{"id":6351,"date":"2019-08-06T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-06T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/?p=6351"},"modified":"2026-01-09T15:10:29","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T15:10:29","slug":"creating-processing-invoices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/creating-processing-invoices\/","title":{"rendered":"4 simple tips for creating and processing invoices"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/category\/money-matters\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Money Matters<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t4 simple tips for creating and processing invoices\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2019-08-06T10:00:00+01:00\">6 August, 2019<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"4 simple tips for creating and processing invoices\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/creating-processing-invoices\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/author\/neilmartin\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/09\/NeilMartinSage-e1508940612117.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" height=\"40\" width=\"40\" fetchpriority=\"high\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Neil Martin<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video-container-wrap -mode-full\"><div class=\"video-container\"><video\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"sage-video video-js vjs-default-skin \"\n\t\t\t\twidth=\"640\"\n\t\t\t\theight=\"360\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-setup='{ \"controls\": true, \"aspectRatio\" : \"16:9\", \"poster\": \"https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/FT7u3SQynT8\/maxresdefault.jpg\", \"techOrder\": [\"youtube\"], \"enablejsapi\": 1, \"origin\": \"https:\/\/www.sage.com\", \"sources\": [{ \"type\": \"video\/youtube\", \"src\": \"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FT7u3SQynT8\"}], \"youtube\": { \"ytControls\": 0, \"cc_load_policy\": 3, \"modestbranding\": 1, \"hl\": \"en_GB\", \"playsinline\": 1 } }'\n\t\t\t\tcrossorigin=\"\"><\/video><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Understanding the steps required for creating and processing invoices is important if you want to be a step closer to having a successful and thriving business. Invoices are issued by your business to your customers and they will trigger the payment for the product or service you have supplied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Make sure you get this process right to increase your chances of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/late-payments-paid-on-time\/\">getting paid on time<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>OK, ground rules first, and this comes down to good housekeeping. Don\u2019t dilly dally with your invoices (forgive the official terminology but this is an important point).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you\u2019ve made the deal and the product is on its way, get your invoice out. The longer you delay, in effect you are giving your customer increase in credit terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bear in mind that it\u2019s not regarded as fair to send out an invoice which is backdated. You might have the date when the deal was done on your invoice, but until the customer receives it, the days don\u2019t usually start counting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read this for four tips on help you when creating your invoices and learn about a company that uses bulk invoicing to stay on top of their paperwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-1-make-sure-your-invoice-looks-professional\"><strong>1. Make sure your invoice looks professional<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/how-to-create-an-invoice\/\">Create an invoice<\/a> that looks professional and provides the person receiving it with all the information they need to know. Remember, many companies have a department that is one step removed away from the person who made the buying decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On occasion, they can be hard to contact and harder still to establish a working dialogue. It\u2019s not the case of: \u201cHey Bob, you know my invoice, do me a favour and pay it this week would you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s more a case of sending an email to a nondescript office, home of the purchasing ledger, which could even be on another continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So don\u2019t give them an excuse to delay payment and say it\u2019s your fault for not supplying them with the correct details, or not doing it in the correct fashion (i.e. doing it in the way they want).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And don\u2019t argue if they have rules and systems that irritate you. At all times, be professional and play the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-2-here-s-what-needs-to-go-on-your-invoice\"><strong>2. Here&#8217;s what needs to go on your invoice<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are a number of things that you have to include on your invoices. Ensure they feature these basic components before you take the step to process an invoice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>your company name<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>your trading address<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the point of contact (your name and how to get hold of you, should there be a query)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>what your customer bought (a description &#8211; don\u2019t forget, the buyer may not receive your invoice, but just be asked to sign off the amount)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>who ordered the goods (this is not mandatory but it can help)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>an invoice number (your file number, for easy reference)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the date (don\u2019t forget this, it\u2019s vital)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the way you want to get paid (another hugely important element but one a large number of people forget)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>credit terms (i.e. payable immediately, or within 7, 30, 60 days, etc)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the amount you are charging<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>your bank details (very important if you want to receive the money)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>any stage payments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>is VAT applicable<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In short, include everything that the receiving party might need to process your invoice. Don\u2019t give them the opportunity to say: \u201cHang on, you missed that key point out and now we\u2019ll have to delay payment until the next run.\u201d Believe me, the list of excuses can be endless and sometimes quite creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This will give you the best chance to get paid on time and reduce the chances of being paid late or you needing to chase an unpaid invoice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One final point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most invoices are sent by email these days and again, following good housekeeping rules, make very sure the email address is correct and that it has arrived safely (check with them that they have received the invoice. If they don\u2019t get it, they won\u2019t process it).