice sometime later, tap “Save and close.”
- In order to print a paper invoice, click “Save.” After that, tap on “Print or Preview.”
- To send the customer a link to their invoice via text message, tap “Save and share link.”
For New Experience Users
- Firstly, tap on “+New.”
- Then, choose the “Invoice” option.
- Next, head to the “Customer ▼” drop-down, and choose a customer. Don’t make any mistakes in the details of the customers, especially their email.
- After that, analyze the “Invoice date,” “Terms,” and “Due date.” You have the option to change terms or dates if required.
- Now, head to the “Product/Service” section. Then, click on a service or product from the “▼ drop-down.
- Also, decide the way you want the charge amount to be calculated, i.e., by item, flat rate, or hour. Then, type in the rate and quantity, if required.
- Next, select the “⚙ Manage” option to design the invoices or change the info. Once done changing, choose the options from your side panel. This will help your QuickBooks to remember your choices. So, if you make any invoices in the future, QuickBooks will automatically apply these choices.
- When you complete all the previous steps, you’ll have various options for sharing and saving your invoice:
- If your invoice is ready, tap “Review and send” to email your invoice to the customer. Make the necessary changes, and then hit “Send invoice.”
- To send your invoice at a later time, tap “Save and close.”
- In order to print a paper invoice, click “Save.” After that, tap on “Print and download.”
- If you have already received your customer’s payment, tap “Receive Payment.”
- To send the customer a link to their invoice via text message, tap “Save and share link.”
Step 2: Reviewing Unpaid Invoices
QB online helps you place unpaid invoices into the accounts receivable account. You can find the account on the Balance Sheet as well as other various financial reports.
So, if you want to review these invoices, you can simply head to “Get paid & pay. Then, tap “Invoices” to review them any time you want. Also, you can verify your status column to check the status of your invoices in the sales process.
While you’re doing this, you will see one of the following statuses:
Due in [days]
This means you still need to mail your invoices.
Due in [days] Sent
This means you have mailed your invoice to your customer.
Due in [days] Viewed
This means the customer has opened your invoice.
Deposited
This means the customer has paid your invoice.
Overdue [days]
This means your invoice is unpaid and past the due date.
Overdue [days] Viewed
This means the customer has opened your invoice but failed to pay the past due.
Delivery issue
This means the email was not able to be delivered. Recheck the email address you entered and resend.
Voided
This means your invoice was voided in QB.
Step 3: Getting Payments For Invoices
If you’re a user of QuickBooks Payments, your customer can make the invoice payments through PayPal, ACH transfer, Venmo, or credit card. QB helps you handle and process all these payments. Furthermore, QB puts these transactions into the right accounts whenever you receive payments.
Other than that, QuickBooks can track all your payments even if you use external platforms to process these payments from your customer.
Put Some Extra Effort; Try Personalizing Your Invoice!
Now, you know how to create an invoice in QuickBooks. However, do you know that you can use this invoice as a way to reinforce your brand? Since this is a transaction document, your customers will see it from time to time in their emails. In addition, you may know how important customer interaction is for your business. Your invoices work as an extension of your organization and brand. So, here are a few ways through which you can incorporate your brand into the invoice.
Consider The Tone
How you talk to your customers highly impacts if they will buy your products or services again or not. So, as you’re your business’s voice, you must choose the language correctly. Ensure you properly thank your customer in the email and sign off respectfully. All this will help you leave a positive impression on your customer.
Work On Design
How you design your email matters as it reflects your brand in terms of imagery, colors, and typefaces. However, while focusing on the email design, ensure it doesn’t overwhelm your primary purpose and message of the invoice.
Put Something Extra
End the email politely by mentioning your customer’s name and thanking them in the invoice comment section. Make sure not to add too much, and keep the message as relevant as possible. Here are a few things you can do there:
- You can mention what part you enjoyed while working on the project.
- Use a convincing approach that you would like to work on similar projects again.
- Try attaching links to your blog posts that talk about industry trends so the customer knows you’re updated with them.
Conclusion
QuickBooks makes creating invoices quite easy, and we hope you can now create an invoice in QuickBooks Online and Desktop. Try using the tips we mentioned above to make your Invoices look interesting. This may help you make your customers eager to work with you again.
While creating invoices on QB is a straightforward process, sometimes you may face some errors because the software doesn’t allow you to create these invoices. Well, worry not, as MWJ Consultancy got the best support services for all QB errors. Our technicians are proficient enough to eliminate all these errors you may face while using QuickBooks online or Desktop. Contact us at +44 800 054 8150 or info@mwjconsultancy.co.uk to get the right 24/7 support services for QB errors.