Invoicing Software for Marketing Agencies
How marketing agencies can bill clients with Billed: monthly retainers on recurring invoices, hourly work from tracked time, campaign fees on a payment schedule, ad spend and management fees on their own lines, and card, PayPal or check payments recorded against each invoice.
Key Takeaways
- Put a monthly retainer on a recurring invoice that's sent automatically or saved as a draft for you to check.
- Bill hourly work from tracked time: in an hourly rate project, "Billed tracks the charge for each task as you log it" (Billed's time tracking page).
- Show ad spend you pay for a client and your management fee as separate lines, so the client can check them against the platform's own figures.
- Send an estimate for work outside the retainer, and turn it into an invoice after the client approves it.
Retainers, hourly work and campaign fees in Billed
Monthly retainers. Billed's recurring invoices page says: "Establish a stable cash flow with retainers. Negotiating fixed prices and sending recurring invoices makes it easier for you to forecast your income and upcoming workload." Billed's invoice software page says you set up a recurring profile once and "Choose the billing frequency (daily, weekly, monthly or yearly) and how many invoices to send, or keep sending until you stop." Its FAQ adds: "You can choose to send them automatically or save them as drafts to check first."
Hourly work. Billed's time tracking page says: "Create an hourly rate project, set its hourly rate, and Billed tracks the charge for each task as you log it. From the project dashboard you can invoice one task or several at once." Set up a project for a client's hourly work, such as strategy or reporting, and log each piece as a task.
Campaign fees. For a fixed campaign fee paid in stages, Billed's help center says "A payment schedule lets you add a payment plan to the invoices." The same article says to "Choose a suitable option among percentage or flat amount" and "Fill out the payment amount and due date of each payment." Or invoice each stage on its own when it's delivered.
Worked example: one client's invoices for a month
These are sample figures, not suggested rates. An agency bills one client three ways in March.
Retainer: the client's monthly recurring invoice for 6,000.00, covering the social media and content work in the contract.
Paid media: the agency paid 12,400.00 of ad spend for the client in March, and the contract sets a 15% management fee on spend. The invoice has two lines: ad spend at cost, 12,400.00, and the management fee, 1,860.00. The total is 14,260.00.
Extra work: the client asked for a landing page outside the retainer. The agency sent an estimate for 1,500.00, the client approved it online, and the agency converted it to an invoice.
Across the three invoices, the client is billed 21,760.00 for March. The sample leaves out sales tax; whether a service is taxable depends on where you work, so check with your state.
Ad spend, vendor costs and extra work
If your contract has you pay the ad platforms or other vendors for a client, put each cost on the invoice as its own line, named for the platform or vendor and the period, and put your management fee on a separate line. Billed's help center says: "Click 'Add a Line Item' and fill this section to charge against new items and services." The client can then check the spend against the platform's own report.
For work outside the retainer, send an estimate first. Billed's features page says "your clients can approve or reject your estimates online" and that you can "Convert your estimate to invoice with a single click after getting approval from your client."
In the US, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (page last modified August 27, 2026) says "Advertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services." How you bill that work, and whether your fee is a retainer, an hourly rate or a share of spend, is set by your contract with each client.
Reports, questions and payment
Billed's invoice software page says you can "Add files to your invoices and estimates." Attach the month's report to the retainer invoice so the client sees the work with the bill. If the client has a question about a charge, the same page describes invoice chat: "Talk to your client about an invoice in one place, without leaving your dashboard."
Billed's invoice software page says: "Connect Stripe and each invoice gets a pay button for card payments, or connect PayPal to add a PayPal option." It also says: "When a client pays by check or cash, record it as an offline payment so all your income is in one place." and "After a client pays, you can send them a payment receipt." Billed's help center says you turn on payment reminders on the invoice, and "You can set a schedule of payment reminders before and after the invoice's due date."
Your team's time
Billed's time tracking page says: "Invite teammates, accountants and contractors to your Billed account and grant them permissions, so the whole team tracks its time in one place." The same page says "Billed breaks your time down by day and by week, so a missing entry is easy to spot before you bill."
Challenges Marketing Agencies Businesses Face
Agency fees and ad spend lumped into one line the client can't check against the platform
Requests outside the retainer done without an agreed price
Monthly retainer invoices sent late because someone has to remember them
Reports sent separately from the invoice they explain
Tasks and the Billed feature for each
| You bill | In Billed |
|---|---|
| Monthly retainer | Recurring invoice |
| Hourly work | Hourly rate project |
| Staged campaign fee | Payment schedule |
| Work outside the retainer | Estimate, then invoice |
Invoicing for Marketing Agencies
Recurring retainer invoices
Bill a monthly retainer with a recurring invoice, and choose whether each one is sent automatically or saved as a draft to check first.
Related Invoice Templates
Invoice templates related to this page.
Related Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
When this isn't for you
If your project management software already invoices retainers, hourly work and campaign fees the way your clients expect, you can keep billing there.
Start Invoicing With Billed
Set up your account and send your first invoice with Billed.