Introduction
Today, life happens in text messages. We use texts to communicate with family and loved ones, keep up with friends and coworkers, and send photos, emojis, and other media to almost everyone. Importantly, many also use SMS text messages to conduct business.
With so much happening through texts, it would only make sense for small businesses to get paid through text messages as well. This article discusses some of the advantages of using an invoicing app like Finli that supports invoicing via SMS—especially for businesses that run on texts.
Whether you’re a dog walker, a lawn care provider, a tutor, or a life coach, virtually everyone texts. Why not also use text messages to receive payments?
Why SMS?
Text messages are more reliable. People read virtually all their text messages but only open one out of every five emails. Who’s to say that the email to your client requesting payment will be one of the lucky messages that reaches its intended target? To make matters worse, emails can also be filtered out through a recipient’s spam blocker. Meanwhile, text messages have a staggering 98% open rate. This increased reliability results in more payments submitted accurately and on time.
Texts are also more familiar. Another reason to use SMS for invoicing and billing is that staying within an established channel of communication with a client is typically felt as reassuring. Rather than take additional time to start up a new thread in an email, sending a payment request via text continues a process that has already been started.
How to Send an Invoice with a Text
Finli makes texting your next invoice a breeze. Finli is a complete Payment Management System that lets you invoice clients digitally and through the channel of your choice. Using the Finli app, you can create an invoice and then use a Pay By Link to bill your client. Pay By Link is a URL that you can send out to your client with a message asking them to pay by tapping the link.
Finli takes the guesswork out of the digital payment process. Peer-to-peer apps typically require usernames that your clients can easily mistake by mistyping a single character. Many have heard stories of misdirected payments and related problems with peer-to-peer apps. Such issues can have significant financial consequences and drain your customers’ trust and patience.
Game-Changing Texts
As a complete Payment Management System, Finli makes paying invoices easy and intuitive. After all, part of the appeal of text messaging is its casualness. Requiring your customers to log on to their email or mail a check with a filled-out printed form can feel like a disruption of the rapport you’ve established with your clients.
Finli makes SMS invoicing simple and efficient. Rather than breaking from your trusted customer SMS channel, you can simply use the same channel to send invoices. As a result, you can expect more reliable payments, faster turnaround times, and more trusting client relationships. These factors are sure to make SMS digital invoicing a game-changer for small businesses like yours.
Need help getting started? Finli was founded to help small businesses instantly invoice, collect immediate payments, and more seamlessly handle their accounts receivable. Sign up for a free trial here!
