Invoicing ·
Year-End Invoicing Checklist: What to Do Before January
A December checklist for freelancers: bill the year's work, chase late payers, record payments, tidy drafts and export the year for your accountant.
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Who it's for / Auto detailers
Auto detailing invoices for every package, add-on and fleet account
Auto detailers sell packages, such as an interior detail or a full detail, priced by vehicle size, with add-ons for pet hair, odor removal or headlight restoration, and often a fee when the work is done at the customer's place. Paint correction and ceramic coating are quoted first and usually booked with a deposit, and dealerships and company fleets are billed for many vehicles at once, usually monthly. Tell Clodou what you did and at what price: it writes the quote or the invoice and keeps track of who has paid.
Sound familiar?
- A full detail, a pet hair add-on and an SUV price added up on a phone calculator
- Ceramic coating deposits paid by app and hard to match to the job
- Fleet and dealership work invoiced at month end from a stack of notes
- No single list of who still owes for last week's jobs
How Clodou helps
Packages and add-ons on one invoice
"Invoice Jenna Ruiz for a full detail on her SUV at $275, pet hair removal at $40 and a $25 mobile fee" writes three lines, $340. Clodou uses your prices; it never picks a package or adds a fee for you.
Coating jobs with a deposit
Quote paint correction and ceramic coating with your deposit terms in the note. When the customer books, turn the quote into the invoice and record the deposit as a partial payment; Clodou keeps the balance until pickup.
Fleet accounts once a month
Add the dealership or the company as the client, with the person who books and their accounts team as contacts. At month end, invoice the washes and details with their quantities; a fixed monthly price can be a retainer that Clodou prepares as a draft.
How auto detailers bill, and how Clodou handles it
Packages by vehicle size, with add-ons
Most detailers price packages, such as an exterior wash, an interior detail or a full detail, by vehicle size, with add-ons for pet hair, odor removal, engine bay cleaning or headlight restoration. Give Clodou each package and add-on with your price: a full detail on an SUV at $275 and pet hair removal at $40 are two lines. A mobile or travel fee is its own line too. Clodou never adds a fee or a discount by itself.
Paint correction and ceramic coating with a deposit
Correction and coating jobs take a day or more and are often booked with a deposit. Write your deposit and cancellation terms in the quote's note, turn the quote into an invoice when the customer books and record the deposit as a partial payment. Clodou keeps the balance, and you record the last payment at pickup.
Fleets, dealerships and maintenance plans
Dealerships, rental companies and company fleets are often billed once a month for every vehicle done, with the number of each service as the quantity and sometimes a purchase order number in the note. A customer on a maintenance plan, such as a wash every two weeks at a fixed monthly price, can be a retainer: Clodou prepares one draft a month for you to check. Whether detailing is taxed where you work is for you to check with your accountant; Clodou applies the rate you set.
A ceramic coating job and a month of fleet work
Step 1
Quote Marcus Webb for his sedan: one-step paint correction at $450 and a 5-year ceramic coating at $900. Note: $350 deposit to book, balance due at pickup.
Adds Marcus Webb as a client and creates quote DEV-0071 with two lines: one-step paint correction, $450.00; ceramic coating, 5-year, $900.00. No tax is set on this workspace, so the total is $1,350.00, and the deposit terms print in the note.
Step 2
Marcus booked for March 14 and paid the $350 deposit. Turn DEV-0071 into an invoice due March 15; I sent it to him.
Creates invoice INV-0102 for $1,350.00 with the same lines and note, plus a reference to DEV-0071, and sets the due date to March 15. It marks INV-0102 as sent and shows an approval card to record $350 received. Once you approve it, $1,000.00 is still owed.
Step 3
Marcus picked up his car and paid the $1,000 balance.
Shows an approval card to record $1,000.00 received on INV-0102. Once you approve it, INV-0102 is marked paid.
Step 4
Invoice Northside Realty for March: 6 exterior washes at $45, 2 interior details at $120, and the $25 mobile fee for each of the 2 visits.
Finds Northside Realty and creates draft invoice INV-0103 with three lines: exterior wash, 6 at $45, $270.00; interior detail, 2 at $120, $240.00; mobile fee, 2 visits at $25, $50.00. Total: $560.00, ready for you to check and send.
Just ask
Quote Marcus Webb a one-step paint correction at $450 and a 5-year ceramic coating at $900, with a $350 deposit to book
Invoice Jenna Ruiz for a full detail on her SUV at $275, pet hair removal at $40 and a $25 mobile fee
Invoice Northside Realty for March: 6 exterior washes at $45 and 2 interior details at $120
Questions
- How do I make an auto detailing invoice?
- Tell Clodou the customer, the package, any add-ons and your prices, such as a full detail on an SUV at $275 and pet hair removal at $40. It finds or adds the customer and writes the invoice with your logo, your business details, the next number in your sequence and your terms. There is no auto detailing invoice template to fill in, and if a price is missing, Clodou asks instead of guessing.
- Can I put the vehicle on the invoice?
- Yes. Give the vehicle and its plate and Clodou puts them in the line or the note, such as full detail, 2021 SUV, plate 7KLM392. Clodou has no vehicle records or VIN lookup: it prints what you give it.
- How do I handle a deposit for ceramic coating?
- Write your deposit terms in the quote's note. When the customer books, turn the quote into the invoice and record the deposit as a partial payment; Clodou shows the balance still owed until you record the last payment. If a customer cancels, your terms decide what happens to the deposit, not Clodou.
- Can I bill a dealership or a fleet once a month?
- Yes. Add the company as the client, with the person who books and their accounts team as contacts. At month end, give Clodou the number of each service, such as 6 exterior washes at $45, and put their purchase order number in the note. A fixed monthly price for a set service can be a retainer that Clodou prepares as a draft every month.
- Does Clodou book appointments or take payments?
- No. Clodou has no booking calendar, online scheduling, before-and-after photos, vehicle inspection forms or customer app, and it does not take card payments. It handles the business side: customers, quotes, invoices, payments, expenses and tasks. On Solo and Team, your own payment link prints on invoices, and supplies such as coatings and towels can be logged as expenses from a receipt photo you confirm.
- What does it cost?
- Free covers up to 5 clients and 20 AI actions a month, with no separate cap on quotes and invoices (making them in the chat uses AI actions). Solo, with your payment link on invoices, is $29 a month per workspace. Team, with 5 seats and automatic reminders, is $79 a month. Prices are in USD, and the first 14 days are a free Team trial.
Guides
Invoicing ·
How to Number Invoices: Formats, Gaps and Credit Notes
How to number invoices: sequential numbers, prefixes, yearly series, gaps, voided invoices, credit notes, and what HMRC, the ATO and the EU say.
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Getting paid ·
How to Ask a Client for Payment Politely (With Scripts)
Email, phone and text scripts to ask a client for payment politely and firmly, before the due date to 30 days late, plus disputes, silence and stopping work.
13 min read
Your whole back office, in one chat
Every new workspace starts with a 14-day trial of Team, no card required. Then stay on Free: up to 5 clients and 20 AI actions a month; quotes and invoices have no separate cap, and making them in the chat uses AI actions.
Free: $0. Solo: $29 a month. Team: $79 a month with 5 seats. Prices per workspace, in USD.
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