Best Invoice Management Software

In this article we’ll be focusing on what makes the best invoice management software. Is it features, pricing, integrations, ease of use? I believe the answer should be all the above with the ultimate goal of helping you get paid faster will also increasing customer satisfaction. The only way an invoice management software can do all of this and still be affordable is if it includes a customer portal, which we’ll explore later on in the article.

Let’s begin with features. The basic features should include being able to create an estimate and invoice and emailing them through the system. Without the emailing feature, then the invoice management software is rendered almost useless because of the time it will take you manually export the estimate or invoice to PDF and send through your email. Additionally, it should also include email notifications so that you are notified when the email is sent and when it is being viewed by the customer. Again, if the system only performs the emailing but doesn’t include notifications, it is kind of useless because you still need to chase the customer down.

At this point, I’d like to discuss the customer portal. The reason is that there should be a workflow where once you email the estimate (we’ll talk about invoices very soon), there should be a secure link in the email for the customer to click. Once clicked, it should log them into the customer portal and show them the estimate with the option to Accept and convert to invoice. When the invoice is shown, there should be a “Pay Now”. By doing this, you are able to keep your hand up in the air while the system helps you get paid faster. Again, without a customer portal, this workflow is not possible.

Payment options are also important. The system should include one-time, deposits, partial and subscriptions so that it is easy for the customer to pay and for you to get paid faster. Moreover, the customer’s credit card profile should be saved so that when they want to pay again, they can simply select it from a list of previously used credit cards.

Next is integrations. Since most invoice management software solutions lack the accounting features required for an SMB to run their business. The system should integrate with an accounting solution like QuickBooks Online. With this integration, you can still utilize your invoice management system’s key benefits, which should be to help you get paid faster and increase customer satisfaction, and then use QuickBooks online for all of your accounting needs.

Finally it comes down to price. An affordable system should range from $15 - $30/user. Considering how much money it is saving you and how quickly it will help you get paid faster, the ROI can be seen very quickly. Another important note here is that some invoice management software solutions include a customer portal but limit how many customers you can have. For example, FreshBooks limits the customer portal to 50 customers and if you want more customers then you need to upgrade. This seems unreasonable. The customer portal should be free.

It should be noted that InfoFlo Pay includes all the features, integrations and affordable pricing mentioned above and includes an unlimited customer portal.