According to a 2018 report, there are more than 56 million freelancers in America, but their problems are not so numerous.

One of the most frustrating problems a worker in the gig economy has to deal with is getting paid on time. When money owed is not paid out, that leaves the freelancer with a ton of extra work?following up on payments, dishing out late fees, calculating interest accrued, researching freelance laws, and maybe even hiring lawyers.

And did we mention that none of that work is paid for either?

If you learn how to generate an invoice, you could save yourself a ton of time, money, and resources, allowing you to work for clients who respect your talents (and pay you for them, too). Keep reading for our tell-all guide on how to create an invoice.

1. Know What to Include

The best invoice has all the important details on one page. It should be easy to understand by your client and contain all the information regarding your transaction.

Some of the non-negotiables to include on your invoice are:

• Your company name
• All the ‘Bill To’ information, aka your client’s info
• A short description of the services and their quantities
• The total amount due
• Any terms, such as the due date
• The date of the invoice

You can use the same invoice over and over, no matter the client or services rendered.

If you use a template more than once (especially for the same client), include the number of the invoice. That gives you and the client a reference point/order number, keeping things organized.

2. Automate Your Invoices

The more you can automate, the less work you’ll have to do come payday.

One example of automating the invoicing process is to have an email get automatically sent to your client when it nears the due date. There are several other ways to automate invoices, all of which saves you time.

For example, you might use a service that automatically invoices a client after they purchase something, or that fills in the same details (like your information, which doesn’t change) for you. It might even put that information right into your accounts payable system. Certain software, like ERP (enterprise resource planning), can help you manage your financials this way.

3. Use an Online Invoice Maker

If all that sounds like too much work, you can always utilize an online invoice maker.

The ones offered by Adobe are not only free, but their templates guarantee you won’t accidentally miss an important part of the invoice.

They include all the necessities?description, quantity, total due, due date, and more?and they look great, too. No need to design your own?simply fill in the details and enjoy their beautiful, colorful, and classic collection.

Now You Know How to Generate an Invoice (And an Income)

Freelancers work hard to hone their talents?and they deserve to get paid for the work they do.

If you’re tired of tracking down payments from your clients, learn how to generate an invoice, and then enforce it. Invoices act as legally binding contracts and ensure you (and even your client) are protected.

Our blog is full of finance tips like this to help you be as successful as possible. Head back to the homepage to see how else you can optimize your business practices.

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