- Farriers often forget to invoice for extra services or travel time. This leads to lost revenue.
- Tow and other workers manually typing invoices are wasting time.
- VoiceInvoice lets you create professional invoices by voice, right on the spot.
Last Tuesday, I was wrestling with a busted variable speed pump at Mrs. Davison’s place. Sun beating down, chlorine smell clinging to everything. Then, my phone rings – it's Jim, the farrier who shoes my wife's horse. He's venting about spending his Sunday nights doing paperwork. Sound familiar?
He was telling me about how he hates writing invoices. I get it. He’s out there dealing with horses all day. The last thing he wants to do is spend hours trying to remember every trim, every shoe, every mile he drove. He’s losing money because he’s forgetting stuff. Little stuff, maybe $10 here, $20 there. It adds up fast.
Honestly, the problem is this: memory-dependent billing sucks. You finish the job, walk away, and then try to remember all the details later. It's like trying to recall the chlorine levels from three pools ago. Forget it. You need to bill the barn *before* you leave, when it's fresh in your mind.
The Problem: "Friday Night Admin"
You know what’s worse than doing paperwork? Doing it twice. First, you scribble notes on a greasy pad. Then, you try to decipher those notes and type them into some clunky invoice app or worse, a free invoice template. Ever tried typing a 500-word estimate with dirt under your fingernails?
And here’s the kicker: these apps aren't designed for the way farriers actually work. They're designed for some corporate idea of how contractors *should* work. They don’t understand the realities of being on the road, dealing with unpredictable schedules, and trying to juggle multiple clients in a single day.
The real question is: Why are we still doing things this way? Why are we wasting hours every week on something that should take minutes?
Specific Pain Points
- Lost Revenue: Forgetting to bill for small services or extra travel time.
- Delayed Payments: Waiting until the end of the week to invoice, pushing payments back.
- Admin Overload: Spending hours on paperwork instead of growing your business.
- Unprofessional Look: Handwritten bills or texts don't inspire confidence.
The Solution: Bill On-Site, Instantly
The answer is simple: invoice on-site, immediately after the job. But how do you do that without adding more hassle? That’s where voice comes in.
Imagine this: You finish shoeing a horse. You tap a button on your phone and say, “Trimmed hooves, new shoes, travel fee, $125.” Boom. The app creates a professional invoice, ready to send. No typing, no scribbling, no wasted time.
Honestly? I was skeptical. Like, really skeptical. The last three apps I tried promised the moon and delivered a broken calculator that crashed every time I tried to add tax.
But then I found VoiceInvoice. It’s an AI-powered invoice generator that lets you create invoices by voice. It’s designed for people like Jim, the farrier, and people like me – guys who are out in the field all day, getting our hands dirty.
How It Works
- Talk: Tap the mic and say what you did.
- Review: The AI formats it into a professional invoice.
- Send: Text or email the PDF link to the client.
Pro Tip: Use the app’s business card scanner to instantly create client profiles. No more fumbling with contact info.
And here's the best part: it actually works. It understands trade lingo. It formats everything automatically. It even integrates with Stripe and Venmo, so you can get paid instantly.
Alternatives: What About the Other Guys?
Okay, let's be fair. There are other options out there. But between us, most of them fall short.
- Word/Excel Templates: They’re free. Templates are great, until you have to type on them with pool-chemical-stained hands. Want to just speak instead? VoiceInvoice is the voice-first alternative.
- Joist / Invoice Fly: Too rigid. They don’t let you edit a signed invoice for minor changes. VoiceInvoice gives you flexibility.
- Housecall Pro / Jobber: Way too bloated and expensive. We're talking $50-200/month. VoiceInvoice does the one thing that matters (invoicing) faster and cheaper.
- Invoice Simple: Don't even get me started on their “Bait and Switch” pricing and difficulty canceling. VoiceInvoice offers an honest, grandfathered price.
Pro Tip: Stop printing paper invoices. Save trees, save money, and look more professional by sending digital invoices.
Verdict: VoiceInvoice is a No-Brainer
Look, I’m not saying VoiceInvoice is perfect. No app is. But it’s the best solution I’ve found for invoicing on-site, quickly and easily. It’s simple to use, it’s affordable, and it actually saves me time and money.
Based on our user data, it's 4x faster than typing on a phone screen. Plus, it captures about 15% more revenue that would otherwise be lost to forgotten services.
VoiceInvoice offers a free plan (5 invoices per month). That’s more than enough to see if it works for you. And if you need more, the paid plan is only $15/month. That’s less than I spend on filter cartridges every month.
Stop wasting your weekends on paperwork. Start invoicing on-site and get paid faster. Give VoiceInvoice a try. You won’t regret it.
— Jake Sorensen, Pool Service Tech, Scottsdale, AZ. Former lifeguard turned pool maintenance business owner. Services 40 pools a week across the Valley. Invoices from the truck between stops.