We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: invoices are a crucially important part of running your business. They should never be undervalued - not only because good billing practises is synonymous with getting paid sooner (more often than not).
This is why it’s important to have a professional invoice template in order to get the most out of your invoicing and ensure that you’re meeting the most current regulations. Not to mention providing your customer with a better payment experience.
So what can be done to give your customers a little extra incentive to pay their invoices not just before the deadline, but as soon as possible? How about a prompt payment discount?
A discount in your invoice template
On your invoice, the discount provides your customer with a very good reason to pay sooner. A standard invoice in the UK must be paid within 30 days. So you could, for example, offer a percentage discount if the full payment is received within 10 days.
The advantages of offering a discount in your invoices
The benefits of this type of offer are quite obvious - namely, it increases the likelihood that your customer will pay you sooner (and when you’re a busy entrepreneur, the sooner the better!).
But this also means less worry for you - one less payment to send a reminder for, one less customer who might forget to pay or open your invoice and decide to get to it at the end of the month when they deal with all their bills.
Because a discount works in the form of a prize or reward, it has a strong psychological impact. Who can resist the opportunity to save money?
In this context, you’ve provided your customer an easy way to save money, which requires only earlier action than they will be required to take regardless. Because the ability to save money is clearly outlined, there are not many reasons for a customer to turn down the opportunity.
The discount for prompt payment on your Debitoor invoices
In our invoice templates, we’ve provided space for you to include payment terms, such as a discount for prompt payment. In the ‘Notes’ section under your invoice due date, you can add an offer for discounts.
This is how your customer will see it (highlight box ours):
Then, to account for the difference in the payment entered and the amount cited on the invoice, you can mark the 3% as an expense. When you enter an amount less than that stated on the invoice, Debitoor will automatically ask if the remaining amount is an expense, click ‘yes’ and select the category:
Debitoor invoice software automatically registers that amount as an expense and marks the invoice as ‘Paid’, helping you stay on top of your accounts and get your money fast.
