Updated November 25, 2024
Automatic payment reminders are emails attached to payment plans that notify clients to pay an invoice. If you don’t set up any reminders, clients are not notified when a payment is due.
👋 Here’s a tip… To reduce the number of payment reminders you send, set up autopay.
In this article:
Add reminder emails to a payment plan
Go to Templates >> Payment Plans.
Choose the payment plan or click Create new template.
Click on an installment, and under Reminders, click Add reminder.
Customize the following:
Click Apply.
Complete steps 3-5 to create multiple reminders for each installment.
Send date
The timing for an automated payment reminder can be configured in two different ways: using a relative send date or a fixed send date.
The relative send date option uses the payment plan installment’s due date to determine when to send the reminder.
Relative send dates are most commonly used. See determining when a payment reminder will send below.
The fixed send date option sends the payment reminder on specified date and time in the future.
Fixed date reminders aren’t commonly used because these dates don’t automatically adjust with the passage of time. Do not use fixed send date reminders on a payment plan template, since a fixed date will eventually end up referring to a date in the past.
Determining when a payment reminder will send
When setting up a payment reminder using a relative send date, you can have the reminder automatically send out however many days, weeks, or months before the due date or after the due date of that installment.
You can also configure a payment reminder to send on the installment’s due date by setting the send date to 0 days before due date.
Let’s take a look at the sample invoice below, so we can see these settings in action.
First installment: due December 1st
With a reminder set to send 0 days before the due date, this payment reminder will send on December 1st if the installment isn’t yet paid.
Second installment: due December 15th
With a reminder set to send 1 week before the due date, this payment reminder will send on December 8th if the installment isn’t yet paid.
If your payment plan uses a due date with a relative trigger, keep in mind that the actual due date won’t be set until the conditions of that trigger are met. In turn, payment reminder send dates won’t be displayed until the due date is determined.
⚠️ Heads up! Once a payment plan with payment reminders has been applied to an invoice, those reminders will send according to their settings even if you haven’t yet sent the invoice to the client.
If your process involves setting up project invoices and payment plans ahead of time, double check your payment reminders to ensure there aren’t any reminders set to send before you intend to give the client access.
Reminder email
For the email that gets sent to the client, choose either Select an email or Write new canned email.
Select an email
Choose from an existing canned email template. To edit the default payment reminder email, go to Templates >> Canned Emails >> Edit Templates >> Payment Plan Reminder.
Write new canned email
Write a new email that will save in Templates >> Canned Emails.
Add smart fields to the reminder email
The default reminder email includes smart fields that initially look confusing but don't be alarmed!
Here's what the email looks like from the client's perspective:
What each smart field refers to:
{{scheduledPayment | paymentAmountDue : job.invoice.schedule : job.invoice}}Shows the amount the client must pay (example: $900.00)
Click Smart Field >> Payment Plan >> Amount Due
{{scheduledPayment | paymentDueDate : job}}Shows the due date that you set for the installment (example: February 21, 2021)
Click Smart Field >> Payment Plan >> Due Date
{{job | invoiceLink}}Adds a button with a link to pay the invoice
Click Smart Field >> Link >> Invoice Link
⛔ Heads up! Any smart fields under Smart Field >> Payment Plan can only be used in payment reminder emails.
FAQ
If the client pays off an installment, will the remaining reminders still send on that installment?
Nope! You can set as many reminders as you like — emails will not send once an invoice is paid in full.
How do I know if a reminder was sent?
If successful, reminders will say Sent in green text in the payment plan section in Projects >> Invoices. You will also find the sent reminder email in Projects >> Emails.
If unsuccessful, reminders will say Too late to send reminder in red text. Click on the installment to see why the reminder wasn’t sent. To send the reminder, click on the reminder to set a new date in the future.
Can you set reminders to send as many times as needed until an invoice is paid?
No. The only way to keep sending reminders is to add multiple reminders to the payment plan. To reduce the chances of unpaid invoices, require your clients to enroll in autopay.
I'm no longer going to finish a project and don't want any future reminders to send. How can I get them to stop?
If a client won't be paying their remaining balance, the best thing to do is to close their invoice. The invoice will zero out with an uncollectible balance and the remaining reminders will cancel.
Will my client still get payment reminders after I archive their project?
Emails may still go out even if you archive a project depending on whether you classified the project status as a lead or a job:
When a project with a lead status is archived, invoices are closed automatically and payment reminders won’t send.
When a project with a job status is archived, invoices remain open and payment reminders will continue to send. To stop email reminders, either close the invoice or delete the project.
Will editing a payment plan template update current projects that use that payment plan?
No. New edits to a payment plan template won’t affect any projects already containing that payment plan. You would need to edit the payment plan in each project.
Will editing a payment plan in a project change the payment plan template?
No. Any updates in individual projects don’t affect other payment plans.