If you followed our steps to create a professional invoice, you should already have created an invoice : ) Now, you might want to print it if you are not sending the invoice electronically. To make sure your efforts of creating the perfect invoice don’t get ruined during the printing phase, follow these tips for printing perfection.
Whether you are sending an invoice electronically or not, it’s important to consider that many of your clients will likely print a copy of the invoice for physical filing purposes, as well as save another version electronically. So, it’s equally as important that your invoice looks great (and understandable) when printed as it does on a computer screen.
Make sure you use a print-friendly template
You can use Word or Excel to generate your invoice template but the issue with that is that you would have to manage the formatting for printing which can be time consuming and painful.
If you create your invoices with Yes Invoice, it automatically generates a PDF that is print-friendly. That being said, we only suggest you print an invoice when absolutely required – be ecological.
Print your invoice
When it comes time to print your invoice, click file > print and take a look at the print preview so you can get an idea of how everything is lining up on the page. You don’t have to keep an invoice to one page, but if it’s not necessary to have two pages, then don’t overdo it. If the invoice is more than one page, you will have to decided if you want the header on each page, and it is a good idea to have page numbers on each page.
Print preview
When you look at the print preview, be sure the page looks organized and neat, and that there are nice margins (white space) surrounding the text and the itemized list; you don’t want the page to look smashed together. If you have a printer at your home or office, print one copy of the invoice as a test before printing the one you plan on sending to your client.
Send it
Once it looks the way you want it to, print the version you will send to the client, let it dry for a few minutes before placing it in the envelope to mail. Send it off, and then file a copy for your records, and save it on your computer and/or a backup hard drive for safekeeping.
While many things are completed online these days, many businesses still utilize printed invoices and billing systems. If you create and print lots of invoices each month, you may want to consider making the switch to digital, to save your business time and money.