If a business is selling products or services, it will inevitably use invoices. However, invoices are more important for some outlets than others. This is the case for those who don’t receive payments immediately from customers. When invoicing is not done correctly, these companies can suffer from cash flow issues, and that’s never a good thing.

Are you wondering how to improve your sales invoicing process? This guide covers the key points to follow.

Have financing ready as a backup

No matter how much effort you put into your sales invoicing, there are always going to be customers late with their payments. Due to this, you should always have a fallback plan to minimise the possibility of cash flow problems occurring. That fallback plan can be found in the form of specialist financing.

Known as factoring, this financing method allows you to turn your outstanding sales invoices into working capital. This is done by using a lender to borrow money against these invoices. The advice is to first turn to a broker who can provide you with a free independent quote and can put you in touch with the factoring company offering you the best deal. You can then get up to a 100% prepayment against your sales ledger, and this can be paid within 24 hours. The result? You shouldn’t suffer from cash flow concerns due to unpaid invoices.

Sort out the basics

When putting together the design of your invoices, this shouldn’t be something you take for granted. They need to be accurate, obviously, but these invoices also have to be professional-looking. Ensure the information includes a unique reference number, figures, and customer details.

When you have the basics sorted, you have the foundation necessary for your invoicing efforts.

Send out invoices without delay

The quicker you send out your invoices, the longer customers know when it has to be paid. This is why it’s vital you send out invoices as soon as possible. There’s no point in delaying this for any reason – that only gives customers a valid reason to delay sending over the payment.

When sending out invoices, also think about the method this is done. There are three methods most commonly used, including:

• Email
• URL link
• Via the post

The latter of the three is not a suitable option in this day and age, particularly with the point about getting invoices out ASAP. Even first class can take some time. Email makes a lot of sense as the invoice can be sent as a PDF and arrive in the customer’s inbox within seconds.

Make it easy to receive payment

When getting paid on time, it’s important to provide customers with clear information on how they can send the money they owe. Make sure your invoice includes details such as your bank account number and sort code. However, you shouldn’t stop with a bank or wire transfer. Other payment methods you can add include credit or debit card, online payment, or even the old-school method of cash or cheque.

There is no reason to place any type of restriction on the methods for customers to send the money they owe. By having a wide range of options available, this makes it more likely your customers will pay their invoices on time.