An invoice message template can be a key component of your business. Freelancers need to keep their cash flow consistent. That means getting paid in a timely manner is crucial. By clearly communicating payment information and schedules and using adequate invoice templates, you can avoid delays and hurdles that slow down your growth.
A great way to achieve this is by learning how to write an invoice email. In this article from Bonsai, we will give you the essential pointers to craft a persuasive invoice email, and then we’ll provide some excellent invoice email message examples and templates to inspire you.
Creating a professional freelance invoice helps when you want to get paid on time. The first step is to ensure you have all the information you need in the invoice file. There are three main things to keep in mind:
An important part of how to write invoice email is the font.The logo of your company might include cursive or stylized writing. For branding purposes, this is perfectly alright. However, when it comes to finances, clear communication is the most important rule.
Use a font that is easily readable in digital form, such as Arial, Helvetica, or another sans-serif variety. The last thing you need is to deal with accounting mistakes or lost revenue due to a confusing advertising invoice template, for example.
On the invoice itself, be sure to include standard information about you or your company. This avoids any confusion about who the invoice is from. Furthermore, it provides greater credibility and an easy way to contact you.
Include the following information:
For better readability, align the text to the left of the email and use text that is large enough to see without straining.
Under the date, add the recipient’s address and information. Just like you did above, including their name, street address, city, state, and zip code. Keep this portion in the same format you used for your address previously.
It’s recommended to address your influencer invoice template or training invoice template, for example, to a specific person in the company. Otherwise, you might need to send the invoice to a certain department or third party that handles payments for that company.
Be sure to ask your client who will be taking care of the invoice, and if in doubt you can copy multiple people on the invoice.
Everyone makes mistakes. But when you’re learning how to write invoice emails, you don’t want to have errors. Having “attach the invoice” on your checklist might seem like overkill, but it’s not.
You should be clear about how you bill your clients as they might not know how much to pay, where to send it, or who to speak with about it. This could disrupt your cashflow and cause unnecessary hassle.
Once you have created and attached your invoice template for email, it’s time to think about the rest of the email. With an invoice message template, you want to strike a balance of professionalism and friendliness.
Let’s start with the first thing your recipient will see:
"Email has an ability many channels don't - creating valuable, personal touches at scale." - David Newman
When you’re asking for payment in an email, your subject line is crucial. According to research by Experian, emails with personalized subject lines are 29% more likely to be opened.
Personalization has been shown to increase customer engagement, especially when people are inundated with so many messages every day. That alone is a great reason to customize your invoice emails.
Address your email to one specific person and include their name in the subject line whenever possible. This will boost open rates and ensure that you get paid promptly for your services. One reason for this is that 69% of recipients will use the subject line to tell if the email is spam right away.
Here is an example of an email subject for invoice messages that can be scaled across your entire business: Subject: Attn: (client’s name) — Invoice (# of current invoice) for (name of business).
This immediately lets the right person know that they need to take care of a new work invoice template in an efficient way.
When you’re with Bonsai, you can get paid on time, every time. Join our platform today to grow your freelance career faster.
While it might be simple and effective to simply attach the invoice without any words in the email body, it could come off as cold or nonchalant.
Thus, it’s a good practice to write a few words about the contents of the email. This has value in clarifying the invoice, but it also makes the email seem less transactional.
However, don’t do it. In the words of Seth Godin: "Why waste a sentence saying nothing?"
Here is a template to illustrate what we mean:
Subject: Attn: (client’s name) — Invoice (# of current invoice) for (name of business).
Good (time of day) (client’s name),
The invoice regarding (relevant project information or reason for invoice) is attached. If the file does not load, please click here instead (link) to access the invoice.
If you have any comments, questions, or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience. (Include your contact information)
We appreciate choosing to do business with us at (company name). We look forward to helping you again in the future.
Best Regards,
(Your name)
(Your title)
(Company name)
Having a simple, prompt, friendly, and professional freelance invoice template is a great start. But it’s no guarantee of success. You are bound to deal with challenges in the business world.
Sometimes, this comes in the form of a late payment. Oftentimes, this is simply due to the client forgetting to make the payment or overlooking it in their daily swarm of emails.
Let’s take a look at some examples to help you overcome this:
Subject: Attn: (client name)- Follow Up — (invoice #) for (client’s business name).
Hi (client’s name),
I’m sure you’re busy and that this email likely got lost in the shuffle. This is just a followup with the original invoice attached regarding (product or service provided).
If you have not already paid, please do so via (payment methods accepted). However, if you have already paid, please disregard this email.
If you have any comments, questions, or concerns about the invoice, please contact me at (preferred contact method).
We look forward to continuing to earn your business in the future.
(Your name)
(Your title)
(Your company name)
This invoice email message example takes a slightly more direct route.
Subject line: Invoice (# of invoice) for (product or service) due (Date)
Hi (client’s name),
Hope all is well! Please see the attached invoice (#) for (product or service), due on (Date). If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me here (preferred contact method).
Best regards,
(Your name)
You might also run into a declined form of payment by a client. If their payment does not go through, send an invoice email message to let them know they still need to pay. Here is an example:
Subject line: Invoice (#) Overdue for (due date)
Hi (client’s name),
I hope all is well. We haven’t received payment yet for invoice (#) due (date). Please proceed with payment or advise us of when we can expect to receive it. And don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions.
Best regards,
(Your name)
Now you know some effective new invoice email message examples. As you can see, the email invoice templates above are friendly, personalized, and professional. That’s exactly what you’re aiming for with this type of email.
