Do Your Invoices Satisfy
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the Customer ? Asks G. B. Beardsley, Properly. Compiled Accounts Earn Good Will for the Haulier and Invite Prompt Settlement. Expert Advice on the Fundamentals of Preparing Invoices ANY hirer of road transport who has dealings with a number of haulage contractors knows that each of them has his own highly individual ideas on the best methods of rendering accounts. An examination of the invoices of a Wide selection of hauliers will show that not only is there great diversity of method (which ,is not necessarily to be deplored), but there is also little evidence that the contractors have tried to put themselves in the position of their customers, and to understand their requirements as regards invoicing.
This criticism applies to all classes of the road-haulage industry, and is not by any means restricted to the small operator. In too many cases the contractor appears to think that the service which he provides ends with the delivery of the goods, and that anything will do when it comes to the paper work. This is a serious mistake to make, and a contractor should regard the clerical side of his business as an excellent opportunity to advertise his efficiency. From his side the invoice is the last step in the transaction.
Clear Account : Quick Payment
Not only is it sensible to leave a good impression with a customer by rendering an invoice which meets his requirements in every respect, but in most cases it will bring a quick reward by securing the more prompt settlement of the account.
in any manufacturing or commercial concern of any size, it is almost certain that there is at least one clerk who does nothing but check accounts received. A supplier or coutractor who consistently submits invoices which are easy to check earns considerable good will from that particular clerk. If, however, an invoice be not well set out, and does not give the full information which the checker considers necessary, it is almost certain that, when he encounters the first obstacle to a straight clearance, he will lay it aside. In consequence. payment is delayed, unnecessary correspondence is . caused, and a feeling of dissatisfaction may be engendered.
It may seem unjust, but the performance of a firstclass job on the operating side does not ensure satisfaction on the part of the customer. It can happen that some clerk, who could not identify an articulated vehicle from a tipper, may influence the prospects of future business, as a result of a failure on the part of a -contractor to appreciate the importance of carrying efficiency into all sections of his business.
It is necessary first to ensure that the invoice is well set out, and is neat and tidy. A good, distinctive letterhead is a great asset, and advice on such matters can be obtained from printers and stationers. A typed invoice is to be preferred, but, if the detail be recorded in handwriting, particular attention should be paid to legibility. In all cases, the customer should be sent the top copy.
Many invoices show, by their layout, that no thought can have been given to the method of presentation. The 54
essential information should stand out clearly. Plenty of room -Should be given, so that not only is the invoice easily read but there is a certain amount of space for the checker:to record his hieroglyphics. Most concerns use a stamp, so that the various individuals dealing with the invoice in the customer's office can initial for their share in the checking. It is a help to provide space for this.
Next, the invoice should be submitted as speedily as possible after the event, because the prospects of its prompt settlement are thereby greatly improved..
It is always more difficult for a checker to deal satisfactorily with an account for the performance of a service than with one for goodssupplied. In the latter case, there will nearly always be an entry in. some record or other, which can be traced months afterwards, if necessary, but where a service is concerned, records cannot always be depended upon, and frequently the fact of its accomplishment is only within the memory of an individual. Prompt rendering is, therefore, of distinct advantage.
One of the largest concerns in the country habitually invoices six to eight weeks after the work is carried out. In addition, its method of rendering is so primitive the queries arise more often than not. The delay in settlement, due to both these causes, may be a reason why this concern's rates tend to. be uncompetitive. Frequently, an invoice which is submitted very late is settled more or less under protest, because the recipient cannot check it entirely to his satisfaction. If there be any feeling of this kind, it is usually fatal to a continuance of business relations.
Where Should invoices be Sent ?
It is of fundamental importance to send the invoice to the correct address. Often invoices are not checked in the shipping or forwarding departments of the customer, but in his accounts department, which is probably at some different address. It is worth while to ascertain where the customer wishes the invoice to be sent. This will avoid delays and requests for copies.
The invoice should bear the actual date of rendering, but, alongside each entry, the date when the event referred to did in fact take place should be recorded. Much confusion can be caused by giving inadequate information regarding dates.
Another important requirement is a full description of the goods carried. The use of some generic term should be avoided. It is not much help to a chediug clerk to see on an invoice that a load of soap was carried, when his company manufactures nothing but soap, in perhaps a dozen or more different brands. In such a case, the brand (correctly spelt) and the quantities carried should be named.
Most concerns attempt to allocate carriage charges between the actual product or products in which they deal, and plant; machinery or other items which may be
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occasionally carried. To quote in 'full the information known to the contractor regarding the character of the load is, therefore, of great assistance to the checker.
• Many hauliers attach the consignment note to the invoice, and for the checking clerk this is undoubtedly the best system. If, for some reason. however, this system be not applied, the contractor should remember that the checking clerk will probably be referring either to a copy of the consignment note, or to a record prepared from it. He cannot do better, therefore, than transpose on to his invoice the full information shown on the consignment note.
