Time track & Invoices.
Mintsauce (1004 pencils) | Tue, 2008-08-12 17:11I've been guestimating the time spent on projects for a while now - and usually under-guess since I'm in no mood to cheat my clients. Unfortunately doing this has also short changed me.
I've recently installed Slife, which is a great time tracker (Now FREE) - but still requires manual time-track to invoicing.
My invoices are done from PDF templates and are setup just like my estimates - based on an example I got from an Ogilvy employee. That's all great BUT it's such a pain doing invoices I find myself doing them in bunches once every two or three months, instead of regularly sending them out. In one word "notgud". (Yeah I know.. ;)
Today I stumbled upon (sorry, I wasn't actually using the product of the same name, it was a "Googledupon" actually) a product called Billings 2 by Marketcircle ($59). It seems to be a nice package BUT, I was hoping someone here has actually used it an will know more about it.
Alternatively what are you using for time tracking and billing? Is it time efficient, templatable and easy to use? Can it be used with multiple "currencies" and "rates". One of the problems I have is that I do work for clients both in South Africa and the USA. Since I live in the USA I need to charge local clients the going rate, otherwise I wouldn't be able to afford staying here. But since I still have my client base in South Africa I also need to bill them according to going rates in SA, which is not nearly what they are here in the US - for that reason the "multi currency", "multi rate" question.
The Construct Agency
Building Creative Brands for People
Commenting on this Forum topic is closed.
Good timely post for me. I'm currently investigating another such weapon--Streamtime, so if anyone out there has had any sort of experience with this new software, positive or negative, if you could share your thoughts on that one as well...
"Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible."
— Frank Zappa
"Art -- the one achievement of Man which has made the long trip up from all fours seem well advised." - James Thurber
I've used iBiz for billing and time tracking, its sister app iBank for budgeting and as a digital checkbook and Basecamp for project management since version one and/or launch.
Works for me because I suck at the business stuff. These apps allow me to fully-automate the process so I can do what I do.
Here's a link (on the iBiz site) that compares popular time-tracking and billing apps: http://www.iggsoftware.com/ibiz/compare.php
Terrell Thornhill
e-zign Design Group
I like it - from reading the website. I think I'll download it an give it a try. Thanks Terry.
For Project Management I use Project|Pier. It's an open source PHP/MySQL system that you install on your own webhost - similar in build to Drupal, and I think can be plugged in to a Drupal system. It's still only in V0.7 but looking very promising. (It's built on the 0.7.1 version of ActiveCollab which has since gone commercial.)
The Construct Agency
Building Creative Brands for People
I looked at several project management packages and decided that Basecamp is well-worth the monthly fee. Especially since It's in my opinion, one of the most intuitive offerings out there. Combine that ease-of-use (for my clients) with the fact that I don't have to keep it updated, troubleshoot if anything goes wrong, etc. and it was a no-brainer.
Terrell Thornhill
e-zign Design Group
When I remember to use it), OfficeTime is wonderful. It's cheap. I think I paid maybe $29 for it, if that, and IIRC, they offer a free 30-day trial. Believe me, I don't find it easy to count, fill in things, set p accounts and all that stuff and also be creative. This app was surprisingly easy for me to work with. It's more intuitive for the way creatives work than some other apps I've run into. I'm on a Mac, BTW.
Mara
Don't we all struggle with that. I've always been good with the sums... it's just that it's so tedious and boring. I'd much rather be holding my wacom pen.
The Construct Agency
Building Creative Brands for People
Billings is great for invoicing (and keeping track of those invoices), but I've had a hard time with their time tracking system.
I've been using Harvest (http://www.getharvest.com/) for a couple of years now and really like it. Its web based, so I can use it anywhere, and also have multiple users. It has an expense tracker and an invoicing system.
The downside is the price. $40/month
The BEST thing to do, not regarding price, would be to hire a part time business manager to come in once a week and take care of all the business stuff. Thats my next move anyway.
~
I had an accountant once who would just come in weekly, pick up all my paperwork, pay the bills and drop off the resulting stuff for me to file. I couldn't even get organized enough to prepare the paperwork for her weekly visits.
Then I had an in-office assistant half a day once a week. She stood next to my desk opening mail, telling me what to do with everything and stayed there until I did it. She was fabulous. I bought her a desk of her own, nice ergomonic chair, pretty lamp and other desk goodies, added her as a user on my network so she could bring in her laptop and get online with it, and she disappeared without a word. I never saw her again.I guess she didn't like ordering me around as much as I thought she did. Within a month, I was up to my neck in chaos again.
If you can find somebody who will work they way you do, rather than making you grind to a halt to accommodate THEIR way of doing things, I think that's really the best solution.
But you shouldn't listen to me. I priced a job at 7 hours that I've now spent 17 hours on, easily. Nat always says to make proposals more of an estimate, and to stop when the hours start adding up too high. Do you find that in practice, clients will accept this?
Mara
I don't give quotes. I give estimates.
These estimates serve as a contract and budget for the project.
iBiz allows me to track these estimates in real-time with the progress of the project and report daily (if necessary) as to the progress and expense.
Yeah... I hate surprises as much as my clients do.
Terrell Thornhill
e-zign Design Group
Yep, it's an estimate till the job is complete. Clients understand this if you tell them up front, they are even blase about it. When it gets hard is if you stick with your original estimate as if it were final and then try to change it later.
When you start getting close to your estimated time, inform the client that you are going to go over. Then they are in control and you don't get screwed on the deal at the same time.
----
Natobasso
"Powerpoint is not a design application"
----
Dirt and Rust
some of this comes down to *why* you're at 17 hrs instead of 7 hrs. did you underestimate how much it would take you to do something? did you make a mistake and have to redo something? did your scope change? scope creep is evil and must be paid for by the client? another reason for spelling things out carefully in a contract. when a client changes the scope on you, then the estimate/quote needs to change to reflect this.