App Review: Freshbooks

Jeremy Lesniak  for A New Domain writes:  There are a number of things in this world that are far more trouble than they’re worth. For many of us, invoicing is one of those challenges. Invoicing has so many variables — clients that have stark differences in how they want to be billed, the coordination of your specific accounting system and a number of different invoices and, of course, the very real constraints of time. It can, and does for many, lead to an unproductive chore.

That’s why I use and recommend Freshbooks so highly.

Freshbooks

Freshbooks is a web app that lets you track the timing and invoicing of customers in a very simple way. Many of us here at aNewDomain use Freshbooks for our billing.

I’ve been on both sides of Freshbooks — sending and receiving invoices. In both directions, Freshbooks is a wonderfully-simple experience.

Accounting will never be a sexy industry, but Freshbooks comes as close as it probably can. It’s not so much the creating of an invoice that makes this product so great (which it does simply and semi-sexily), but the hands-off process of sending said invoice.

I find that most people or companies fall into two categories when it comes to paying bills. There are those that pay right away and those that wait, for whatever reason. The ones that wait often forget about a bill, and that’s where Freshbooks really shines.

You can set an automatic late-payment-reminder email for anyone that has received an invoice. No more last minute payment scrambles. You have complete control over the aging on invoices and reminders, which is incredibly useful if you have many accounts with differing needs and schedules. Freshbooks will also email you when it has sent that late-payment reminder, just in case you forgot to put it on the books.

This web-based app is free for up to three clients, so there’s no reason not to try it. Additional features include online payments, color and logo branding, and collaboration for teams. Appsare available for Apple iOS and Android.

If you’re a freelancer, a business owner, or just need to generate regular invoices, I encourage you to give Freshbooks some serious attention.