I can almost hear a collective groan go out from you, a blog which is about Invoicing and bidding software and not some groovy lighting trick or about some photo of a naked woman riding a water buffalo.......
Well guys I'm sharing this with you because it has made such a difference to the thing I'm really bad at- the paperwork
Recently I have started to do my own invoicing
I struggled for a day before remembering I had Blinkbid sitting relatively unloved and alone on my hard drive.
What I had been struggling with for hours I achieved in minutes without resorting to the 'help' menu, well not too much anyhow
It does many ,many things including working your VAT out, telling you when you have not been paid, and it looks SO professional
It is funny , we are all about image, yet we often pay no heed to the way our invoices or bids look, it is in-fact another opportunity to show the client we ARE a little bit better than the competition
It is the brain child of a passionate friendly guy called Lou Lesko who is a pretty bloody handy photographer too (well as he says on his own website 'Always serve chilled, safe with most medications')
So, software by a photographer for his fellow photographers
Blinkbid is as he says himself 'Shockingly easy to use bidding and invoicing software for creative profesionals'
In other words, use this software and your quotes will look way proffesional and your invoices like lightning.
Don't take my word for it, here are a few satisfied customers
Leaving you and I, the bleeding heart creatives, with more time to shoot instead of being buried for wasted hours sorting out our paper work
So ladies and gentleman, this leaves me doing my own bids and invoices, and you know what? I actually enjoy it!
Pass the medication.......
12 comments:
It's funny that you have posted about this now, Drew. I'm actually in the process of getting my own photography business up and running now, and accounting software was one of the (boring) things that I have had to think about.
I've been using the trial of Blinkbid for a few days now, and absolutely love it. You are right, it's fantastic and insanely easy to use. The best part is the Terms & Conditions 'in a can' and the customisations that can be made.
My only problem is, I went to show my accountant and they scoffed at it while trying to convince me I should use MYOB just so they can get access to my data for tax returns.
I took one look at MYOB and my brain fell out. It's terrible. I don't understand why everyone uses it but it looks like I'm being forced to use it despite Blinkbid being way better for my needs.
I hate accountants. :(
Thanks Drew for the "hint".
I recently checked out Light Blue on their website, but the solution you are suggesting may be a very strong competitor.
I realise both software solutions have a trial period, so I guess I end up trying both :)
Have fun and YES, we wait for some cool lighting trick on your blog - or even better, some of your cool videos!
Best regards,
Markus (www.TheArtOfTheMoment.net)
Hi Drew, would you recommend blinkbid over fotoquote for UK based photographers?
Many thanks
Gu
Recommend it Over photo quote? Well everything I talk about on this blog is based on my life and what is going on in it. There may be better or worse software out there but this is what I use day to day and have been inspired by. Blinkbid HAS been optimised for the UK market, but all I would say is use what works for you, and this works for me just fine
Cheers
Drew
Cheers for the swift reply, Drew :)
I'm from Light Blue Software, who make Light Blue: Photo, just following up Markus's post.
Light Blue: Photo is much, much more than photo quoting software - it'll help you keep track of contacts, shoots, orders, payments, and expenditure. You can generate web galleries through it (linked to PayPal's shopping cart system), publish your shoots to iCal or Google Calendar... basically, it's a full studio management system.
Do check it out - and drop us a line at admin@lightbluesoftware.com if you've got any questions.
Best wishes,
Hamish
Thank you for that Hamish
I will check it out, always good for people to look at the options
Cheers
Drew
Good to see that 'Light Blue' it was written by a photographer too
Cheers
Drew
Hi Pablo
Erm yes, if anyone is into stamps and stamp collecting have a look at Pablo's site...
Quite where this fits in with photographers bidding and invoicing software I don't know.....
Good to know the blog is read in Argentina!
Cheers
Drew
...just following up my earlier comment, we've now released v2, which has a completely redesigned user interface, the ability to use RTF documents as your invoices, a multi-seat version, two-way sync with iCal, custom field labels... the list goes on. Check it out at www.lightbluesoftware.com.
Hamish
there's also PhotoByte which is free.
Haven't tested it yet, but hear it's quite good.
Thank's Ben
I will check it out
Cheers
Drew
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