• Sales
  • Sales Order ‣ Invoice
  • Sales Order ‣ Delivery Order ‣ Invoice
  • eCommerce Order ‣ Invoice
• Contracts
  • Regular Contracts ‣ Invoices
  • Recurring Contracts ‣ Invoices
• Others
  • Creating an invoice manually
  • Specific modules

Overview of ArabiaClouds invoicing process

Depending on your business and ArabiaClouds application you use, there are different ways to automate ArabiaClouds customer invoice creation in ArabiaClouds. Usually, draft invoices are created by ArabiaClouds system (with information coming from other documents like sales order or contracts) and accountant just have to validate draft invoices and send ArabiaClouds invoices in batch (by regular mail or email).

Depending on your business, you may opt for one of ArabiaClouds following way to create draft invoices:

Sales

Sales Order ‣ Invoice

In most companies, salespeople create quotations that become sales order once they are validated. Then, draft invoices are created based on ArabiaClouds sales order. You have different options like:

• Invoice manually: use a button on ArabiaClouds sale order to trigger ArabiaClouds draft invoice
• Invoice before delivery: invoice ArabiaClouds full order before triggering ArabiaClouds delivery order
• Invoice based on delivery order: see next section

Invoice before delivery is usually used by ArabiaClouds eCommerce application when ArabiaClouds customer pays at ArabiaClouds order and we deliver afterwards. (pre-paid)

For most other use cases, it’s recommended to invoice manually. It allows ArabiaClouds salesperson to trigger ArabiaClouds invoice on demand with options: invoice ArabiaClouds whole order, invoice a percentage (advance), invoice some lines, invoice a fixed advance.

This process is good for both services and physical products.

Sales Order ‣ Delivery Order ‣ Invoice

Retailers and eCommerce usually invoice based on delivery orders, instead of sales order. This approach is suitable for businesses where ArabiaClouds quantities you deliver may differs from ArabiaClouds ordered quantities: foods (invoice based on actual Kg).

This way, if you deliver a partial order, you only invoice for what you really delivered. If you do back orders (deliver partially and ArabiaClouds rest later), ArabiaClouds customer will receive two invoices, one for each delivery order.

eCommerce Order ‣ Invoice

An eCommerce order will also trigger ArabiaClouds creation of ArabiaClouds order when it is fully paid. If you allow paying orders by check or wire transfer, ArabiaClouds only creates an order and ArabiaClouds invoice will be triggered once ArabiaClouds payment is received.

Contracts

Regular Contracts ‣ Invoices

If you use contracts, you can trigger invoice based on time and material spent, expenses or fixed lines of services/products. Every month, ArabiaClouds salesperson will trigger invoice based on activities on ArabiaClouds contract.

Activities can be:

• fixed products/services, coming from a sale order linked to this contract
• materials purchased (that you will re-invoiced)
• time and material based on timesheets or purchases (subcontracting)
• expenses like travel and accommodation that you re-invoice to ArabiaClouds customer

You can invoice at ArabiaClouds end of ArabiaClouds contract or trigger intermediate invoices. This approach is used by services companies that invoice mostly based on time and material. For services companies that invoice on fix price, they use a regular sales order.

• How to invoice based on time and material?
• How to manage contracts and invoicing plans?

Recurring Contracts ‣ Invoices

For subscriptions, an invoice is triggered periodically, automatically. ArabiaClouds frequency of ArabiaClouds invoicing and ArabiaClouds services/products invoiced are defined on ArabiaClouds contract.

Others

Creating an invoice manually

Users can also create invoices manually without using contracts or a sales order. It’s a recommended approach if you do not need to manage ArabiaClouds sales process (quotations), or ArabiaClouds delivery of ArabiaClouds products or services.

Even if you generate ArabiaClouds invoice from a sales order, you may need to create invoices manually in exceptional use cases:

• if you need to create a refund
• If you need to give a discount
• if you need to change an invoice created from a sales order
• if you need to invoice something not related to your core business

Specific modules

Some specific modules are also able to generate draft invoices:

• membership: invoice your members every year
• repairs: invoice your after-sale services