Invotrak: The Online Invoicing Blog

With today’s maintenance update, a couple of (minor, but still interesting) new things were added to Invotrak.  Here’s a brief overview:

Client Invoice Lists – When on your Invoices page (where you see the current status of your invoices), the names of clients now appear as links.  Clicking the link will show a list of invoices for that client.  It allows you to quickly see what you’ve invoiced that client in the past.

Live field validations – When entering information into most fields on the site, a small icon will appear to the right that indicates if what you have entered will pass inspection.  For instance, when signing up for an account, you’re prompted to enter your email address.  As you type, it will switch from red to green when the entry looks okay.  It’s a nice little touch to make using Invotrak that much easier.

There’s more too: we added the SEK (Swedish krona) currency, and made a number of minor visual tweaks throughout the site.  Hope you find these new items useful, and be sure to let us know what you think.

There will be a brief period of downtime on the morning of Nov 9th.  It should be brief (about 15 minutes) and allows us to make some important updates to the site.  We’ll post more here with updates.

Update: We’ve completed the updates.  As always, let us know if anything seems amiss.

We’ve just put the finishing touches on a whole new set of features for Invotrak: Project Tracking! You can now enter your project information (estimates, quotes, tasks, etc) and record timesheets against it. Invotrak will keep a running tally of the time spent on your projects, giving you a snapshot of your progress any time you like.

Let’s say you’ve just put together a proposal for a client and they’ve given you the go-ahead (yay!). Now you need to make sure you stay on budget as you work. Well, what better way then in the same app you’re using to invoice your client?

All you have to do is enter your proposal details into Invotrak. Break the proposal down into pieces (called tasks) and assign an amount of time for each task. Then, when you (and your employees) record their work for their timesheets, assign the entries to one of the project tasks. From now on, whenever you go to the Projects tab in Invotrak, you’ll see your current progress, a handy pie chart, and all of the timesheet entries recorded for each task.

Now, when a client asks “So, where do we stand“, you can answer just by checking Invotrak!

Of course, why not go a step further and have your client log into Invotrak and check for themself? Just create a client account for them, and they can login whenever they like to check their project’s status.

To get started with Invotrak Projects, you’ll need to first sign up for a paid account. Then, you can start tracking an unlimited number of projects.  Or, check out all the other great things Invotrak has to offer.

We hope you like the new Projects feature. Be sure to let us know what you think on our user feedback forum!

We’ve just updated Invotrak with a new power user feature, which should help reduce the “client clutter”.  Now, you can mark clients as being active and inactive.  An inactive client will no longer appear on the Timesheets or Record Invoice pages, and should help reduce confusion.  Hope you find this useful, and be sure to let us know what you think!

We’ve just added two new user-requested features to Invotrak: dates for timesheets in invoices you generate, and customizable invoice statistics.

Timesheet Invoice Dates
If you’re using the timesheet features of Invotrak, you’ve no doubt seen how easy it is to create stylish invoices from your work data.  One thing that’s been missing though has been the ability to insert dates into your invoices.  Now, when you create an invoice, you can optionally insert the date you set for your timesheet entries.

If you haven’t tried the timesheets feature, you’ve been missing out!  Log into your Invotrak account and click the Timesheets tab to start tracking your work.

Revamped Invoice Statistics
Why stop there?  We also added another user-requested feature: the ability to customize your invoice statistics box.  On your Invoices page, you’ve no doubt seen the Statistics box on the right.  It’s a handy way to see your invoicing activity, but it wasn’t very sophisticated.  Now, you can change the period these statistics are shown for, giving you at-a-glance details of your financial situation.

We always make user-requested changes a priority to Invotrak.  Since we started the site nearly two years ago, we’ve always relied on our users to tell us what they need in an invoicing application.  So keep the feedback coming!

Let’s keep the updates coming for Invotrak with another new feature: Basecamp integration!  Every user (subscriber and free) can now connect their clients to Basecamp accounts and pull data into Invotrak.

If you’re not already familiar with Basecamp, it’s a great project management and collaboration tool used by a lot of people (freelancers and large companies alike).  In many cases, you may be working with a client that has a Basecamp account setup.  Using Invotrak, you can now connect to that Basecamp account and import items into Invotrak!

Check out the screencast to see it in action:

Here’s how it works.  First, you need to enable API access in your Basecamp account (the Basecamp Account Holder must set this).  Once that’s done, log into Invotrak and go to your Clients section.  Then, choose the client to link the Basecamp account to, and click the Setup Basecamp Access link (it’s in the bottom-right of the client page).  Enter your Basecamp account details and click the Continue button.

You can also assign one or multiple projects to a particular client.  In some cases, you may have a Basecamp account for several clients or projects.  When setting up Basecamp access, just select the projects you’d like to associate with the client.

Now, let’s add a timesheet entry based on a Basecamp ToDo item.  Go to the Timesheets section.  Either do Manual Entry or start the timer with the Punch clock and do some work.  Next, click the client that has Basecamp access and click the Select From Basecamp link.  This will bring up a dialog that lets you choose the ToDo item (from ToDo lists, to keep things organized).  Click your ToDo item and then save your timesheet entry.  You can also click outside the dialog box to cancel

We’re working on further Basecamp integration now, and we’ll have more updates soon.  As always, be sure to let us know what you think!

In addition to all the new things we’ve added to Invotrak, this most recent update also has a new Feedback link on the right.  When you’re logged into the site, you’ll see this button.  Clicking it will bring you to our new UserVoice page.

