by Jack Geary
Freelancing is great, but it can also be demanding of your time and energy, particularly when it comes to invoicing for your services. After all, you’re the writer, marketing department, CEO and accounts department in one, which means your job doesn’t end when you send off your final draft.
But whether you’re a freelancer starting out, have recently founded a business, or are working up a new invoice template for your existing company, it’s always worth regularly reviewing your invoicing best practice. So, here’s a helpful one-stop guide on how to write an invoice for freelance work in the UK.
What should I know before I start?
First and foremost, all new clients should be walked through your standard invoicing template and ensure that it is fit-for-purpose for their specific business needs or setup. If any changes are made to your invoice template in future, key clients should also be alerted with a brief email. You will also need to settle on a consistent numbering system for each invoice and internally agree on where invoices should be securely stored.
Ideally, this should be in a secure, password-protected repository that allows you or other relevant employees to keep an overview of the invoicing history of a client. This allows you to quickly validate queries and metricise data to help see what utility clients have in the long and short term.
While invoicing can be arduous, it is also something that can be automated to a degree. Sites like Freelance Writing regularly upload guidance on the best apps to use and pages like The Balances can provide top tips on digital invoicing and exactly what tools your type of business should be going for. Regarding best practice, sites like E-Crunch keep regularly refreshed advice on client invoicing and how to make sure you’re taking the right steps to streamline your billing process and spend your time writing rather than fiddling with cashflows or sending reminder emails.
What to check?
- Does the client understand the template layout?
- Are their bank or invoicing details correct?
- Are there any unique considerations that need to be factored in for a