Running a small business means wearing a dozen hats at once. You’re the CEO, the accountant, the customer service rep, and the marketing department—sometimes all before lunch. But here’s the thing: the data you need to make smarter decisions is already flowing through your business every single day. The challenge isn’t gathering information. It’s actually seeing it clearly enough to act on it.
Finli’s digital back office platform captures valuable data at every customer touchpoint—from the moment you send a quote to the second a payment hits your bank account. This guide walks you through how to turn that raw information into actionable insights that help you manage cash flow, understand your customers better, and run your operation more efficiently.
Data Available in Finli
Every invoice you send, every payment you collect, and every customer interaction generates data points that tell a story about your business. Finli’s dashboard brings this information together in one place, giving you visibility without requiring a finance degree to understand it.
Key data captured in Finli includes:
- Transaction details: Payment amounts, dates, methods (ACH or credit card), and processing status
- Customer information: Contact details, payment history, communication preferences, and stored documents
- Invoice and quote history: Sent dates, due dates, viewed status, paid status, and outstanding balances
- Inventory levels: Product quantities, restock alerts, and pricing information
- Payment behaviour patterns: Which customers pay on time, who needs reminders, and who’s set up for Autopay
Cash Flow Visibility and Financial Health
For most small business owners, understanding your cash position isn’t optional—it’s survival. Finli’s dashboard gives you real-time visibility into incoming payments, outstanding invoices, and your overall accounts receivable without spreadsheets or manual tracking.
Key Cash Flow Metrics
| Metric | What It Tells You | How Finli Helps |
| Outstanding Invoices | Total money owed to you and when it’s due | Track all unpaid invoices in one view with due date sorting |
| Invoice Aging | Which invoices are overdue and by how long | Automatic email and SMS reminders at due date, 2 days past due, and 5 days past due |
| Payment Velocity | How quickly customers typically pay after invoicing | See when customers view invoices and track time from sent to paid |
| Recurring Revenue | Predictable income from subscriptions and repeat customers | Set up recurring invoices and Autopay for reliable monthly income |
The difference between chasing payments and managing cash flow comes down to visibility. When you can see at a glance which invoices are outstanding and who’s overdue, you can take action before small problems become big ones.
Customer Insights Through the Built-In CRM
Finli’s CRM isn’t a bolt-on feature—it’s woven into every part of the platform. Every customer you invoice automatically has a profile that tracks their complete history with your business.
What You Can See for Each Customer
- Complete invoice history: Every quote, invoice, and payment—all in one place
- Payment patterns: Do they pay immediately? Need multiple reminders? Prefer ACH or credit card?
- Document storage: Keep contracts, agreements, and important files attached to customer profiles
- Internal notes: Add private notes your team can see but customers can’t
- Communication preferences: Track whether they prefer email or SMS notifications
Turning Customer Data into Action
| Insight | What to Look For | Action to Take |
| Top customers by revenue | Sort by total paid to identify your highest-value relationships | Prioritise these customers for retention; consider loyalty incentives |
| Frequently late payers | Customers who consistently pay after reminders | Encourage Autopay setup; consider requiring deposits for future work |
| Autopay adoption | Which recurring customers aren’t on Autopay yet | Reach out to convert them—reduces late payments and admin work |
| Quote-to-invoice conversion | How many quotes turn into paid invoices | Review pricing or follow-up timing if conversion is low |
Operations: Streamlining Daily Workflows
Operational insights aren’t just about big-picture strategy. They’re about the daily friction points that eat into your time and profits.
Invoice and Payment Tracking
Finli’s dashboard shows you the status of every invoice at a glance. You can see when customers view your invoices, which payments are pending, and when funds will hit your account. Payments via ACH typically arrive within 2-4 business days after your customer pays.
Real-time notifications alert you the moment a payment comes through. No more refreshing your bank account or wondering if that invoice was paid. You’ll know immediately.
Inventory Management
If you sell physical products, Finli tracks inventory levels and notifies you when stock runs low. This prevents the two worst outcomes: over-ordering (tying up cash) and running out (losing sales).
Reducing Manual Work
Every hour you spend on administrative tasks is an hour not spent growing your business. Finli automates the repetitive stuff:
- Automatic payment reminders: Sent via email and SMS at issue date, due date, and follow-up intervals
- Recurring invoices: Set them once for regular customers and let Finli handle the rest
- Bulk invoicing: Send up to 50 identical invoices at once to different customers
- Receipt generation: Automatically created and available for download when payments complete
Connecting Finli Data with QuickBooks
Your payment data becomes even more powerful when combined with your broader financial picture. Finli’s QuickBooks integration syncs customers, invoices, and payments automatically—no double entry required.
What Syncs Automatically:
- Customers: New customers in Finli appear in QuickBooks; existing customers link by email address
- Invoices: Every invoice sent through Finli is recorded in QuickBooks
- Payments: When customers pay, QuickBooks updates automatically
This integration eliminates the reconciliation headaches that plague most small businesses. Your books stay current without extra effort, and you get a complete picture of your financial health by combining Finli’s receivables data with QuickBooks’ broader accounting capabilities.
Security and Fraud Protection
Business data isn’t just valuable—it’s sensitive. Finli protects your information and your customers’ data with multiple layers of security:
- SOC 2 compliance: Meets rigorous standards for data security, availability, and confidentiality
- 256-bit SSL encryption: All payment transactions and customer data are encrypted in transit
- Know Your Customer verification: Confirms customers are who they claim to be
- Always-active transaction monitoring: Continuous fraud detection protects against suspicious activity
Small businesses are increasingly targeted by invoicing fraud and synthetic identity fraud. Finli’s embedded fraud protection tools work automatically during normal operations—you get protection without needing separate security processes that slow down your day.
Start Making Better Decisions Today
The data you need to run a smarter business is already there. Finli brings it together in a way that actually makes sense for small business owners who don’t have dedicated finance teams or hours to spend on analysis.
With Finli, you get instant visibility into outstanding invoices and aging receivables, customer payment patterns and history, recurring revenue from Autopay and subscription customers, and real-time payment notifications the moment money hits your account. All of this syncs directly with QuickBooks, so your books stay current without the double entry.
Every feature we’ve covered—invoicing, CRM, inventory management, payment processing—comes included at $39/month with 0% ACH fees. That means the data insights you gain don’t come at the cost of transaction fees eating into your margins.
Ready to see what your business data can tell you? Get started at finli.com or reach out to our team at support@finli.com.
