Very stupid question re: Invoices

A question about : Very stupid question re: Invoices

Hiya all,

Did some work for someone as a one off which they have asked me to invoice them for which I have

They have told me they will be sorting payment this week

My question is ( as I do not use invoices normally ) are invoice payments instant like bank transfers are or do they tend to take a few days to go through once they have been settled

As I say silly question but just curious

Best answers:

• It is often a good idea not to seem to needy to customers or clients in business, so I understand why you might not want to ask the customer directly. But you could ask the customer what method they will be using to make the payment and then ask your own bank.
  BTW if you have just issued an invoice and the customer said that they will pay you in a week, then you have got a very good customer.
• An invoice is literally a piece of paper from you to state the amount of money they
  owe you and lists any terms and conditions. You could also put your bank sort code and your account number on this to save them asking for those details.
  Also state your name, address, date and email address
  The customer then puts the invoice in their system, someone verifies that they do indeed owe you
  this money and then (hopefully) they will send you a cheque or ask for your bank details if needed.
• It depends on the company you have done the work for , there is nothing stopping them paying you the day they received it . Some companys pay on 30 days , some on 45 some 90 , some only pay if and when they feel like it !
  You really need to ask them , If we have a new customer I will phone them to get the details of who makes the payment , have they received the invoice , is it ok and how and when do they normally pay .........without sounding like i am chasing payment .......thats another call lol
• An invoice is a bill. Aside from invoice number, date, address, what for etc you can put 'terms' on there (typically 30 days) and your bank transfer details.
  If you need the cash fast, you can even offer a discount for fast payment by transfer (eg 'discount of 5% if settled in full by bank transfer by ') which may encourage a speedier settlement
• Thanks for all the replies,
  I was not clear on my question sorry but its been answered on here really
  They already had my bank details was just not sure if invoice software made it slower if that makes sense?
  Me being stupid