Who it is for
Text invoices for service-based businesses
Service businesses sell time and outcomes, not shelf stock. The text invoice should read like the service, with the deliverable named.
Describe the service the buyer remembers
A service invoice fails when it says “professional services” and the buyer remembers a workshop, a report or a visit. Name those. Three hours of facilitation and a printed workbook are understandable to the person who sat in the room and to the person who pays. Text invoices fit service work because the customer is often an individual or a small team, not a warehouse. They do not fit a business that needs picking lists and returns. If you sell both a service and a product catalogue, invoice the service here and keep the catalogue in a system that tracks stock. The message is yours to send. Paste the link into the email or the chat where the workshop was booked.
Lumen Workshops: facilitation and the printed workbooks are invoiced at $445, due in 14 days. https://invoicetxt.com/i/your-link
Use the name of the session
Facilitation, survey, treatment, lesson. Not “services rendered”.
Price materials the client can hold
A workbook, a report or a sample board is a line, not a mystery addition to the rate.
Match the proposal’s words
If you sold a workshop, the invoice should not rename it a retainer.
Send it while the session is memorable
A bill that arrives the same week gets fewer “what was this?” replies.
What to put on this invoice
- The service, with hours or a fixed fee
- A physical extra only if you charged one
- The buyer’s name
- Net days from the proposal
Questions about this job
Can one invoice cover a whole programme?
Yes, if one buyer owes the programme. List the parts. Do not send a single number with no lines.
What about retainers?
A retainer is a line for the period, sent again next period as a new invoice. It does not charge a card by itself.
Do service businesses need tax on the text?
If you charge tax, it belongs on the saved invoice through the API as a rate, and you should follow your own tax rules. This page is not tax advice. The live example above is pre-tax.
Service businesses get paid for a named outcome. Put that outcome on the invoice, then text the link.
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