Landscaping invoice software isn’t new, but it has changed. Invoicing has had to change because people changed, and technology evolved. When you started your landscaping business, maybe you were still using paper. As time moved on, you probably found other ways to do invoicing. The question is, has your invoicing software project workflow evolved to modern standards?
The process that “got the job done”
Think back to when you started your landscaping business. Depending on how long ago that was, you may have been giving handwritten estimates using carbon paper to make a copy for you as you wrote it out for your customers. You probably used a calculator to tally up the total amount for the project. Then you provided the customer a copy and that was your “invoice” and “receipt” for the project. For recurring lawn maintenance or snow removal jobs, you may have dropped off an invoice or receipt on a weekly or monthly basis.
During this time, customers probably paid you directly or mailed in cash or check payment. If you were really cutting edge, the invoice you provided allowed for the bottom to be torn off or cut off as a remittance slip. The slip and payment would then be sent through the U.S. Postal Service. Once you received the payment, you would need to mark that invoice as paid and physically bring the check to the bank for deposit.
How technology and customer needs evolved
Then as technology and the needs of your customers evolved, you may have moved to using Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets to create your landscaping invoices. In this process, after an estimate was provided to the customers, the business copy of the estimate would have to be typed into the template. This helped organize the cost structure and everything was now legible since it was typed instead of handwritten. And perhaps for some of us (like me), having Excel or Google Sheets do the math was awesome! You could now email an invoice to your customers.
At this point in time, even with added technology, you may have felt accepting credit card payments was too costly. To collect payment, you would either pick up the payment directly from the customer or they mailed the payment to you.
Present day landscaping invoice software
Now, there is invoicing software, like Project 2 Payment, that is even faster and easier than an Excel template. You can create the estimate on your phone or computer, pulling from a list of your predetermined items with pricing and sales tax per unit. You enter in how many units, and the software calculates the line-item total. The software also calculates the total amount for the entire project. With one click, you can email the estimate to your customer and once they approve the estimate, you can email them the invoice with a link to pay electronically. It’s as simple as that.
Being able to manage everything digitally, from estimate to invoice to payment, helps create a seamless process for your customers. You will also be able to locate customer projects easily by just looking at the customer profile in Project 2 Payment. Projects and payment records are easily filed and searchable.
Accepting payment through the same software that sends the estimate and the invoice allows for accurate record-keeping and ties the payment directly to the project without an outside resource manually documenting and tracking projects.
Invoicing software may not be the first tool you think of when you’re looking to advance your landscaping business, but just as the technology for your state-of-the-art lawnmower has improved, so have invoicing processes. If you’re still using paper, Excel, or Google Sheets to create invoices, it’s time for an upgrade to make your life easier. With better invoicing, your business is more organized, your customers are more satisfied, and your cash flow is more regular.
