From time to time you may have customers (pet parents) with arrears due on their account. KennelBooker makes it easy to combine all of a customer's outstanding bookings into one invoice, which is emailed to them as a PDF. You can also create the PDF without emailing it, for example to print or send yourself.
To bill all your customers at once instead of one at a time, use Monthly/Arrears Billing (see Related articles).
Where to send an invoice from
Invoices are sent from the customer's profile. Open the customer (Customers, then the customer's name). At the top of the profile, the Outstanding box shows what the customer owes, with a small Send Invoice label under it. Click the Outstanding box to open the Checkout Booking page.
How to send an invoice to a customer
On the customer's profile, click the Outstanding box (with the Send Invoice label).
The Checkout Booking page lists the customer's unpaid bookings that have checked in, checked out or been cancelled with a fee, with the Total Outstanding at the top. Each row shows the booking type, pets, booking date, status, price, tip, extras, discount, tax, Total and Due.
To add unpaid bookings that haven't checked in yet, tick Incl. Future Bookings.
Use the Select switch on each row to choose the bookings to put on the invoice. Bookings that have already checked in or out start switched on.
Click Create & Email Invoice.
KennelBooker generates a PDF of the bookings you selected and emails it to the customer. The message Invoice Sent! "The invoice has been sent to the customer." appears, with a Download Invoice link to open the PDF and a Back to Customer Profile button.
To create the PDF without emailing it, tick Generate PDF Only before clicking Create & Email Invoice. You'll see Invoice Generated! with a Download Invoice link.
The other button on the page, Checkout Bookings, doesn't send an invoice. It takes the bookings you selected to the checkout screen so you can take payment for them there.
The invoice email
The invoice email uses your Unpaid Bookings Email template, with the PDF invoice attached. To change the wording:
Go to Settings > Email Settings and scroll to Email templates.
Click Edit next to Unpaid Bookings Email.
Change the subject or text and click Save changes.
If you take online payments with Stripe or Square and the customer isn't set to cash only, KennelBooker can add a link for the customer to pay online. Include the [payment_info] placeholder in the Unpaid Bookings Email template where you want the payment link to appear.
The email goes to the customer's email address, and to their second email address if they have one. If you've set a Bcc a copy to address in Settings > Email Settings, you get a copy too.
What sending an invoice doesn't do
Sending an invoice doesn't record a payment or mark the bookings as paid. When the customer pays, record the payment on the booking (or with Apply Payments for several bookings).
Sending an invoice from the profile doesn't mark the bookings as billed for Monthly/Arrears Billing, so the customer can still appear on the Monthly Billing page.
It doesn't send a text message (SMS).
It doesn't list bookings that are already paid, or cancelled bookings without a cancellation fee.
Sending an invoice: frequently asked questions
How do I email a customer an invoice for everything they owe?
Open the customer's profile and click the Outstanding box (it has a Send Invoice label). Leave the bookings you want switched on in Select, tick Incl. Future Bookings if you want upcoming unpaid bookings too, and click Create & Email Invoice. KennelBooker emails the customer one PDF invoice for all the selected bookings.
Can I print an invoice instead of emailing it?
Yes. On the Checkout Booking page, tick Generate PDF Only and click Create & Email Invoice. Nothing is emailed; click Download Invoice to open the PDF and print it.
Can I invoice bookings that haven't happened yet?
Yes. On the Checkout Booking page, tick Incl. Future Bookings to add the customer's unpaid upcoming bookings to the list, then switch on the ones you want in Select.
Can the customer pay the invoice online?
Yes, if you take online payments with Stripe or Square, the customer isn't set to cash only, and your Unpaid Bookings Email template contains [payment_info]. The invoice email then includes a link for the customer to pay online.
Which email template does the invoice use?
The invoice email uses the Unpaid Bookings Email template. Edit it in Settings > Email Settings > Email templates, then click Save changes.
Can I send invoices to all my customers at once?
Yes, with Monthly/Arrears Billing. It lists every customer with unpaid, unbilled bookings and emails each of them one invoice. See "Monthly/Arrears Billing" in Related articles.
Does sending an invoice mark the bookings as paid?
No. Sending an invoice only emails the PDF. Record the payment when the customer pays; a booking is marked as paid when its balance reaches zero.
Can I add my own text, such as bank details, to the invoice?
You can add text to the invoice email by editing the Unpaid Bookings Email template. For text printed on the PDF invoice itself, see "Add Additional Text to Invoice/Receipt" in Related articles.
Sending an invoice: common problems
My customer didn't get the invoice email
Check the customer has a valid email address on their profile; without one, no email can be sent. Ask the customer to check their spam or junk folder. You can also tick Generate PDF Only, download the PDF and send it yourself. If the address is right and the email still doesn't arrive, contact support with the customer's name and the time you sent the invoice.
A booking is missing from the Checkout Booking page
The page lists unpaid bookings that have checked in, checked out or been cancelled with a fee. Tick Incl. Future Bookings to see unpaid bookings that haven't checked in yet. Bookings already marked as paid, and cancelled bookings without a fee, aren't listed.
I clicked Create & Email Invoice and nothing happened
At least one booking must be switched on in Select. Switch on the bookings to invoice and click Create & Email Invoice again.
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