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As a digital agency, offering a diverse range of services is key to meeting client needs and driving business growth. In this article, we'll delve into service management, covering everything from adding and categorizing services to assigning them to clients seamlessly. Whether you specialize in web design, SEO, or content marketing, Client Billing empowers you to optimize your service offerings and deliver exceptional value to your clients. Let's get started.
Tip
Before you go into managing your Client Billing, please make sure you've subscribed to and set up Client Billing to kickstart your journey. If you haven't already, you can check out our guide on How to Subscribe to and Set Up Client Billing to get started.
Ready to onboard clients? Check out our guide on How to Manage Clients in Client Billing for step-by-step instructions.
How to Manage Services in Client Billing
Here, we'll explore fundamental service management workflows in Client Billing. By mastering these processes, you can easily optimize your agency operations.
View Services
Log in to your Cloudways Platform using your email address and password.
Navigate to the left menu bar and choose Client Billing > Overview.
Next, switch to Services. Here, you will see all the existing services that you provide to your clients.
If you wish to review information on any particular service, e.g., total revenue, monthly recurring revenue, total assigned clients, and active or archived plans, you can select that Service.
Navigate to Plans to view and manage all the Active and Archived plans.
Add Services
To add services, first navigate to the Services section of Client Billing, as shown in this section. If you've reached your limit for adding services, you'll need to upgrade your Client Billing plan.
Under Services > Active, click Add Service.
Now, enter your Service Details:
Service Name: Enter the name of the service you offer.
Description: Provide a brief description of the service to help clients understand its purpose and scope.
Add Currency: Select the currency in which you'll offer this service. This allows you to cater to clients from different regions. Your account’s default currency is pre-selected, and you can add up to five additional currencies, including the default one.
Important
Please note that after creating the service, you won't be able to modify, add, or remove currencies later on.
Next, click Create Plans.
Here, you'll create different pricing plans to fully set up your service. At least one pricing plan is required to create a service. Now, enter your Plan Details:
Billing Cycle: Select the frequency at which you'll bill your clients: once, monthly, every 3 months, every 6 months, or yearly.
Pricing: Specify the pricing of the service according to the selected billing cycle and currencies.
To add a new plan to the same service, simply click Add Plan.
Once done adding all the plans, click Preview.
Here, you can review all the information and edit anything if needed. Once you have reviewed all the details, you can click Create Service.
Congratulations! You have successfully onboarded your client on Client Billing.
Assign Services to Clients
To assign services to clients, first navigate to the Clients section of Client Billing, as explained below.
On the Client Billing main screen, switch to Clients. Here, you will see all your existing clients, so choose your target client.
Next, switch to the Assigned Services tab and click Assign Service.
Next, input the following information:
Service: Select the service to be assigned to the client from the available options.
Plan: Choose the specific plan to be assigned to the client.
Billing Cycle: Defines the billing cycle for the selected plan, whether it's once, monthly, 3 months, 6 months, or yearly. This will be automatically populated.
Rate: Defines the rate or price associated with the selected plan. This will be automatically populated.
Unit: Specify the number of units of the service to be assigned to the client.
Amount: The amount field will be automatically populated based on the selected billing cycle, rate, and units, reflecting the total cost of the assigned service for the specified duration. This will be automatically populated.
Once done, click Assign Service.
Next, select the Billing Date. This option will only appear for recurring services. For one-time services, an invoice is immediately sent to the client upon assignment. However, for recurring services, there are two options:
Pro Rate: You can choose to charge a pro-rated amount and send the invoice immediately. The pro-rated amount is calculated based on the number of days between the assignment date and the default billing date. For example, if your agency typically bills on the 5th of each month but you're assigning the service on the 1st, the system will calculate the pro-rated amount for the days between the 1st and the 5th and send an invoice for that period. Then, the default invoice will be sent on the 5th of the month as usual.
No Pro Rate: You can choose not to charge a pro-rated amount. In this case, the first invoice will be sent on the default billing date without considering the days between the assignment date and the billing date.
