I was thinking of getting phpmanager or modernbill for my billing software and help desk...

I was thinking to myself and i realized that, if i just use edgepanel (www.edgepanel.com) OR perldesk (www.perldesk.com) and a paypal button that they provide then I could practically get the same results for basically free...

Any reason that makes modernbill/phpmanager/perlbill so special?

And if all you can say is "it looks better" then thats just useless information to me because i know it looks better...

Thanks for tips and help

With ModernBILL/PerlBill/PhpManager, the clients get a place to login and see their invoices and also see when they need to pay next and for the most part also order extra options (webspace...ect)

The purpose is also to help you keep track of your clients. You could easily manage your clients via an Excel file if you wanted to but this gives you an Online Browser based solution. It is simply preference. I know many hosts like to use an Excel Database rather then an online solution.


I am sure there are many other advantages as well.

i see... So basically it just makes things easier?

Yes. IMO :D

eh...

it also looks more "prof" doesnt it ;)

Partially, it's because it looks more professional. Largely, though, it gives the clients access to more of their historical information including the ability to print out invoices for tax records (if you have any clients who host a business site with you).

Also, if you eventually use a third-party card processor like Paysystems or such (or even the gateways), it keeps your client records with you. That way, if you feel the need to move from one processor to another, you can do so by altering a few lines of code in the invoice viewing template. You don't have to download all of your client records, because you have them already.

Perlbill also recently added the ability to track advertising campaigns - for example, if you're listed in various hosting directories, you can track how many hits come from that domain, or even a specific URL, without having to look into your server logs. I don't know if ModernBill or phpManager have this capability, but it's something you can't do with Perldesk and Paypal.

It just centralises things and keeps them all together (client info, ordering, invoicing, helpdesk, advert tracking, revenue reporting). If you really are more comfortable working with another solution, then stick with that solution. It's all about finding what works best for you.

Originally posted by living_media
Partially, it's because it looks more professional. Largely, though, it gives the clients access to more of their historical information including the ability to print out invoices for tax records (if you have any clients who host a business site with you).

Also, if you eventually use a third-party card processor like Paysystems or such (or even the gateways), it keeps your client records with you. That way, if you feel the need to move from one processor to another, you can do so by altering a few lines of code in the invoice viewing template. You don't have to download all of your client records, because you have them already.

Perlbill also recently added the ability to track advertising campaigns - for example, if you're listed in various hosting directories, you can track how many hits come from that domain, or even a specific URL, without having to look into your server logs. I don't know if ModernBill or phpManager have this capability, but it's something you can't do with Perldesk and Paypal.

It just centralises things and keeps them all together (client info, ordering, invoicing, helpdesk, advert tracking, revenue reporting). If you really are more comfortable working with another solution, then stick with that solution. It's all about finding what works best for you.

thanks for the info :)
ill keep it in mind

Also consider your growth strategy. It is much easier to do research and select a good billing solution NOW when you are small, then when you are growing rapidly and have thousands of customers to track.

Try tracking thousands of customers manually in Excel and you will quickly discover why a good billing solution is helpful.

Also, a good solution will "plug in" to whatever billing service you use, making this part of your task much easier.

(Every tried to send monthly/quarterly/yearly invoices to several thousand customes?)

Cheers!

i see...
Well like i said ill keep it all in mind :)

I own ModernBill and a few other billing programs. Buit I recently went another route. QuickBooks Pro.

QuickBooks Pro does cost $299.00 but.. The built in Merchant Account featues are nice. $25.00 setup and $15.00 per month for the fees. If you decide to choose to accept Discover and AMEX, It cost $5.00 or so per month for Amex, I forget DISC's fees.

Anyway, With Quickbooks and thier merchant account through Wells Fargo, You can charge clients directly, Or let them login through the web to pay online. An extra $15.00 per month gives your clients thier own account center. You can also email invoices with pay now buttons that is nice for onetime services such as web design.

The best features is that it works with your existing online business checking account. No billing system here allows you to not only bill clients and have records but you can also keep track of your own bank account balances, do payroll if you have staff and so much more. I prefer Quickbooks over any billing system.

http://www.quickbooks.com

Just my thoughts.

ill check quickbooks out!

thanks

Does quickbooks offer recurring monthly billing to the customer's credit card?

I say develop your own :). Thats what we did, everything from scratch.. Really nice it tracks signups vs. deactivations and shows a month to month of recurring amounts etc. etc. keeps track of all of our servers and what domains are on them.. It even emails the customers after 2 CC failures.. I really think its worth the time if you know how to code or worth paying someone. I used to do it all by hand and then we made this and I sleep much easier.

hmm
anyway i can see your software and maybe consider purchasing it from you?

Sorry not for sale =(. Took us way too long to develop and its all personalized just for us.