The Nitty Gritty
- Digital templates are the next step to streamline your plumbing invoices
- Efficient Invoicing can get your business paid faster and foster customer trust
- Download our Free plumbing invoice template
Invoicing: it’s how you get paid, but getting a handle on it can be a headache. Hard copy pen and paper works, particularly when your field service business is just finding its feet. By now, you might have encountered several common problems with paper invoices: copies getting lost, customers not following up, issues in manual entry and getting a firm grip on your finances. As your plumbing business grows, you’ll notice how the little things add up and affect your productivity.
For your field service business to remain profitable, you need to assess your current work processes and find room for improvement. Plumbing invoicing is no different! Once the work is complete, the following invoice should be timely, accurate and easy to pay. Switching from pen-and-paper invoices to digital invoices is a simple but effective way to streamline the process.
To start, download our free plumbing invoice template!
Key Features of Our Free Plumbing Invoice Template
Now that you’ve got your digital plumbing invoice template, we’ll walk you through some key features so you can adapt it to your business needs and start using it immediately!
There are key elements to an invoice you want to ensure you’re not skipping over. You always want to include an itemized parts and labor list, the customer's address and your business information (including relevant business registration and tax requirements), an invoice number, final costs and available payment methods. That’s the basic model, and our plumbing invoice template has everything you need to check off that list.
Make it Yours with Business Branding
Your business branding should be the first thing to jump out of the template. It’s important to have an immediately recognizable heading and information. Not only does this look professional, but it also means your customers will understand from a glance the kind of document it is and have all the pertinent information available.
Your plumbing invoice should include your business name, contact details, address, and logo. If you don’t have a logo yet, this is your opportunity to get one! Logos are the face of your business and a point of reference for customers (and potential customers!).
Customer Information/ID
The Bill To section contains all customer information and details. Ensure that the customer information is accurate for each invoice. Your customers will be confident that they’re receiving the right invoice, and clarity is a win-win for customer trust and faster invoice payment.
Customer IDs are also a popular option for growing businesses, as they allow administrative staff and software to sort and find customers as your base grows easily. We’ve included a customer ID section for this case!
Invoice Dates/Due Dates
This is an important feature of your plumbing invoice. Being clear about the issue date of your invoice will reduce potential problems and missed communication about time periods for payment.
As for the due date, that’s up to you. Ideally, all terms and conditions about the quote and payment schedule would be clear and agreed upon by all parties, and this is another opportunity to clarify things for customers. You might have a ‘payment upon issue’ term or a different date from the issue for your jobs. Either way, invoices and due dates allow you to set the rules.
Clarity with Service Information
The description table feature on your plumbing invoice allows you to demonstrate precisely what a customer is paying for and the materials used for the work. This builds trust between you and your customer, as there is no smoke and mirrors between the estimation and the final costs.
The description should include enough detail to make it clear what is being billed and the kind of unit used for charging. For example, Labor Hours or details about materials used.
Formulas and Tax
In our handy plumbing invoice, all the formulas are ready to go! Simply input the quantity of each unit and its pricing per unit, and the invoice template table will do the rest. Do you need to include tax? If so, input your tax rate and let the plumbing invoice do the calculations!
Our free plumbing invoice removes the stress of manual calculations and means fewer input and formula errors.
Terms/Additional Information
This section is available for any warranty information, details on work changes, payment terms and available payment options. Anything you’d like to remind the customer of and have in writing should go here.
Transparent billing and clear details are important to ensure invoices are processed swiftly and to reduce payment issues. This section can act as an all-in-one reference for your customers and facilitate easy billing.
How to Use the Plumbing Invoice Template Effectively
Now that we’ve covered the features of our free plumbing invoice template, we’ll cover some strategies to make the most of digital invoicing.
Master Copy
As soon as you download your digital plumbing invoice, take advantage of the ease of digital management with your own master copy of the template. Have your information and branding ready to go? Input everything you need on the plumbing invoice template with your business details, contact information, logo, and any other personal touches, and save it as a master copy.
From there, you have all that information ready to go!
Simplify Customer Details
Have returning customers or want a simpler way to organize your customer base? Your master copy doesn’t need to stay at your own details. You can make a copy for each customer with their details and save a digital copy for whenever you need it. That way, you can digitally search for their name or ID (based on your customer organization) and use the template ready to go.
A plumbing invoice template for each customer can be part of your overall customer management. Templates can act as a record of recent work history, alongside information such as how each customer prefers to pay and preferred contact methods.
Your Best Friend: Terms and Conditions
Changes happen, and the scope of a job can change, before or after estimating or even mid-work. If the customer requests additional work that will affect the estimate and final invoice, make sure it’s detailed in writing as soon as possible.
The additional terms and conditions section in your invoice ensures that you’ve covered all your bases and is an important reminder (especially for stubborn or fickle customers.)
Effective communication can reduce risk, and if a dispute arises, you have a clear trail of documentation and reminders for customers.
Streamline Your Business Processes: Go Paperless with Simpro
Now that you’ve seen the benefits of digital tools and making the switch, discover how you can do the same with the rest of your business processes! Simpro is a comprehensive cloud-based platform that helps you manage jobs from start to finish. Easily break down labor and material costs and quickly create, update and send quotes for your plumbing work.
You can even create your own collection of plumbing invoice templates with customizable inputs so your field staff can quickly access them from within the mobile app. Flexible payment options mean you can take payments from the field with Simpro’s integrations.
Try a demo today and see how Simpro can streamline your plumbing business!