Once you've made your selection, click Assign Service.
You will be notified on the same screen once the service is assigned.
Unassign Services from Clients
To unassign services from clients, first navigate to the Clients section of Client Billing, as explained below.
Important
One-time services cannot be unassigned from any client.
On the Client Billing main screen, switch to Clients. Here, you will see all your existing clients, so choose your target client.
Next, switch to the Assigned Services tab. Here, choose the service you wish to unassign and click More Options (⋮) > Unassign Service.
Unassigning the service for the client will render it ineligible for future billing. Subsequent invoices will no longer include charges for this service. Upon unassigning, you have two options:
Refund Amount & Unassign Service Immediately: If you choose this option and the client has paid the invoice, any unused amount for the remaining billing cycle will be refunded to them. For instance, if the service is unassigned on the 15th day of the billing cycle, the unused amount for the remaining 15 days will be refunded. This refunded amount will appear as a negative adjustment in the next month's invoice, generated on the default billing day.
Unassign Service Immediately Without Refund: Selecting this option means that the service will be immediately unassigned from the client without issuing any refund for the remaining billing cycle. In this scenario, no negative adjustment will be made in subsequent invoices since no refund was issued.
Next, click Unassign Service.
You will be notified on the same screen once the service is assigned.
Update Services
To update the information about any service, first navigate to the Services section of Client Billing, as shown in this section.
Under Services > Active, select your desired service.
Next, click Quick Actions and select Edit Service Details.
Next, update the information that you wish to update for the service.
Finally, click Save Changes.
Update Plans
To update the information about any plan, first navigate to the Services section of Client Billing, as shown in this section. Please note that you can only edit plans that do not have clients assigned to them.
Under Services > Active, select your desired service.
Under Plans, click Edit Plans.
Next, update the information that you wish to update for the plan. You can update your plan name and pricing, add a new plan, and remove a plan.
Finally, click Save Changes.
Archive/Unarchive Services
To archive or unarchive any service, first navigate to the Services section of Client Billing, as shown in this section.
Archive Services
When a particular service is no longer required (For example, when it's no longer offered by the agency or is outdated), you have the option to archive it.
Important
Archiving a service means that it will no longer be available for future assignments to any client. However, any current payments linked to this service will remain active.
To unassign this service from current payments, please proceed to the client page and manually remove it from there.
Under Services > Active, select your desired service.
Next, click Quick Actions and select Archive Service.
Next, confirm the selection by clicking Archive Service.
You will be notified on the same screen once the service is archived.
Unarchive Services
If you decide to reactivate a previously archived service, you have the option to unarchive it. Once unarchived, the service will once again be available for assignment to clients.
Under Services > Archived, select your desired service.
Next, click More Options (⋮) and select Unarchive Service.
You will be notified on the same screen once the service is unarchived.
Archive/Unarchive Plans
To archive or unarchive any plan, first navigate to the Services section of Client Billing, as shown in this section.
Archive Plans
When a particular plan is no longer needed (For example, if the pricing structure changes or the plan becomes obsolete), you have the option to archive it.
Important
Archiving a plan means that it will no longer be available for future assignments to any client. However, any current payments linked to this plan will remain active.
To unassign this plan from current payments, please proceed to the client page and manually remove it from there.
Under Services > Active, select your desired service.
Under Plans, click Edit Plans.
Next, click More Options (⋮) and select Archive Plan.
Next, confirm the selection by clicking Archive Plan.
You will be notified on the same screen once the plan is archived.
Unarchive Plans
If you wish to reactivate a plan that was previously archived, you have the option to unarchive it. This action will make the plan available again.
Under Services > Active, select your desired service.
Under Plans > Archived, click More Options (⋮) and select Unarchive Plan.
You will be notified on the same screen once the plan is unarchived.
That's it! We hope this article was helpful. If you need any help, then feel free to search your query on Cloudways Support Center or contact us via chat (Need a Hand > Send us a Message). Alternatively, you can also create a support ticket.