Understanding Invoicing In Time To Pet
Time To Pet makes invoicing your clients extremely easy and, in most cases, is almost entirely automatic. For those accustomed to a more manual invoicing process, there might be a slight learning curve, and there are a couple of things to keep in mind.
In this article
Invoices Are Automatically Generated
Invoices are automatically generated from events that are scheduled for a client. The Scheduler will always inform you of the current invoice being worked on. We call this a Service Order, which is a group of all events associated with one invoice as viewed on the Scheduler page:
The Current Invoice bar, also known as a Service Order (pictured above), shows the current invoice for any newly scheduled events created will be added to. The table lists all existing events that are already part of this invoice.
Each scheduled service will have a corresponding line item in its invoice.
You Can Add Services To An Existing Invoice
The first time you schedule events for a client, we will automatically create an invoice for that client and add all of the services to that invoice. The next time you schedule services for the client, you will be prompted to select whether or not to schedule the new services in a new invoice or an already open invoice. An open invoice is an invoice for a client that has not been fully paid.
Note that if the client does not have any open invoices, we will automatically create a new invoice, and you will not be prompted to select an invoice as the above image demonstrates.
You can also open an existing invoice on the calendar for scheduling by clicking the “Calendar” link next to any invoice (for example, from the Invoice List found in the Services/Invoices tab in each client’s profile).
Invoices Can Be Manually Edited
Invoices are automatically generated, but you can still manually adjust them with our built-in invoice editor. You can manually adjust all aspects of each line item by clicking the pencil icon to the right of each line item, or adjusting the discount, or adjusting the tip amount.
Note: Manually adjusting a line item property (the cost or price) that was generated from a scheduled event will prevent any automatic changes to that line item property should you later update the service. For example, suppose a Dog Walking - 30 Minute line item is manually edited to $20, and the event is updated and changed to an Overnight service. In that case, the line item will remain locked at $20 and must be manually updated directly on the invoice when the service is updated.
Custom Line Items
Time To Pet allows our customers to create custom line items.
Note: Creating a custom line item does not create events (even if the date, title, and description match, it's simply creating an additional line on the invoice).
To add a custom line item, open any invoice and click the "Add Custom Item" button:
To edit an invoice line item, click the pencil icon:
Creating A Blank Invoice To Add Custom Line Items And/Or Tips (No Events)
To create an invoice without any events, and just a custom line item and/or tip, follow the steps to Schedule A Client until the service order is visible. Instead of clicking "Add Event" or "Trip Tool," click directly on the invoice number to load the blank invoice, then add custom line items or a tip:
Services Can Be Scheduled Without Being Invoiced (Do Not Invoice These Services Option)
Although the situation is rare, it is possible to schedule services for a client without invoicing that particular service. To schedule services without invoicing, check off “Do Not Invoice These Services.” You will also receive a warning when selecting this option. This option only appears when scheduling services from the main Scheduler -> Schedule Client button:
Moving Services Between Invoices Or To A New Invoice
So long as the source and destination invoice belongs to the same client, you can freely move services, also known as events, between invoices. This can be used to combine events onto the same invoice or move some events to a different invoice and split up a larger invoice. For detailed instructions on how to do this: Moving Services Between Invoices. If you need to move services to a new invoice, you can use these steps: Moving Services Onto A New Invoice - Video.
Emailing Invoices
Invoices are not automatically emailed to clients; however, we have several options to make it easy for your invoices to be emailed, scheduled to be emailed using the Scheduled Messages feature, and shown to your clients, depending on your company's preferences. View the FAQs below for more information.
To email an individual invoice to a client, you can open the invoice you want to send, scroll to the bottom of the invoice window and click the "Email" button:
Note: If you do not see the "Email" button, be sure to make sure you are at the very bottom of the window you have opened or have zoomed out or in (depending on the device or browser you are using).
FAQs
Q: How do I email more than one invoice all at once?
To email a group of invoices in bulk or email a batch of invoices in bulk, you can use our Bulk Invoicing tool.
Q: Can I schedule invoices to be emailed out?
To schedule emails containing invoices, you can use our Scheduled Messages feature.
Q: Are invoices automatically emailed?
Invoices are only automatically emailed if Automatic Charging is enabled. They can be bulk emailed in Bulk Invoicing, scheduled to be sent using the Scheduled Messages feature, or individually emailed.
Q: How do I show invoices to clients or adjust which invoices they see?
You can set when invoices are automatically shown to clients in their Client Portal and Client App by adjusting the "Show Unpaid Invoices?" setting in Client Settings - Portal Settings. More information is available in our Portal Settings help documentation.
Q: When does Time To Pet automatically send emails? Is there a complete list of email notifications my clients can receive?
To see a list of when Time To Pet emails your clients: When Time To Pet Emails Your Clients.