New company startup help

I have decided to step out on my own. I am getting my back side kicked by the paper work side of things.

I need a way to track the onsite work that I do for a customer. Then transfer it to a invoice that looks good. So my quesion to you all is what do you use to track jobs?

I have seen all the little fine print at he bottom of service tickets before but never read any of them in detail. What does all that fine print say on your tickets / invoices?
Thanks for your help.

I write a daily service report that summarizes my activities. I use QUick Books to generate invoices. On the invoice, I write, "Service on 23 July 2010, 6.5 hours, service report attached" I include a copy of the service report with the invoice and leave it up to the client to deliver the individula pieces of paper to the right person. My experience is that the bean counter gets both the invoice and the service report and only about half pass the service report on to the person I worked with. I still mail invoices. I've tried emailing pdfs and find that customers are more likely to claim they didn't get an email than a first class letter.

Steve Do you just keep a simple report with the details? Something made up in MS Word? I am trying to get my format down a little bit better. I am on my third or forth style so far. I think it is getting better.

Shoot me a PM with your email address and I'll send you a sample.

Microsoft Office Accounting has time card entry and invoicing. It came with Windows 7 Professioinal. Most accounting software has this feature.

I have always done my trip reports in my word processor - there are lots of things I want on a trip/service report that have nothing to do with accounting.

Things to make sure you include:
Date and time of course
Customer company info
Customer PO
Customer site contact info
Your job or order number
Descritpion of work, of course. Itemize into multiple items, indicate sympton, cause, corrective action taken, and additional action required for each.
If this is scheduled commissioning work as part of a system indicate hours quoted, hours used to date, and number of hours remaining.
Your contact info
Spare parts supplied or customer parts used
Follow up required and if so when

Thanks guys. This is the stuff that I need to be documenting. As a one ma show you guys know how much time the paper work takes.
I will be puttin somwthing to today. To help make thing easier for guys like us. I will try to post it so you all can tell me what I missed.

I use a "master contract" that goes with each PO and contains all the fine print. I use a weekly timesheet created in Wordperfect Forms that has fields for time and expenses at the top and a free-flowing space at the bottom for writing up the work; the customer gets a PDF of this via email or a hardcopy via mail. I use quickbooks 2004 to tie it all together and generate invoices.

I cover several things in the "fine print". I don't use these exact words but this is the general idea:

Rate Structure. I have a "standard" for scheduled services between 7 am and 7 pm, and "Evening/Weekend" rate, and an "Emergency" rate that will give the customer priority over any non-emergencies.

Travel Time. I don't charge travel time in-town. In the surrounding counties I charge one-way travel time. I go out of state, I charge travel time both ways.

Air Fare. I quote based on full-fare coach class ("Y" class), but I reserve the right to fly any class I choose as long as it doesn't exceed the cost quoted.

Travel Expenses. I don't charge meals etc in-town. Out of town, I charge actual "reasonable and customary" cost for mid-grade business travel.

Parts and supplies. Charged at the greater of either full list price or actual cost.

warning! ... unsolicited advice ahead ...

Greetings Jeff ...

I'll try to dig out one of my old invoices and mail it to you ... this would be from a previous life – back when I worked by the hour on restaurant equipment ... (and then my knees gave out from the constant kneeling required – and so here I am today) ...

I KNOW full well that my views about working "by the hour" are NOT going to be acceptable ... I KNOW full well that I'm wasting my time ... but ... for what it's worth (undoubtedly ZERO/NOTHING/ZIP/NADA) I covered this a few years ago in the following thread ...

feel free to totally ignore it – as an idea whose time has not yet come ...

http://www.plctalk.net/qanda/showthread.php?p=207374&postcount=14

I agree with you totally, Ron.

When customers ask about my prices, I like to quote Mr. Anonymous: "I never argue with those who sell for less - I figure they know what their stuff is worth."

I also agree with your attorney - cheapskates make lousy customers. You can never get ahead on the low price game anyway because there is always some darn fool out there that will undercut your price no matter what it is.

What I do quite often is a two part pitch. First, I'll often quote a not to exceed price. The customer feels protected and I get my rate. If I'm doing some real blue sky stuff I may not do this, but I've been kickng around long enough that if I double my estimate and add 10% I'm not too far off. Besides, with the respectable rate even if I run over I'm not going to be totally skinned.

The second tactic is to guarantee a result and put in writing that the customer doesn't pay if I don't meet that result. Again, the customer feels protected and I'm not actually taking much risk. As a practical matter if the customer isn't happy with my work product I'm going to have a hard time getting paid anyway!

If you have a Iphone there are few time tracking apps. I personally use timeworks

I use a "Site Work Report" that has a place for the customer's signature at the very bottom. There are just a few lines of "boilerplate" fine print that, when signed, have never let me down so far.

I complete the form before i leave the jobsite so i'm still on the clock while "documenting". The Report has all the info I need from which to create the invoice (later, in quickbooks) with the exception of parts prices. I sometimes jot them in, if known, on large items... but, only if the customer really seems uncomfortable. Customers that know me expect a fair price and don't insist on having them on the Report. I don't consider it good practice to provide pricing info to the customer's representative anyway, only to the guy in charge.

I have the blanks printed in NCR triplicate, the back copy goes to the customer's representative who signs it, the middle one gets sent along with the invoice, and the top one goes in my permanent customer file,AFTER the invoice is generated, and WITH the invoice number written on it. It is WAY more important than the invoice for proving what work you did for the customer, as it has the "original" signature.

If you want to see it for comparison, shoot me a PM with your fax # and I'll send you one.

You (or your employee) can carry them in one of those aluminum notebooks available for that very purpose at the office supply chains...

Good Luck to you. Being self employed is the best and worst thing that can happen to you...

Stationmaster