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Two projects on one invoice?
For like 90% of my invoices, which are usually sent monthly to clients for whom I do a lot of work, I bill for multiple ongoing projects on one invoice. But when I go to create an invoice in FreeAgent it only seems to allow me to pick one project and I can't see how to add another. Can someone let me know how to bill for two or more projects on one invoice?
Thanks!
Thanks!
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Hey there.
I wonder whether our concept of a 'Task' is closer to what you call a 'Project'? Each FreeAgent project can have many tasks (against which you can track time if you like).
We will soon be expanding Tasks to include a time/value budget, which is our next step towards producing Estimates.
Does it help to think of it in this way, or is there something about Projects which you need to use? Budget, Start/stop dates etc? If so, or you really do need client-level invoicing (which makes tracking project budgets somewhat difficult) then we'll need to have a think.
I’m confident we'll get there.
The company says
this answers the question
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Inappropriate?Hey there.
I wonder whether our concept of a 'Task' is closer to what you call a 'Project'? Each FreeAgent project can have many tasks (against which you can track time if you like).
We will soon be expanding Tasks to include a time/value budget, which is our next step towards producing Estimates.
Does it help to think of it in this way, or is there something about Projects which you need to use? Budget, Start/stop dates etc? If so, or you really do need client-level invoicing (which makes tracking project budgets somewhat difficult) then we'll need to have a think.
I’m confident we'll get there.
The company says
this answers the question
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Inappropriate?Perhaps. I guess then I'd have to make the projects so general as to only really be representative of clients, and then add tasks as "projects"
For example, for one client during one month I completed both an annual report and a newsletter. I just assumed that it would make sense to list those both separately as projects.
But if I look back at the interface, I have to select both a client and then also a project name. I guess I'd have to create only one project for each client, something generic, and then only track tasks from there? I haven't really checked out the tasks but I can look into it.
The only thing though, is it seems to make the projects the exact same thing as the clients. Do you see what I mean? -
Inappropriate?I'm in a similar situation. My clients (whom I often subcontract for) think of a project as "create this blog" or "prepare this presentation", and these are very distinct in both our minds. I'd like a way to keep the current projects (with budgets, tasks, etc, etc) and be able to represent more than one project on an invoice.
I’m hoping this will happen
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Inappropriate?ooo I was almost sold on this until I found you cant add more than one project to the same invoice. I know my clients would get a bit annoyed with individual invoices.
But yes if you can work on that then I consider having a look again in a few months.
I’m hopeful
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Inappropriate?There's just an extra step that's all. Here's what you can do:
* Create an invoice for the first project, adding time and expenses as required.
* Edit the invoice details, switching to the second project and again adding time and expenses from that one.
* Rinse and repeat
The invoice will be recorded against the last-selected project's budget (if you use that facility) and invoice history, but it can certainly contain time and expenses from more than one project.
What we could work on is a way of allocating rebilled time and expenses across their parent projects' budgets, but any manually added items will clearly be assigned to the last-selected project before the invoice was sent.
Would that help?
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Inappropriate?Nice idea Ed, but seems a little long winded to me when at the moment I just tick box the projects and hit an invoice button, bish - bash - bosh! :)
Rinse and repeat editing here and there just doesn't fit in a sole traders time schedule! :)
I’m unsure
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Inappropriate?Can't compete with your existing bish - bash - bosh solution at the moment, then!
But I just created an invoice that included time and expenses from three test account projects and it took me 6 additional clicks and 14 seconds to add in the time and expenses from each of the additional projects.
If your existing solution also generates nice PDFs, accounting data, income tax & VAT calculations and an invoice timeline calendar feed from your invoices then those extra seconds are indeed wasted ;->
Of course we can do better, and I want to reduce those 6 additional clicks to just one...
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Inappropriate?I too need to invoice several projects in the one invoice. Each project has it's own set of tasks and additional invoice items but instead of printing out 10 invoices I'd just want one.
Other than copying out all the info from freeagent and into an indesign invoice template I've got, I don't see how I can do this within FA. You say:
* Create an invoice for the first project, adding time and expenses as required.
* Edit the invoice details, switching to the second project and again adding time and expenses from that one.
* Rinse and repeat
But how do you "switch" to a subsequent project and then add all the tasks assigned to that project?
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Inappropriate?Tony,
Re-select the 'Edit' button once you've created the invoice (adding the first project's unbilled items while you were at it).
Change the project on the 'Edit Invoice' screen and choose your 'Add Unbilled Time and Expenses options, which will now relate to the project you just switched to.
The new tasks etc will now appear on the invoice.
Of course you can add additional invoice items at anytime.
Does that make sense?
We're looking hard into 'Client-level' invoicing, in which case it may be that the Unbilled Time and Expenses will relate to all that client's projects, as well as expenses that might be rebilled to a client directly. Still some work to do there...
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