Choosing the best invoice design has a great deal to do with what you want out of an invoice and what kind of business you are operating. You should choose a design that is clear and concise to adequately convey the information you are presenting on the invoice. If you are in an artistic field, then you may also want to create an invoice with a certain amount of artistic flair, but such design should not get in the way of functionality. Invoice design does not have to be complicated, but taking care to do it properly can certainly save you a fair amount of trouble later on.
One of the most important things to consider with invoice design is the purpose of an invoice. You are sending someone a bill for goods or services you have provided. An invoice is a written business transaction, so be sure whatever design you choose is professional and effectively conveys the business being performed. Your name, the name of your company, address, phone number, and email should all be clearly visible and printed on the invoice. The company you are billing, including address and phone number, as well as the name of the person in charge of handling the invoices should also be included on the invoice.
You should also ensure that you have plenty of space to provide detailed breakdowns of what is being billed on the invoice. Leave room for tax if necessary, and include a section both for individual fees and the final total at the bottom. Your invoice design should allow you enough room to describe each item being billed, so your client can easily read and see what he or she is paying for.
It can also be beneficial to include how you want payment to be made. Specify if you would prefer a check or other payment form and to whom the check should be made out. You may also want to include a numbering system as part of your invoice design, so you can easily track, recall, and reference individual invoices by number rather than an arbitrary ordering system.
Flashy or artistic invoice design should be avoided for most businesses. If, however, you work in an artistic field, then you may want to include some flair and color in your design. This can be as simple as including a colorful logo, or as complex as designing an invoice to reflect a particular aspect of your business or element of design. If, for example, you own a vintage clothing store, you may want to create an invoice that has a similarly vintage nature or resembles an old telegraph message.