10 Essential Electrical Invoice Tips | Free Template

Make invoicing easy with an Electrical invoice template your techs will love

Electricians perform dangerous jobs every day, but always with a safety-first mentality to protect the homeowner and themselves. While highly skilled in the technical aspect of the job, the lights might flicker for some electrical technicians when it comes to knowing how to properly fill out an electrician invoice or price a job.

Some service technicians are simply used to estimating prices on the fly, or writing their electrical invoices the old-fashioned way, using pen and paper. Give them an electrical problem to solve or a meter service to install, it’s no big deal. But show them an electrical contractor invoice template on a mobile tablet, and their confidence might fade.

Build your techs’ digital confidence by teaching them how to use electrical invoicing software for better communication and a more polished sales presentation. Combining your team’s extensive knowledge about home electrical systems and safety with the right technology—software capable of showing customers good-better-best options in an electrical invoice template—keeps everyone grounded and on a direct current for future growth. 

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An electrical invoice should clearly spell out any services, repairs or installations your electrical company provides, how much the customer owes and your payment terms. If your electrical techs simply fix the reported problem, bill the customer and move on to the next job without explaining the work performed or the invoice, your company could be missing opportunities. Instead, make your invoice a conduit for future work that could bring in much more profit than a one-time electrical service call.

Do your electricians conduct an electrical hazard evaluation on every job? Do they inspect the home’s wiring and electrical panel to make sure everything is up to code? Do they offer customers a membership agreement, so they no longer need to worry about their home’s electrical safety? 

By focusing on safety and educating customers on good, better and best options for electrical equipment repair and replacement, your service company builds trust and, ultimately, a list of repeat customers.

Electrical invoicing software helps businesses grow

When a homeowner reports a simple electrical problem, they usually just want you to fix it and send them a bill. 

That’s fine, says Ron Lutwiller, chief operating officer at The Roby Family of Companies in Charlotte, N.C., but an electrician who only fixes the reported problem and ignores key safety issues may be short-circuiting the customer.

“If it’s not a problem, we’re not repairing it,” Lutwiller says, but his technicians put safety first by performing a hazard evaluation on every service call. Customers appreciate knowing if their home’s electrical system needs to be updated, and a safety inspection gives them peace of mind.

That extra effort for every customer also opens opportunities for Roby’s techs to upsell products and services, and clearly communicate the benefits of each option as they present an electrical invoice to the homeowner. 

Lutwiller trains Roby’s techs to create electrical invoices using ServiceTitan software, giving them touch-screen ease to effortlessly present options, get approvals, and accept payments in the field, in the office, or online.

“It has been easier for the field technicians than office personnel,” Lutwiller says of his team’s transition to the ServiceTitan software. “I’m still amazed at how quickly they picked it up. It’s actually been a little refreshing.”

Spark interest in the idea of providing stellar electrical service and making sales by following these steps: 

1. Email electrical contractor invoices directly to the customer

Generating a digital invoice for electrical work before ever leaving the job site is the best way to get paid quickly and easily. A mobile app with professional product photos and detailed cost breakdowns also allows your techs to personalize customer service by clearly explaining the work completed and discuss recommendations for electrical safety upgrades. Give your customers a personal touch, and gain a repeat customer for life. 

2. Don’t email or text customers without asking first

Always ask your electrical customers for permission before communicating by email and text. Even though digital communication seems commonplace in today’s on-demand world, it’s just a courteous thing to do. Easily start the conversation by asking whether the customer would like to receive appointment reminders via text or a text alert to let them know exactly when their electrician is scheduled to arrive. When the job is complete, the tech can email them a link and customers can instantly pay open invoices online.

3. Give your techs an easy-to-use electrician invoice template

Your company’s electricians often learn by doing, so give them a good electrical invoice example to go by. An electrical work invoice template should clearly answer the following questions:

• What payment methods do you accept? Checks, credit cards and/or cash?

• What are your billing terms? Do you require a deposit before work begins?

• Are you set up to receive online payment? If so, did you include the correct link?

• Does your company offer financing plans?

• Does the invoice clearly show the amount due and due date?

• Will the customer accrue late fees, and what are the penalty terms?

• Is the job itemized, clearly outlining the service or repair, all materials and labor?

• Is your company’s contact information — name, physical address, email and phone number — easy to find on the invoice? 

4. Don’t make it too difficult for your techs to process an electrical invoice in the field

Following Roby’s example, train all your techs to use the same process for completing an electrical invoice by outlining the specific details you want included. Explain what information you want recorded on every invoice, and make it easy by using a mobile app that lets your techs simply click through the various options. 

With ServiceTitan’s electrical invoicing software, your techs can use their phones or tablets to photograph checks, cash or credit cards physically in the field and post payments automatically. That means fewer trips to the bank and no more lost checks.

5. Keep customers’ service history, contact info and preferred payment method on file

Knowing a customer’s name, their recent service history and how they prefer to pay helps to personalize the electrical service experience, whether it’s a routine call to fix a ceiling fan or a more serious electrical safety issue. A home services app keeps organized maintenance records for every customer at your fingertips.

6. Don’t send your electrical invoice to the wrong client

Too many clients and not enough electricians to go around? It’s a problem for many electrical contractors trying to meet high customer demand, in light of the recent trade worker shortage. Protect your company’s client list from quickly spiraling out of control by organizing it with a software solution and eliminate human error from the equation. If your tech or CSR sends an electrical work order invoice to the wrong client, how are you ever going to get paid?

7. Follow up on unpaid electrical invoices 

Everyone likes to get paid for a job well done. Tracking down unpaid invoices every month takes time away from other work, so lessen the load on your office staff by automating the process with digital invoicing. By automatically notifying the customer by text or email and making it easy to collect payments, you’ll likely improve operational efficiency and increase your bottom line.

8. Prepare service techs to accept all kinds of payments

Most successful home services companies accept payment in any form, and the easier for the customer the better. Some customers only want to pay with cash, while others prefer to use a credit card for larger electrical jobs. You can accommodate both by using a mobile home services app that allows your workers to process invoices and credit cards while in the field, and photograph any cash they receive for the job. With ServiceTitan, you can even process refunds directly through the app and avoid the hassle of third-party processing and invoice adjustments.

9. Keep track of invoices, service contracts and membership agreements

As your business grows, so do the number of clients and records documenting their home’s electrical systems and services. To gain repeat customers, it’s important to keep a well-organized filing system so your CSRs and electricians can easily access a customer’s latest invoice, a past service contract or ongoing membership agreement. It’s the kind of personalized shopping experience customers expect.

10. Don’t forget to offer a service contract or membership agreement as part of your electrician invoice

Train your techs to easily offer good-better-and-best options in a professional format when creating a customer’s invoice. With the right visual presentation on a digital marketing platform such as ServiceTitan, they can also sell the value of an electrical service contract or membership agreement for future work or priority service when the power goes out. Homeowners tend to remember electricians who are helpful and don’t mind educating them about their home electrical systems.