As a freelancer, you won’t get paid for your hard work and services if you don’t create an invoice of some sort to send to your clients. However, if you’re new to the freelancing world, it can be difficult to figure out how to write an invoice for freelance work.
I’ve been freelancing for about two years now, but only started full-time last summer after graduating with my B.A. in graphic design and Media Arts from university.
Over the years, I’ve tried sending invoices in many different ways; through payment processors, CRM systems, and even designing and creating them myself in InDesign.
I’ve come a long way considering I didn’t know how to send an invoice when I first started.
If you’re wondering how to invoice for freelance work, whether you’re new to this career or you’ve been in this world for a while, you’re in the right place.
Writing an invoice doesn’t have to be difficult, and the more you send them, the easier it becomes.
Here’s my guide to how to write an invoice for freelance work.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
What should An Invoice Include?
How To write an Invoice for Freelance Work
How to send an Invoice
When to send an Invoice
How clients Pay invoices for Freelance Work
Fazit
What should An Invoice Include?
Writing an invoice and charging for your services is important to keeping your business running, paying rent, and affording your other monthly expenses.
If you’re trying to figure out how to write an invoice for freelance work, start with the basics outlined below. Your invoice needs the following, but you can always add more information depending on your client’s needs.
Kontaktinformation
First up is contact information, which includes both your contact information and your client’s.
You’ll want to make sure to include the business name, address, email, phone number, and website of both you and your client if you have it.
At the very least, make sure you include this information for your own business so your client can contact you if there’s an issue.
The contact information should be at the top of your invoice somewhere. many invoice creator systems will do this automatically for you, so you don’t have to worry about it once you input the information.
Invoice Number
If you consistently use the same exact invoicing system, then the invoice number will automatically update for you with every invoice that you create.
If you use a few different programs, you’ll want to make sure you don’t have two of the same invoice number across platforms to go back and find invoices as needed easily.
Rechnungsdatum
An invoice isn’t complete without including the date that you sent it. This is just as important for your own records as it is for your client’s.
This can simply be added at the top of the invoice somewhere underneath the contact information. Make sure that the date you put is correct; don’t backdate it.
Rechnungsfälligkeitsdatum
In addition to the date you send the invoice, you should also have an invoice due date. This is the date that the payment from your client is due.
Many invoice creation tools will automatically make the due date the same as the date you send the invoice, but you can change this if needed.
If you’re wondering how to invoice for freelance work with longer contracts, you can actually set up multiple due dates with amounts due with some invoice creators, like Dubsado or Honeybook.
This allows your client to set up automatic payments and be aware of the rest of the payments coming up in the next few months.
Itemized list of services Performed
For your client to properly know exactly what they are paying for, you need to make sure that you include an itemized list of all of the services you performed for them. think of this as the list part of a receipt that you receive after you check out a store.
For instance, if they paid you for a social media management package, write out the package’s name, list the description of the services performed underneath, and the price it costs.
This is one of the most important details on an invoice.
Final amount Due
Your client is not going to know how much is due if you don’t include a final number! Make sure this number is easy to see and is inclusive of all of the services you performed.
The best spot to put the final amount due for all services is at the bottom of the invoice in bold. This way, your client can easily spot how much they are paying before even looking over the rest of the invoice.
Bonus: logo (a fun addition)
If you want to know how to create an invoice for freelance work in a more fun and customized way, make sure to add your logo to the top near your businessInformation. There are quite a few different invoice creator services that will do this for you.
You can also alter the design of the invoice to make it have your brand colours and fonts. But, don’t go overboard; you can brand the invoice accordingly but still have it not be too distracting from the content of the invoice. You want this to be easy to digest for your clients.
Other possibilities to Include
While most freelancers prefer to include payment terms within their contracts, you can also consider adding this to your invoice. This isn’t required in any way but can be valuable to remind your client if there’s a late fee of any kind.
You might also want to possibly add the available methods of payment. I personally outline this in my contracts, but some freelancers prefer to add it directly to their invoice. If you’re using an invoice creator like PayPal, then this isn’t necessary to include.
How To write an Invoice for Freelance Work
If you’re wondering how to invoice as a freelancer, you’re probably hoping there are tools out there that will do it for you. Well, there are!
These can be extremely time-saving and can make it a lot easier to send your invoices to your clients.
Here are a few of the best tools out there to send invoices to your clients. keep in mind that most of these do take at least a portion of your payments, unfortunately.
Dubsado
Dubsado is a go-to invoice and proposal CRM typically used by freelancers offering creative services, like branding, web design, and graphic design.
This tool allows you to set up recurring invoices for your clients so that you don’t have to set up a new one to send every month if your client is on a longer contract.
One of the terrific aspects of Dubsado is that you can add all of your normal packages directly into it.
For example, maybe you have a website design package that you offer. add it in as one of your packages, and when you create an invoice, you can choose the package from the dropdown menu, and it will be automatically added and calculated for you.
PayPal
While PayPal is a bit less fancy, I use it with a lot of my clients because everyone pretty much knows how to use it already.
The invoices aren’t as customizable, but they get the job done, and you can add all of the essentials that are outlined in the beginning part of this article.
HoneyBook
HoneyBook is my absolute go-to invoicing tool. all of my own social media management and graphic design clients are invoiced using this tool.
I can set up recurring invoices like Dubsado, and also add in all of my packages, which saves me so much time.
Clients can pay through bank transfer, credit, or debit card, so there are many payment options available. Your client has their pick, and can even set up their payments to be automatic so they don’t have to pay your late fee.
QuickBooks
If you’re wondering how to create an invoice for freelance work and you already use QuickBooks to stay on top of your financials, then you’re in luck. You can actually create invoices to send to your clients through it, just like with PayPal.
