Search
Close this search box.
Blog » Business Tips » Online Invoicing Tools for Virtual Assistants

Online Invoicing Tools for Virtual Assistants

Updated on May 14th, 2019

According to a 2012 report by the Virtual Assistant Assistant, the use of virtual assistants is growing as more companies feel comfortable with having remote staff take care of projects. In fact, according to the survey, two-thirds noted that they did not care where their virtual assistant was located just as long as they were within reach of regular communication.

Here are some of the top invoicing tools for virtual assistants that will help you to be better at your job and bill your clients on time.

Expectations, Pay, and Primary Challenges

Virtual assistants often take care of both professional and personal business for executives, including projects like travel planning, scheduling, online research, and business correspondence. Other tasks can include database entry, bookkeeping, social tasks and prep work.

In return, virtual assistants receive an average wage of $45,000 per year, which, according to Simply Hired, is slightly higher than an office assistant, but provides the freedom to work from home and enjoy a more flexible work environment.

However, according to Virtual Assistant Assistant, many virtual assistants work varied hours in more of an on-demand role versus retainer format. Despite not being able to provide a consistent number of hours, the majority of these executives (3 out of 4 surveyed) wanted a dedicated point of contact for this virtual assistance.

A 2012 Freelance Industry Report found that the biggest challenges a virtual assistant faces is finding clients, dealing with the feast-or-famine cycle, creating a work/life balance and managing time. This leads many to keep a client base while looking for new clients. While this helps with maintaining a regular income flow, it is working in this on-demand way and serving as a virtual assistant to many different executives that can turn managing time into a major challenge.

Increasing Cash Flow

As part of this time management, it is important to track your time as you volley back and forth between clients to complete a project or assignment. Many virtual assistant arrangements are based on an hourly rate, but during those hours you might actually be doing many projects for different clients all at the same time.

Although the 2012 Freelance Industry Report noted that getting paid on time was not as big a challenge for virtual assistants as it was for other freelancers, it is still important to focus on ensuring positive cash flow.

Other issues might include accounting for payments in local currency for any foreign clients as well as tracking any different tax systems.

Finding an Online Invoicing Tool for Virtual Assistant Projects

Virtual assistants can use online invoicing tools that provide a way to manage their time effectively and track each and every minute they spend on projects plus address these other challenges:

  • Use a time tracker that keeps track of how much time you spend on each project and client so that you have this information available when it comes time to bill at the end of each pay period. Hubstaff and TimeDoctor are the two most popular time tracking apps in the marketing today
  • If your client has you working on projects in other online systems like Basecamp, which is often used for virtual environments, make sure you work with a time tracker and invoicing tool that provides a way to import those projects for easier time management and billing.
  • Create an invoice that represents your virtual assistant business, including a logo, if you have one. Having a template to use saves you time and hassle so you don’t have to spend extra time each month creating a new invoice. Make sure your template includes your contact information, an invoice number and date, and specific information about time, projects, and costs. Also, make your payment terms clear so your client knows when you expect to be paid.
  • Use an online invoice tool that provides a way to email the invoice in a PDF so the client has something delivered straight to their inbox.
  • Make sure you select an online invoicing tool that offers a payment gateway so your client can simply click on the invoice and go straight to a place to pay with a credit card, bank account transfer, or some other payment option. Providing this type of convenience often speeds payment.
  • Opt for an invoicing tool that can work with numerous types of currencies and tax systems so that it does all the math and conversions necessary to get you paid correctly. With fluctuating exchange rates, it is good to just have a real-time invoicing tool that calculates it for you.
  • Look for an invoicing tool that also allows you to use it from multiple devices. The beauty of being a virtual assistant is that you can get work done wherever you are at, so having an invoicing tool that works from your tablet or phone while you are on the go as well as from your desktop is ideal.

These are all invoicing tools that can speed the invoicing process and enhance your image as a professional virtual assistant. No one will ever know that you are sitting in your robe or relaxing by the pool as you hit the send button on that invoice.

Even better, these invoicing tools are free. Find out how you can completely change the way you get paid by signing up with Due.com today!

John Rampton

John Rampton

John Rampton is an entrepreneur and connector. When he was 23 years old, while attending the University of Utah, he was hurt in a construction accident. His leg was snapped in half. He was told by 13 doctors he would never walk again. Over the next 12 months, he had several surgeries, stem cell injections and learned how to walk again. During this time, he studied and mastered how to make money work for you, not against you. He has since taught thousands through books, courses and written over 5000 articles online about finance, entrepreneurship and productivity. He has been recognized as the Top Online Influencers in the World by Entrepreneur Magazine and Finance Expert by Time. He is the Founder and CEO of Due.

About Due

Due makes it easier to retire on your terms. We give you a realistic view on exactly where you’re at financially so when you retire you know how much money you’ll get each month. Get started today.
Categories

Top Trending Posts

Due Fact-Checking Standards and Processes

To ensure we’re putting out the highest content standards, we sought out the help of certified financial experts and accredited individuals to verify our advice. We also rely on them for the most up to date information and data to make sure our in-depth research has the facts right, for today… Not yesterday. Our financial expert review board allows our readers to not only trust the information they are reading but to act on it as well. Most of our authors are CFP (Certified Financial Planners) or CRPC (Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor) certified and all have college degrees. Learn more about annuities, retirement advice and take the correct steps towards financial freedom and knowing exactly where you stand today. Learn everything about our top-notch financial expert reviews below… Learn More