Startups and freelancers need to be diligent about their finances. Getting paid on time is the first step to ensuring that you don’t run short of cash reserves.
Adhere to the tips and templates above in order to keep your business running smoothly now and going forward. They can give you guidance on how to write a great invoice email message. And now that you know how to write invoice emails, the only thing left is action.
Sign up with Bonsai to start creating professional invoices and better emails.
A verbal contract (formally called an oral contract) refers to an agreement between two parties that's made —you guessed it— verbally.
Formal contracts, like those between an employee and an employer, are typically written down. However, some professional transactions take place based on verbally agreed terms.
Freelancers are a good example of this. Often, freelancers will take on projects having agreed on the terms and payment via the phone, or an email. Unfortunately, sometimes clients don't pull through on their agreements, and hardworking freelancers can find themselves out of pocket and wondering whether a legal battle is worth all the hassle.
The main differences between written and oral contracts are that the former is signed and documented, whereas the latter is solely attributed to verbal communication.
Verbal contracts are a bit of a gray area for most people unfamiliar with contract law —which is most of us, right?— due to the fact that there's no physical evidence to support the claims made by the implemented parties.
For any contract (written or verbal) to be binding, there are four major elements which need to be in place. The crucial elements of a contract are as follows:
Therefore, an oral agreement has legal validity if all of these elements are present. However, verbal contracts can be difficult to enforce in a court of law. In the next section, we take a look at how oral agreements hold up in court.
Most business professionals are wary of entering into contracts orally because they can difficult to enforce in the face of the law.
If an oral contract is brought in front of a court of law, there is increased risk of one party (or both!) lying about the initial terms of the agreement. This is problematic for the court, as there's no unbiased way to conclude the case; often, this will result in the case being disregarded. Moreover, it can be difficult to outline contract defects if it's not in writing.
That being said, there are plenty of situations where enforceable contracts do not need to be written or spoken, they're simply implied. For instance, when you buy milk from a store, you give something in exchange for something else and enter into an implied contract, in this case - money is exchanged for goods.
There are some types of contracts which must be in writing.
The Statute of Frauds is a legal statute which states that certain kinds of contracts must be executed in writing and signed by the parties involved. The Statute of Frauds has been adopted in almost all U.S states, and requires a written contract for the following purposes:
Typically, a court of law won't enforce an oral agreement in any of these circumstances under the statute. Instead, a written document is required to make the contract enforceable.
Contract law is generally doesn't favor contracts agreed upon verbally. A verbal agreement is difficult to prove, and can be used by those intent on committing fraud. For that reason, it's always best to put any agreements in writing and ensure all parties have fully understood and consented to signing.
Verbal agreements can be proven with actions in the absence of physical documentation. Any oral promise to provide the sale of goods or perform a service that you agreed to counts as a valid contract. So, when facing a court of law, what evidence can you provide to enforce a verbal agreement?
Unfortunately, without solid proof, it may be difficult to convince a court of the legality of an oral contract. Without witnesses to testify to the oral agreement taking place or other forms of evidence, oral contracts won't stand up in court. Instead, it becomes a matter of "he-said-she-said" - which legal professionals definitely don't have time for!
If you were to enter into a verbal contract, it's recommended to follow up with an email or a letter confirming the offer, the terms of the agreement , and payment conditions. The more you can document the elements of a contract, the better your chances of legally enforcing a oral contract.
Another option is to make a recording of the conversation where the agreement is verbalized. This can be used to support your claims in the absence of a written agreement. However, it's always best to gain the permission of the other involved parties before hitting record.
Fundamentally, most verbal agreements are legally valid as long as they meet all the requirements for a contract. However, if you were to go to court over one party not fulfilling the terms of the contract, proving that the interaction took place can be extremely taxing.
So, ultimately, the question is: written or verbal agreements?
Any good lawyer, contract law firm, or legal professional would advise you to make sure you formalize any professional agreement with a written agreement. Written contracts provide a secure testament to the conditions that were agreed and signed by the two parties involved. If it comes to it, a physical contract is much easier to eviden in legal circumstances.
Freelancers, in particular, should be aware of the extra security that digital contracts may provide. Many people choose to stick to executing contracts verbally because they're not sure how to write a contract, or they think writing out the contract terms is too complicated or requires expensive legal advice. However, this is no longer the case.
Today, we have a world of resources available at our fingertips. The internet is a treasure trove of invaluable information, platforms, and software that simplifies our lives. Creating, signing, and sending contracts has never been easier. What's more, you don't have to rely on a hiring a lawyer to explain all that legal jargon anymore.
There are plenty of tools available online for freelancers to use for guidance when drafting digital contracts. Tools like Bonsai provide a range of customizable, vetted contract templates for all kinds of freelance professionals. No matter what industry you're operating in, Bonsai has a professional template to offer.
A written contract makes the agreement much easier to prove the terms of the agreement in case something were to go awry. The two parties involved can rest assured that they're legal rights are protected, and the terms of the contract are sufficiently documented. Plus, it provides both parties with peace of mind to focus on the tasks at hand.
Bonsai's product suite for freelancers allows users to make contracts from scratch, or using professional templates, and sign them using an online signature maker.
With Bonsai, you can streamline and automate all of the boring back-office tasks that come with being a freelancer. From creating proposals that clients can't say no to, to sealing the deal with a professional contract - Bonsai will revolutionize the way you do business as a freelancer.
Why not secure your business today and sign up for a free trial?