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One of the best ways to get paid faster is by ensuring all of your lawn care invoicing is promptly sent out.
Once you’ve billed clients for your lawn care services, a key aspect of getting paid is by sending them an itemized invoice of what they’re paying for.
By far, the vast majority of clients want to see what they’re paying for. As a result, it’s important to send each of your clients an itemized lawn care invoice to justify your charges.
Additionally, lawn care invoices are a great way for you to keep track of your business.
Accurate invoicing can help you file you to properly file taxes, track your clients’ job details, record payment history, and so much more.
Use this article to help create quick, professional invoices that get you paid faster. Plus, you’ll get a few time-saving, free downloadable gifts along the way.
Before you can begin creating a professional lawn care invoice, you need to decide on how you’ll bill your client.
Depending on the types of lawn and landscape services you offer, you might eventually use all of these lawn care invoicing types.
A flat-rate charge is when you bill someone a set amount for a specific job.
For instance, you could set a standard rate for your materials and time for mowing a set amount of square footage.
This type of billing makes the most sense when you’re dealing with large lawn care contracts because you typically charge higher for flat-rate.
Generally, flat-rate billing gives you more profit cushions for things like weather delays or equipment issues.
By far, one of the best parts about setting a flat-rate monthly fee is that you don’t have to spend extra time calculating your rate. Simply send your monthly invoice to your client for the monthly flat-rate price.
Though, if you use flat-rate billing, make sure you provide your client with a clear outline of the services you’re providing in your lawn care contract.
This way, if your client pushes for additional services using your initial flat-rate, you can adjust their new monthly flat-rate in a new contract, or decline it.
Hourly pricing is initially based on how much you charge per employee per hour you’re using for a job.
Additionally, you can also base your hourly rate on things like local pricing, how much hourly profit you want to make, and your employee wages.
When you’re first starting your lawn care business, hourly pricing can be an easier way to price your services.
Simply estimate how long it’ll take you to complete the job, and then factor in how much hourly profit you want to make.
If you’re mowing or landscaping, then charging an hourly rate might work for you.
However, keep in mind that many lawn care owners don't put how long the job takes them on the invoice as it can cause client conflict or confusion.
One-time billing is when you send an invoice to a client for a one-time job. This can be anything from an annual cleanup to a one-time mow.
A one-time charge typically occurs when you bill someone less than once a month.
For example, you might do an annual cleanup or seasonal fertilization treatment where you only visit the job site a few times a year.
As a result, you should send them an invoice after the one-time service is completed.
A recurring charge usually takes place when you’re dealing with ongoing projects spanning over the course of a few months (or multiple billing cycles).
For instance, if you’re doing a landscaping job, you’d send a recurring bill during each normal billing cycle once a month.
When it comes to recurring billing, it’ll save you loads of paperwork and time to send out one invoice per month. Plus, your clients will thank you for saving them from multiple redundant invoices.
Quick Word of Caution: While monthly billing can be quite useful, don’t make a habit out of combining four to five weeks’ worth of payments into one monthly invoice.
When you purposefully combine multiple invoices into one, it’s easy for charges to get lost in the translation.
For the best results, use Service Autopilot’s instant invoicing tool to send professional invoices out to all of your clients in one click.
The perfect processional lawn care invoice tells your clients exactly what they’re paying for with little room for confusion.
Your invoice should give your clients a quick summary of everything you’re charging them for.
In addition to making you look more professional, invoices outline any fees, taxes, discounts, and charges that appear on their invoice.
As a result, detailed lawn care invoicing provides clear financial expectations so that there’s less of a chance of confusion and disputes.
In addition to including billing information, your invoices should also include any warranties, satisfaction guarantees, and job notes.
If you really want to impress your clients, you can also include general maintenance tips to help clients get the most of your services.
This helps to establish YOU as the professional and put you an extra few notches above your competition.
Pro Tip: When you use Service Autopilot for your invoicing, you can create quick, professional invoices from anywhere using your templates. You can also bulk send your invoices to all clients at once.
Instant invoicing
Better scheduling
Manage your clients and employees all in one system
Generally, the green industry standard for sending invoices to your clients is within 24 hours after a service is rendered.
When you inconsistently send invoices to your clients (i.e. not at set times), you’re breaking a schedule, which makes you look less professional.
By sending your invoices on a set schedule, you’re giving your clients a great impression with clear expectations.
While some lawn care owners still send paper estimates, digital estimates are widely considered the new professional industry standard.
After all, digital estimates provide less room for error, it’s faster to send, and it provides easier overall organization.
Plus, nowadays most clients prefer to receive digital estimates via email or text because it’s more convenient for them.
Additionally, you can get confirmation when your client has received or paid their outstanding balance, and your team can access these invoices from anywhere.
This is especially helpful when it’s time for your client to schedule a follow-up appointment or try for an upsell.
When you use the tools and tips in this article, you can see an immediate impact in the amount of time you save so you can get paid even faster.
By far, the best way to effortlessly create the best lawn care invoices is by sending your invoices through Service Autopilot.
When you use Service Autopilot’s invoicing tool, you can send bulk invoices to your entire client list in just the touch of a button.
Plus, you’ll be able to customize and quickly create professional invoices in the blink of an eye.
Start saving time and get paid fast using these easy steps to create the best possible lawn care invoice.
Related: How to Price Lawn Care Services
Originally published March 11, 2021 4:39 PM
Tags: Business Operation, Featured Post
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