Over 60% of late payments happen because of compliance or administrative issues, such as incorrect invoicing. A small mistake in a sample invoice letter format, poor print, or delivery management may cause pricey consequences. And it’s not only about the money: you could lose customers’ trust, undermine your business reputation, and, finally, suffer from an increasing number of overdue payments.

Given that invoice letter templates are something any company uses, the business impact of invoicing practices is evident. Regardless of what product or services you offer, it’s necessary to know how to write a payment letter and invoice right. Today, Inkit’s mailing experts share their recommendations. Read them to find out:

• Who needs to use invoice letter templates and why to send sample letters
• How to write a payment letter? Sample invoice letter format, rules, and requirements
• Sending sales invoices and letters: when and how (paper and paperless invoices)

Who Needs to Use Invoice Letter Templates and Why

An invoice letter is sent together with an invoice to specify the payment details and ask the recipient to complete the necessary transaction within the stated time.

Since this type of official documents is very popular, there are plenty of invoice letter templates suitable for different situations. Although you can customize them for any industry and application, generally invoice letter templates are used in two cases:

1. Your company has just started to send paper and/or paperless invoices to charge someone for provided services. Then you will need an invoice letter template to know how to design your custom communications.

2. You still haven’t implemented automatic invoicing and prefer to continue filling documents out manually. Even though the use of templates isn’t the most efficient solution, they do optimize financial communications.

Note. If you process a large volume of invoices, it’s preferable to automate online and offline invoicing. Modern software, including Inkit, can automatically render official documents and insert customer data in the necessary fields of the invoice letter template to print and deliver it based on triggers.

A proper sample invoice letter format is essential for large and small businesses. Apart from allowing you to conduct financial operations and receive payments, it’s also critical for your business image. Simple invoices with all payment details and clear language show your customers that you are a reputable company that cares about business communications. Besides, an optimized invoicing cycle enables you to reduce the percentage of late payments and, thus, increase your financial stability.

How to Write a Payment Letter? Sample Invoice Letter Format, Rules, and Requirements

A professional invoice letter template should include the name and address of your company, name and address of the recipient, invoice number, products or services sold, payment terms, outstanding balance, and payment options. These details are sufficient to inform the recipient about the due date and explain how to process the payment.

How to Write a Payment Letter?

• Include the contact details of the sender and recipient of the invoice at the top left of the letter.
• Use the title indicating the main request (e.g., Invoice #7777 for logistic services).
• Indicate the number of the attached invoice, the due payment date, terms, account number, and other applicable information in the main body of the chosen sample invoice letter format.
• Use the payment letter to clarify the contents of the invoice that may require additional explanations (e.g., late fees or the legal consequences if the invoice is late).
• Be polite and stay official even if you remind the recipients about the late payment.

To see multiple sample invoice letter formats and pick the most suitable one, you can check invoice letter templates in MS Word and PDF. The final look of the invoice and payment letter will depend on the kind of services you offer and payment conditions. There are a variety of options to choose from, such as sales invoices, service invoice templates, invoices with an hourly rate or tax calculation, etc.

Invoicing rules and requirements

In addition to providing payment terms and contact information, there are several other invoicing requirements to note. First of all, you should always keep copies of all official communications delivered. It’s better to use cloud storage to secure the information from computer crashes or damage. This will help you protect customers’ data and achieve regulatory compliance through organized record keeping.

We also recommend using branding for your invoice letter templates. Add your company logo, fonts, and colors to make sure official messages mirror your brand. Financial communications have great marketing potential if you leverage them to treat your customers well.

Sending Sales Invoices and Letters: When and How (Paper and Paperless Invoices)

Once you’ve chosen a sample invoice letter format, it’s time to include it in your customer communication flow. The timing and conditions of the delivery depend on the goal of invoicing. Let’s take a look at the main cases when the sample invoice letter format is applicable.

When to deliver an invoice letter template

Prepayment or deposit

Many B2B businesses deliver invoice letter templates to request a preliminary payment or deposit. Such an approach is effective for large deals or when the customer often delays payments. It helps the company to minimize the risk of financial loss and get a part of the money in advance.

Upon purchase/project completion

It’s by far the most common sample invoice letter format. Customers receive a customized invoice letter template within several days after the requested products or services are provided. In e-commerce, buyers get an invoice letter with the delivered package.

At milestones/weekly/monthly

If you cooperate with someone on an ongoing basis, make sure to discuss the payment terms in advance. In long-term projects, payments are usually processed when a certain stage is completed or at a specific time (e.g., weekly, bi-weekly, monthly).

Late payments

Well, the fact that you send invoice letter templates to avoid delayed payments doesn’t mean customers will always pay you on time (or pay you at all). Brace yourself for such cases and prepare an invoice letter template to request overdue payments. Read more about failure of payment notices and payment reminders here.

How to deliver an invoice letter template (paper and paperless)

Overall, there are two ways to deliver an invoice and a payment request letter – direct mail and email.

Usually, businesses favor emails for less official transactions or when the deal takes place online. For offline interactions, official communications, and serious deals, most entities still prefer to combine digital invoices with print invoice letters. This benefits regulatory compliance and enables them to switch between several communication channels depending on the needs and preferences of customers.

In this respect, Inkit is a unique tool since it has the functionality both for print and electronic invoicing. The tool renders documents, stores them in the cloud, and automatically handles printing and delivery. In case you need to share the same document by email or other digital channels, Inkit can also help. Thanks to multiple supported integrations, it smoothly interacts with third-party tools to exchange data and complete actions based on triggers.

Have any questions about the sample invoice letter format or sending invoice letters with Inkit? Contact us and let’s discuss your needs.