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-3-move-quickly-when-processing-invoices\"><strong>3. Move quickly when processing invoices<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>And here\u2019s a good tip: convert your invoice, if you\u2019ve prepared it as a Word document, to a PDF. Some companies won\u2019t accept Word documents \u2013 it\u2019s worth checking with them to be on the safe side \u2013 so always send it out as a PDF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This protects you and them, because PDFs can\u2019t easily be altered and what you see is what you get.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And if you&#8217;re using good accounting software, you&#8217;ll be able to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/sage-business-cloud\/accounting\/features\/invoicing\/\">create and manage your invoices online<\/a>. This will really help when it comes to sending out invoicing, tracking them and chasing customers when required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To be fair, most companies are very helpful about their systems and they are not out there to trick you. Work with them and also stay in touch too \u2013 don\u2019t see your invoice as a stranger, stay friends with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul Donno, managing director of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.1accountsonline.co.uk\/\">1 Accounts<\/a>, says: \u201cWhen processing your invoices, you have got to be quick. Don\u2019t delay processing your invoices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;There are a lot of businesses out there that leave their invoice processing until the end of the month by doing that and if you\u2019re giving 30 days, you could almost be giving 60 days credit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSo, get software in place and get the process of running an invoice right, so raise a quote, or an estimate, and then convert that into an invoice. Certainly use the online tools that are out there, the online <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/sage-business-cloud\/accounting\/\">accounting software<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;There are many good tools out there and you can also send invoices through your smartphone \u2013 it\u2019s really easy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-4-remember-to-add-your-bank-details-on-your-invoice\"><strong>4. Remember to add your bank details on your invoice<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>On some of the mechanics, Paul says: \u201cI would also make sure on your invoices is basically your name and address, how to contact yourself, what it is you are actually selling to somebody and the amount you\u2019re expecting to be paid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAnd really importantly \u2013 and a lot of people forget this \u2013 put on your bank details, or the easy way you can get paid, so your Stripe details, GoCardless details, or any other form of quick payment systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere are a lot of barriers coming down now on how to get paid quickly so use the tools that are out there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-one-company-uses-bulk-invoicing\"><strong>How one company uses bulk invoicing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Dom Makin, aka The Dogfather, runs a dog boarding and dog day care centre that operates in London. Originally from Wiltshire, his background was in advertising, a sector in which he worked for 16 years before he changed direction and went into dog walking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On how invoices are processed for his business, he says: \u201cWe process invoices by using a very clever system that calculates everything, up to the last day of the month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;And on the last day of the month, all my clients are sent invoices. We do bulk invoicing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The key thing here is that Dom is on top of his invoicing and uses a system that ensures they are issued on time and without a fuss. This is the benchmark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-conclusion-on-creating-and-processing-invoices\">Conclusion on creating and processing invoices<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Invoicing is an important part of running your business. Take the steps now to make sure you understand what is required when it comes to creating and processing your invoices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You want to give yourself the best possible chance of getting paid on time and staying on top of your invoicing will help you to do this. Also, as your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/7-tips-to-help-you-grow-your-business\/\">business grows<\/a>, you want to make sure the basics are in place \u2013 your invoicing processes are a key part of this.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Join 1.5 million subscribers and get the best business admin strategies and tactics, as well as actionable advice to help your company thrive, in your inbox every month.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-53abbdcc-410c-4c8c-bf97-ca5c6982eebd\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"999\" height=\"666\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2021\/04\/z.5E3A0481_All-Uses.jpg 999w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Understanding the steps required for creating and processing invoices is important if you want to be a step closer to having a successful and thriving business. Invoices are issued by your business to your customers and they will trigger the payment for the product or service you have supplied. Make sure you get this process [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":321,"featured_media":5852,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":true,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"sage_hide_published_date":false,"sage_hide_read_time":false,"sage_hide_share_buttons":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[163],"tags":[107,136],"business_type":[5],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[],"persona":[232],"imagine_tag":[230],"coauthors":[410],"class_list":["post-6351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-money-matters","tag-business-finances","tag-make-receive-payments","business_type-small-business"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-ie","author_name":"Neil Martin","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2019\/01\/GettyImages-503278812.jpg","imagine_tags":{"230":"Small business"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice Ireland","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/321"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6351"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6351\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/5852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=6351"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=6351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}