What’s so terrific about invoicing through QuickBooks is the money you make from the invoice is already in the financials software to save you some precious time.
Bonsai
Bonsai is a top-rated invoicing software among freelancers because of how easy it is to use. like with other invoicing software on this list, you can also set up recurring invoices or one-time invoices, which can help you stay more on top of your invoicing.
In addition to invoicing, Bonsai can create and send contracts for you and track your time. It has many other features that are worth looking into if you’re trying to choose an invoice service.
Welle
Wave is similar to QuickBooks in that it sends invoices, but can also help you manage all facets of your financials. You can watch your expenses, pay subcontractors, and set up one-time and recurring invoices for your clients.
Unlike some of the other invoice software on this list, Wave also has the ability to customize your invoices for you down to the exact hex colour that you use in your branding. The customization options are endless.
Ernte
Last but not least is Harvest, which is an invoicing software that I recommend you look into if you work on hourly retainers instead of in packages.
Harvest is mainly used for time tracking and exporting timesheets, but you can send it as an invoice for your clients to pay you via the platform once you track your time.
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So senden Sie eine Rechnung
Nachdem Sie nun wissen, wie Sie eine Rechnung für freiberufliche Arbeit schreiben, ist es an der Zeit, herauszufinden, wie man eine Rechnung sendet.
Wenn Sie eine der im vorherigen Abschnitt dieses Artikels beschriebenen Rechnungssoftware verwenden, müssen Sie sie nur an die E -Mail -Adresse Ihres Kunden senden. Sie können dann die E -Mail öffnen und die Rechnung umgehend bezahlen.
Wenn Sie die Rechnungen, die ich in der Vergangenheit gemacht habe, lieber ausführen möchten, müssen Sie beim Senden einer Rechnung an einen Kunden einige Dinge beachten.
Stellen Sie zunächst sicher, dass die Rechnung ein PDF ist.
Die Dinge können schief gehen, wenn Sie die Live -Datei senden, die Sie in Microsoft Word oder Adobe Indesign erstellt haben, weil der Kunde dann die Möglichkeit hat, sich daran zu ziehen, ohne dass Sie es wissen. Mit einem PDF kann der Client das Dokument nicht ändern.
Ich schlage vor, Sie senden es als Anhang in einer E -Mail und führen dann eine Kopie an anderer Stelle, damit Sie es leicht finden können, wenn Sie sich darauf verweisen müssen.
Wenn Sie eine Rechnung senden, die Sie selbst per E -Mail erstellt haben, sollten Sie sicherstellen, dass Sie eine geeignete Betreffzeile schreiben.
Erwägen Sie etwas wie: „Mein kreatives Designstudio -Namensrechnung fällig am 1.1.21“, damit Ihr Kunde genau weiß, was er ist.
Möglicherweise möchten Sie sogar zu Beginn der Betreffzeile “dringend” schreiben, sodass Ihr Kunde es für eine Weile nicht in seinem Posteingang sitzen lässt.
Eine weitere Option (alte Schule) zum Senden von Rechnungen besteht darin, sie per Post zu senden. Wenn Sie jedoch pünktlich bezahlt werden möchten, schlage ich vor, dass Sie es nach Möglichkeit per E -Mail senden.
Wann senden Sie eine Rechnung?
Der nächste Schritt, um zu lernen, wie man eine Rechnung für freiberufliche Arbeiten erstellt, besteht darin, herauszufinden, wann eine Rechnung gesendet werden soll. Sie möchten immer schnell sein und Ihrem Kunden genügend Zeit geben, um zu bezahlen, bevor die Rechnung fällig ist.
Zum größten Teil sollten Sie das Zahlungsdatum in Ihrem schriftlichen Vertrag bereits im Voraus entschieden haben, sodass Ihr Kunde im Voraus weiß, wenn die Zahlung erfolgen sollte. Von dort aus liegt es an Ihnen, zu entscheiden, wann Sie die Rechnung senden sollen.
Sie können sich entscheiden, die Rechnung eine Woche vor ihrer Fälligkeit oder sogar zwei Wochen vor dem Fälligkeit zu senden. Es liegt ganz bei Ihnen. Stellen Sie einfach sicher, dass Sie Ihrem Kunden genügend Zeit geben, um die Zahlung zu leisten, und senden Sie sie nicht so weit im Voraus, dass er sie vergessen.
Es kann eine Wissenschaft sein, die perfekte Zeit herauszufinden!
Eine andere Sache zu berücksichtigen sind Zahlungspläne. Wenn Sie Big-Ticket-Dienste wie Website-Design haben, die rund 2.500 US-Dollar oder mehr kosten können, besteht die Möglichkeit, dass sich Ihr Kunde nicht leisten kann, dies in einer einzigen Rechnung zu bezahlen.
Möglicherweise müssen Sie einige Rechnungen in Höhe von 500 US -Dollar in einigen Monaten einrichten, damit sich Ihr Kunde Ihre Dienste leisten kann.
Traditionell schicke ich gerne rund anderthalb Wochen, bevor sie für die meisten meiner Dienste fällig sind. Dies liegt jedoch daran, dass mein Grafikdesign und mein Social -Media -Management -Dienste die Zahlung erfordern, bevor die Arbeit beginnt.
Andere Dienste wie mein Schreiben werden nach Abschluss des Dienstes gesendet, da der Preis in der Regel auf der Wortzahl basiert und daher variieren kann.
Das größte, was ich aus der Rechnungsstellung gelernt habe, ist jedoch, dass Sie es konsistent halten. Deshalb einsetzt Dienste wie Honeybook, das einsetzt