7. How to simplify communication with customers?

a. Send Activity Reports

When a company invoices a project based on time spent (we speak of cost-effective invoicing), the client is often asked to receive Activity Reports (or CRA) to confirm the time that will be invoiced to them.

This sending should ideally be made on the last day of the month. If a validation process occurs to be able to invoice the customer, this process must be clarified, in particular the time the customer has to validate before sending the invoice.

Ideally, your time tracking management tool allows you to automatically send these activity reports to the client. The customer can check and validate them by workflow in the tool. This promotes rapid and more efficient communication which allows invoices to be issued more quickly.

b. Include more information in invoice annexes

If invoices must carry a certain number of mandatory information on the main page, it is possible to add annexes to the invoices, which include additional information. Invoice annexes can provide additional information in a format that is freer and are good communication practice for providing details to the customer. For example, it is possible to append invoices:

• Details of time spent, possibly with comments detailing the work carried out during each session
• Details of rebillable costs
• Details of products sold
•  …

Thanks to these annexes, the amounts summarized on the first page are clearer. When communication is clearer and more transparent, customer satisfaction increases and the time spent by finance teams clarifying invoices decreases. Everyone comes out a winner.

c. Send invoices by standardized email in addition to electronic invoicing

If electronic invoicing is set to further simplify communication between companies, sending the invoice document will remain a common practice.

Sending by email allows you to add additional information. A personalized message, additional documents or even the addition of the quote or purchase order.

If sending invoices by email from the invoicing platform is only possible on invoicing software that offers this functionality, it remains possible to standardize the email models at a minimum.

This standardization of processes makes it possible to drastically reduce (around 20% to 25%) the time spent by the teams on this phase of invoicing.

Stafiz allows you to automate the validation of Activity Reports by the client with a workflow. Attached documents are automatically added to invoices based on the invoice templates chosen for this client and this project. Finally, Stafiz allows you to send all invoices in bulk from the platform by connecting to your mailboxes.

See our billing feature

The 9 problems of project invoicing and how Stafiz helps you solve them?

1. How to estimate costs, prices and billing type for a billable project?

2. How to manage the risks of project overruns ?

3. How to get paid faster by customers?

4. How to manage complex billing arrangements

5. How to take into account the invoicing of taxes? and multi-currency billing?

6. How to manage invoicing between different entities of the same company (interco flow)

7. How to simplify communication with customers?

8. How can certain parameters be modified during projects that will impact invoicing?

9. How to set up a project quote and invoicing tool?

The 9 problems of project invoicing