In our quest to make the process of invoicing less painful and more streamlined for the people who have to do it on a regular basis, we’re looking to get more of your input.  In fact, as part of our most recent update, a feature we snuck in was the ability to completely customize the emails that are sent out to your clients.  A feature that was requested by a user of ours.

We’d like to get your take on Invotrak.  Tell us what you need in an invoicing service, and we’ll do what we can to help.  One caveat: not all ideas or suggestions will be implemented.  Some things just aren’t right for Invotrak.  But there are many other things that we can do to improve, and we want to know.

We’re making invoicing better, and we’d like your help.  Check out our UserVoice page and let us know what you’d like to see in Invotrak.  Thanks!

We’ve been on a roll lately with Invotrak, and right on the heels of client accounts, we now have a revamped invoice generator, complete with templates! In addition, we’ve streamlined the process of creating invoices from timesheets, and even added company logos for good measure!

Creating an Invoice
As a recap, creating an invoice in Invotrak is very easy. Simply go to the Record Invoice page on the Invoices screen, and enter the invoice details (amount, when it’s due, etc). Once you’ve recorded this invoice, you can then enter each of the line items using the handy line item tool on the right.

When you’ve got all the components of your invoice entered, the next step is to generate a stylish PDF. Click on the Generate Paper Invoice link, and tweak the settings as you like. Free account holders are restricted to the Basic Business template, but upgraded account holders can choose from any of the template styles (including several that incorporate your logo).

When you’re happy with your settings, click the Generate PDF link at the bottom. After a moment, a PDF will popup with your invoice, in the template style you chose!

Invoices from Timesheets
If you bill by the hour, then you’re going to really save time using Invotrak’s timesheets feature. As you go about your work, enter your hours and a description of the work performed into the Timesheets section. Then, when you’re ready to invoice, click the Review Timesheets link at the top. Filter out the timesheets you’re interested in, and select them. Use the Create Invoice tool on the right to assign the selected timesheet entries to an invoice (or create a new one if you like).

Each of your timesheet entries will be attached to the invoice as line items, along with the time worked and an hourly rate. You can even change line items later if you like (such as times when your hourly rate changes).

Now that you have your invoice, use the Generate Paper Invoice feature to create a stylish PDF of the work you did!

Here’s a video showing how to create an invoice from timesheet entries:

Company Logos
But wait, there’s more! Invotrak now allows you to upload your company’s logo to attach to your invoices, and it’s very easy to do! Just go to the Settings screen inside Invotrak and click on the Logo image. Upload a JPG or PNG file of your company’s logo, and Invotrak will do the rest!

Check out the video to see how to add a logo in Invotrak:

When creating an invoice, some of the templates have space for logos. If you have a logo uploaded, Invotrak will automatically place the logo on the invoice. You’re invoices have never looked better!

We hope you like the new additions to Invotrak, but we’re always looking to improve. Be sure to let us know what you think, and keep an eye on this blog for more updates.

Happy new year everyone! We thought we’d get the new year started off right by introducing a new feature for Invotrak subscribers: client accounts!  You can now create accounts just for your clients, giving them access to view invoice and timesheet information you’ve recorded.

Let’s say you have several clients, Big Company and Little Company.  For both, you’d like to give them access to see the status of invoices you’ve issued to them.  In addition, you don’t want Big Company to see any timesheet entries you make.  Setting this up is very easy:

First, go to your Settings page and click Add User (it’s in the right column inside the Account Access box).  On the next screen, enter the email address of the person you’d live to give access to, and choose Client as their role.  Another drop-down box will appear allowing you to say which client this account belongs to (let’s say Big Company first).

Once you click the Add User link, an email is sent to that person with details on how to login and a password they can use.

Second, click on the Clients tab at the top of the page, and select the company you just assigned the client account to (say Big Company).  You’ll notice that in the right column of this screen there are additional details about access.  You can also choose to set whether the client has access to view timesheet entries or not (for Big Company, uncheck the box).  When you uncheck or check this box, it updates automatically on the server, though you should always double check by leaving and returning to the page.

That’s it!  Your client can now access the Invotrak records you’ve recorded for them, and see the status of their invoices and your timesheets whenever you like.  A couple final notes:

• Clients can’t make any changes to anything you’ve recorded.  They can’t recorded any invoices or timesheet entries, or make any changes (like adding payments).
• By default, client accounts are given access to your timesheet information.  If you don’t want clients to see your timesheet details, make sure you go to the Clients tab, select the appropriate client, and uncheck the checkbox on the right (called “Allow timesheet access”).
• You can remove and enable/disable client accounts just like any employee or admin account.
• A single client can have multiple client accounts (for instance, one for a manager and one for an accountant).

We hope you like the new Client access feature.  If you’re an Invotrak subscriber (Basic, Premium, or Unlimited), you can add as many client accounts as you like.  And be sure to let us know what you think – we add new features based on user feedback.

I’m thrilled to announce that Invotrak is now available on your iPhone!  You can track your invoices, timesheets, and clients on the go using the new Invotrak app – and it’s free!  Just like with Invotrak, it’s very easy to get started: you can either navigate to the App Store and download it there, or click this link.

Once you’ve installed the app, enter your Invotrak username and password (or sign up if you don’t have one yet).  Your phone will now automatically stay in sync with invotrak.com.  Some of the features of the app:

• View outstanding, paid, and overdue invoices
• Track and create new invoices
• Add timesheet entries and view entries from the past
• View and add client information

You can also connect with your colleagues and employees using the Invotrak app.  Employees are able to enter their timesheet information, while other admins can make changes to the set of invoices and clients you see on your own iPhone.

I hope you enjoy the Invotrak app!  Be sure to let us know what you think.