Client charges and discounts on estimates

Automatically generate/create additional charges or discounts to be applied to client estimates based on defined parameters

Let’s say for example your agency agreed to provide a client with a 10% discount on creative fees. Of course you could simply set up client specific billable rates which reflect that discount, but maybe you would prefer to show both elements on the estimate to the client, and subsequently on invoices:

• The default/ standard rate
• A separate line which displays the amount of discount your agency is giving the client

That may then be useful for you to be able to then report on the total amount of discounts given to a client, or to facilitate posting discounts to a separate line on your P&L to measure the value of discounts allowed to your clients.

Another use of this function might be a set charge – perhaps an additional fee that should be charged to the client for a specific service, maybe a 15% handling fee for printing. The function works the same for both scenarios – set it as a negative for discounts, positive for additional charges.

Steps

1. Create a task type for the ‘Discount’ if required, but if you already have a task type that the discount should be applied to you can just use that existing task type
2. If you want the discount to be posted to a specific GL account – assign that as you normally would under GL accounts / posting GL accounts
3. Open the client that the discount/charge should apply to
   1. Click the Billable Rates link
   2. Click the new link ‘Client Charges & Discounts’
   3. Add a new record, assign the task type that the discount charge should be assigned to (e.g. the ‘Discount’ task type we referred to above
   4. Enter the description that should appear on the estimate/invoice – e.g. ‘10% discount on creative fees as agreed’
   5. Select ‘Discount’ (for a negative amount) or ‘Charge’ for a positive amount/charge)
   6. Enter the percentage of the discount/charge – e.g. 10%
   7. Select the ‘Applies to charge type’ – for example if the discount should only be applied to time (fee) charges – select ‘Time’
   8. If you want the discount/charge to be calculated based on all charges to the client – you’re done, but let’s say you only want the discount to apply to one for more specific task types (e.g. only creative services task types) – then click the ‘select for task types’ link – then select the task types that this charge/discount should be based on/driven by