If, as a regular practice, the consignment note be attached to the invoice, the importance of preserving it in fair condition should be impressed upon the drivers. The checking clerk does not want to be given a fairly straight hint as to the composition of the driver's lunch. nor is he necessarily reassured about the condition of the vehicles by seeing the amount of oil and grease which is apparently used during a journey. In certain concerns which have adopted mechanical invoicing methods, there is a growing practice of showing only reference numbers. or consignment-note serial numbers, but this is a retrograde step.
In giving particulars of the journey, one should never omit to name the picking-up and• delivery points. ,Frequently the customer has more than one factory or depot, at one or both ends of the journey, so that it is not always enough to name only the town. More precise information as to the address is required. It is not unusual for a checking clerk to follow up a query about a load which he cannot trace, and after a lot of wasted effort to discover that he has been looking for it in the wrong place.
The gross weight of the load, in tons, hundredweights, quarters and pounds. should be shown. Some contractors charge on the capacity of the vehicle, as distinct from the load carried. Whatever may be the rights or wrongs of this practice, hauliers should always quote the consignment-note weight, adding "charged as—tons," otherwise the checking clerk will almost certainly -be unable to identify the load.
Tonnage Rate Should be Shown
The rate per ton for the load should also be set out. If there be more than one rate applicable to different parts of the load, the separate tonnages for the different parts should be stated, with the rates applicable to each. If there be a number of loads invoiced on the same account, for the same journeys, with different rates because of variations in the sizes of the loads, the cause of the differences should be explained.
It is surprising how many mathematical errors creep into transport invoices; consequently it is important to check the extensions of the calculations, and the additions, before sending off accounts.
Invoices must not be allowed to cover too long a period or too many loads. If this rule be not observed, it will be found•that payment ,of a substantial sum is being withheld, when there is. perhaps, only a minor query on one particular item. A separate invoice for every load is the ideal, but the haulier will have to decide for himself whether the additional overheads which this practice undoubtedly causes, justify the benefits of more prompt settlement. He need not deceive himself, however, that a checking clerk will deduct from an invoice those items which are in question, and pay the rest. It simply isn't done!
Where charges are based on time.. and not on tonnage, special care should be taken to give full details. If there be regular business on such terms, it is worth 136 while for the contractor and his customer to get together and devise a form that will give both parties the information they require, and can be prepared daily or weekly,. If one copy be sent to the haulier, to form the basis of his invoice, and the other to the customer's accounts department, to he used in checking the account when it is received, much time will be saved.
Special attention should be paid to overtime charges, because a checking clerk cannot always understand how they are arrived at. Some contractors charge overtime by reference to the excess hours over a whole week, and others on excess hours per day. Somewhere in the haulier's office the exact detail must be worked out, and it should be shown on the invoice.
If there be more than one vehicle employed on a time basis, each should be dealt with separately.
Where Rates Vary
Where the haulier has a scale of minimum charges for small lots, with complicated additions for this and that blossoming forth into a tonnage rate at a certain weight, it would be a kindness to his customers' staffs if he would supply them with a copy of this scale, with some explanation on how to read it. Senior wranglers would be hard pressed to sort out some of the calculations which arise in such circumstances, because the results are nearly always recorded with a fine disregard for the detailed steps in the chain, and with a commendable, but usually unjustified, confidence in the ability of the customer's clerk to follow them.
A haulier is well advised to render a statement at the end of every month, showing the balance outstanding at the beginning of the month, listing the individual invoice values submitted during the month, and showing the total balance outstanding at the end of the month. It is the statement which, as it were, brings the customer's accounts department to attention if it has lost an invoice or is " sitting " on it. The statement is usually seen by someone in authority, who, if there be any old outstanding balance, will start to ask questions of the accounts department. The statement serves to keep the record clear between the two parties, and prevents misunderstandings.
All that has been said is of a general character. Particular circumstances call for particular treatment, and it is in his own interest for a contractor to keep a watchful eye on his invoicing methods, and to be willing to amend them to meet the requirements of individual cases. He should try to put himself in the position of his customer, or. more particularly, in the position of the checking clerk handling the invoice. He should remember that what may be obvious to himself may not be so obvious to a clerk who never saw the load.
Much of what has been suggested may seem to the haulier to be excessive pandering to the customer. Theiontractor may feel that the customer might organize his internal system to allow invoices to be checked with greater ease, and with fewer demands upon the haulier for such detail. This may be,. and frequently is, a justifiable complaint. Nevertheless, it is still good business to give the customer what he wants and, if he expresses a wish for an invoice tied up with pink ribbon, it does no harm to comply!
Every haulier would do well to penetrate into the affices of his best customers, to meet the clerk who checks his invoices. Once the clerk has met him or his representative, he will be much More inclined to settle queries as they arise, by telephoning, all of which speeds up .settlement, eliminates letter writing, and preserves that personal element which is the secret of successful business relationships.