SoloDesk Freelance admin setup Freelance Admin Setup · USD 29
USD 14,200 is outstanding and two invoices are over 90 days
Client pipeline, invoice status and renewal dates in one place, built from a folder and an inbox.
You said the admin was disorganised rather than a problem. Putting it in one place found USD 14,200 unpaid, of which USD 5,400 is more than 90 days old and one invoice appears never to have been sent at all.
Invoice 0094 for USD 2,800, for work delivered on 4 August, exists as a draft in your folder and appears in no sent email. The client has not chased it because they have never received it.
Money
What is owed
| Invoice | Client | Amount | Sent | Due | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0094 | Client D | USD 2,800 | Never | n/a | Send today |
| 0088 | Client B | USD 3,100 | 12 Jun | 12 Jul | 108 days overdue |
| 0091 | Client B | USD 2,300 | 3 Jul | 2 Aug | 87 days overdue |
| 0096 | Client A | USD 1,900 | 2 Sep | 2 Oct | 26 days overdue |
| 0098 | Client F | USD 1,400 | 18 Sep | 18 Oct | 10 days overdue |
| 0101 | Client A | USD 1,600 | 9 Oct | 8 Nov | Not yet due |
| 0102 | Client G | USD 1,100 | 21 Oct | 20 Nov | Not yet due |
| Total | USD 14,200 |
Client B is USD 5,400 across two invoices, both over 87 days. They are also the client you described as your favourite to work with, which is the usual pattern: the clients people do not chase are the ones they like.
Pipeline
Clients, proposals and renewals
| Status | Owes | Next action | When | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Client A | Active | USD 3,500 | Chase 0096 | Today |
| Client B | Active | USD 5,400 | Payment conversation | This week |
| Client C | Dormant | USD 0 | No contact since June | Decide |
| Client D | Active | USD 2,800 | Send invoice 0094 | Today |
| Client E | Proposal sent | USD 0 | Sent 22 Sep, no reply | Follow up |
| Client F | Active | USD 1,400 | Chase 0098 | Friday |
| Client G | Active | USD 1,100 | None | Nov |
One proposal has been sitting unanswered for five weeks with no follow-up. Two follow-ups is the norm and you have sent none, which in practice means the proposal was withdrawn by silence.
- Today
Invoice 0094 sent
USD 2,800.
- Today
Client B payment conversation
Not an email. A call. USD 5,400 over 87 days needs a person.
- 31 Oct
Client E proposal, second follow-up
Five weeks with no reply. One more attempt, then close it.
- 15 Nov
Client A retainer renews
Annual. No conversation started. This is your largest recurring client.
- 30 Nov
Professional insurance renews
Annual.
- 31 Jan
Tax return deadline
Your records go to your accountant in the first week of January.
- 1 Feb
Client G project ends
Decide in January whether to propose a follow-on.
System
The weekly half hour
The reason USD 14,200 accumulated is not that you are bad at admin. It is that admin has no slot, so it happens when something goes wrong. Thirty minutes, same time every week.
- Friday, 10 min
Invoices out
Anything delivered this week gets invoiced this week. Not at month end. Month end invoicing is how an invoice gets forgotten for eleven weeks.
- Friday, 10 min
Chase anything over 14 days
A one line email. Overdue invoices are chased far less often than people assume and almost always pay after the first chase.
- Friday, 5 min
Proposals over 7 days
One follow-up at a week, one at a fortnight, then close it and stop thinking about it.
- Friday, 5 min
Look at the next 30 days
Renewals, deadlines, anything ending. Client A's retainer would have appeared here in September.
| Rule | Why |
|---|---|
| Invoice on delivery, not monthly | Removes the single failure that cost you USD 2,800 |
| Payment terms 30 days, stated on every invoice | Two of your invoices state no terms at all |
| Chase at 14, 30 and 45 days | Automatic, unemotional, and it works |
| Deposit of 40 percent on anything over USD 2,000 | Client B would owe USD 3,240 rather than USD 5,400 |
| Stop work on anything over 60 days | Uncomfortable, and the only rule that actually prevents this |
Today
Five things
- Send invoice 0094
- Call Client B about the USD 5,400
- Chase invoice 0096
- Follow up the Client E proposal
- Start the Client A renewal conversation
- Put 30 minutes in the calendar for Friday, recurring