Set up and send automatic emails for new invoices

You can configure FreeAgent to send an automatic email to accompany the new invoices you send to customers. This article explains how to set this email up in FreeAgent.

Begin by selecting 'Settings' from the drop-down menu in the top-right corner and then selecting 'Email Templates'.

Select the 'New Invoice' tab.

Build your content

Use the 'Email tags' listed on the right to build the content for the 'To', 'Subject' and 'Content' boxes. You can also add a payment button to your invoice emails.

Where the invoice email should be sent from

Select the email address you would like the invoice email to be sent from in the ‘From’ drop-down menu. The From email can be sent from any user who has been set up in FreeAgent as long as their email address is verified. If you would like a copy of the invoice email to be sent to the sender, select the ‘Email a copy to Sender’ tick box.

Where the invoice email should be sent to

Enter either the ‘[contact_email]’, ‘[contact_billing_email]’ or ‘[billing_or_contact_email]’ tag in the ‘To’ field. This will insert the email address of the customer based on their contact or billing details in FreeAgent. The default setting is the ‘[contact_email]’ address tag.

Please note, if you put ‘[contact_billing_email],[contact_email]’ in the ‘To’ field, the email will be sent to the email address entered in the [contact_billing_email] field and the [contact_email] field. If the contact has both a [contact_billing_email] and a [contact_email], it will be sent to both email addresses.

If you want to send the email to one address or the other, use the [billing_or_contact_email] tag. This will send the email to the [contact_billing_email] if there is one, and only send to the [contact_email] if there isn't a [contact_billing_email].

What the subject line and email message should be

By default, the email ‘Subject’ field includes the ‘[reference]’ tag, which means it will include the invoice reference number. You can change this if you wish.

What the content should be

The main body of the email is captured in the ‘Content’ section. Default sample text is provided and we have also included your FreeAgent referral link with a tag that will use your own specific referral code as part of this sample text.

You can edit or replace this text and use the email tags to customise the email for each customer. Find out how to style your Invoice and Estimate emails.

Adding a payment button to your invoice emails

If you would like to add a payment button to your invoice emails, select the checkbox next to 'Include online payment button below content'. You can also add a payment link at the bottom of the invoice PDF.

What attachments the invoice email should include

The invoice that you're sending the customer will be attached to that email as a PDF.

To attach other files to the invoice email, select ‘Attach Files’, then select a file from your Files in FreeAgent or upload a file from your computer. All attached files will be included in all invoice emails.

Please note, attachments over 7MB will be compressed into a zip file and a download link will be included in the body of the email. After 120 days the download link will expire.

Once you're happy with the New Invoice email, select 'Save New Invoice Template'.

Sending an automatic email using the template

Once you’ve created the new invoice email template, you’ll be able to use it when you create a new invoice or edit an existing ‘draft’ invoice in FreeAgent.

Begin by navigating to the ‘Invoice Emails’ section of the invoice. Next, select the ‘Email this invoice automatically' check box. You can choose to email the invoice using the default template or with a custom email. Once all the details of the invoice are complete, select ‘Create new invoice’ or ‘Save changes’.

If you’ve set default options for the customer you’re invoicing, this option will be updated automatically.

Once the invoice is ready, start the invoice email sequence by selecting the button at the top of the invoice. Please note that you can't send a new invoice email for an invoice with a date in the past.

If the invoice date is today's date, select 'Send Now'.

If the invoice date is in the future, select 'Schedule to Send'.

FreeAgent will then automatically email the invoice to your customer using the template you set up.

Reviewing which invoices will be sent automatically

Navigate to the ‘Work’ tab at the top of the screen and select ‘Invoicing’ from the drop-down menu.

Next, select 'Scheduled to email' from the drop-down menu.

Additional automatic emails

If you need to remind a customer to pay, there is another type of automatic invoice email that you can set up to do this, and you can also set up an automatic thank-you email to go to customers who have paid you.