Getting paid and keeping track

You do not need software to start. You need three things: a price sheet, a text invoice, and a notebook. (If you are using Clinic Tools, it does all three — see below.)

The price sheet

One page. Your three services, what each includes, and the price. Give it to customers so they know exactly what they are buying.

[Service A name] — $[amount] Includes: [what exactly]. Best for: [weekly, small jobs].

[Service B name] — $[amount] Includes: everything in A plus [what]. Best for: [monthly, bigger jobs].

[Service C name] — $[amount] Includes: [the full job]. Best for: [move-outs, first visits].

The text invoice

Send this by text when the job is done. Copy it once, save it, and change the brackets each time.

Hi [name], thank you for hiring [business name] today. Here is your receipt: Service: [name] · Date: [date] · Total: $[amount]. You can pay by Zelle ([your phone]), Venmo (@[handle]), or cash. Thank you — [your name]

A receipt makes you look like a business. It also makes people pay faster.

Getting the money

• Set up Zelle or Venmo on your phone before the first job. Cash is fine, but many people do not carry it.
• If you can, keep business money separate from family money — a second account, or at least a separate envelope and a line in the notebook. You will thank yourself in April.
• Never work a second job for someone who has not paid for the first.

The notebook

Every job, one line: date · customer · phone · service · amount · paid?

A cheap notebook or a Google Sheet. It does not matter which. What matters is that every dollar is written down. This is how you know if the business is working, it is what you will need for taxes, and it is proof you are a real business owner.

Save for taxes

You get paid the full amount. No one takes taxes out for you. Set aside 20 to 25 percent of every payment so it is there when you file. Read Business and immigration status for how that works with an ITIN.

Raising prices

When you are booked solid and turning people away, your price is too low. Raise it for new customers first. Your regulars can stay where they are for a while — they earned it.

Deposits and no-shows

For big jobs, jobs that need supplies bought ahead, or a date you hold for someone (a party, a move-out, a big order), ask for part of the price up front — many small businesses ask for a quarter to a half. Say it when you book: "I take a $[amount] deposit to hold the date. The rest is due when the job is done."

Decide now what happens if someone cancels late or is not there when you arrive, and tell customers before the first job: "If you need to cancel, please tell me a day ahead. If I come and can't get in, I charge $[amount] for the trip." A rule you said ahead of time is easy to keep. A rule you make up on the spot starts an argument.

If you have Clinic Tools

Clinic Tools does the price sheet, the invoice and the notebook for you:

• Settings → Your price list is your price sheet. Invoices and your website use the same list.
• Invoices → New invoice builds the receipt and gives you a link to text. A discount is a line with a minus amount.
• Took a deposit or a partial payment? Open the invoice and use Record a payment. It shows what is still owed.
• Not sure of the final price? Send as an estimate. When they say yes, it becomes the invoice.
• Paid in cash with no invoice, like a market sale? Money → Add money in.
• Money shows what came in, what went out, and how much to set aside for taxes.

This week

• Zelle or Venmo is set up on my phone.
• My price sheet is one page and I can hand it or text it to a customer.
• The text invoice is saved on my phone, ready to send.
• I have a notebook or sheet and every job so far is written in it.
• I set aside 20 to 25 percent of what I was paid this week.