Payment notifications - Square Invoices

[Electrician]

I have a question for the people who have direct knowledge of how this works with Square Invoices. Do customers always get automatic payment notifications? Or do they only get payment notification if I have it set to send them an email or a text message? If I choose to share manually, will they get a payment notification in some way?

In the past I have always shared invoices with customers through email, and I know they get a payment notification automatically. I’ve been thinking about switching to sharing invoices with customers via text message instead, since that’s the way I’m generally talking to them anyway. Now get payment notifications through text?

What if I share the invoice with them manually, will they not get any payment notification at all when I accept a payment other than what I manually sent to them?

[TheRealChipA]

Hi @Electrician 

Currently payment reminders are only sent via email.  If you look (from your dashboard) Invoices -> Settings -> Notifications, you’ll see that Reminders are only sent by email, with no ability (yet) to add Push notifications.  As of 9/13/22, according to an answer in this thread from @Laurie_, that had not changed.  I’m not sure if the OP of that thread submitted a feature request to add text reminders, but you can search the Invoices feature request board and submit one if not.  And if that feature has already been requested, be sure to add your vote to it!  The more interest there is in a feature, the quicker it will probably be to get it done.

As far as default reminders, you can actually change your default invoice template for what your usual reminders are.  Currently, it is set for manual reminders.  To change the template, from your dashboard, go to Invoices -> Settings -> Invoice.  Select the “Default” template, and click the Edit button in the lower right-hand corner.  Scroll down to the “Share” section and click “Add Reminders.”  Define the reminder schedule you’d like and then save that schedule.  All new invoices will get this by default.  It’s worth nothing that you can change other invoice defaults here as well.  Just be sure to save the changed template.  Here’s the Square Help Article on templates.

I hope this helps.  Let me know if you need anything else.

Regards,

[Electrician]

Hi and thank you for the response. I’m a little confused with your use of the word “reminders“. I think we might be talking about something different. What I’m asking about is the email that the customer gets telling them that they made a payment after they pay an invoice or I mark that they gave me a check. 

Are you saying those only go out through email and not text message ever?

Now on a different note, since you brought up reminders, if I did not enter a customer’s email address into their profile, and I sent them an estimate and then subsequent invoice thru text, then tried to send them a payment reminder, they will not receive it through text?

[TheRealChipA]

@Electrician My apologies! I either misread or misunderstood your question.  I see that clearly now!

You have the option of sending payment notifications by either text (push), email, or both.  From the dashboard, go to Invoices -> Settings -> Notifications.  In the Invoices section, be sure that “Paid” notifications are checked, then click on the dropdown to the right of that and choose your option.  Then, as long as the appropriate info is in the customer records (email address and/or phone number) the notification(s) you choose will be sent.

To your second question, as long as I am understand that right and not having another senior moment (!), currently you are correct. Payment reminders are only sent via email, so you’ll want to have an email address on file for all invoiced customers.  I agree that this seems like a hole, and hopefully it will get patched soon.

I looked on the Invoice feature request board and could not find any request to add push/text capability to invoice payment reminders.  So you may want to go there and make that request!

Let me know if I misunderstood anything else.  I think this should clear up the confusion I caused initially!

[TheRealChipA]

@Electrician And I found a request about push/text payment reminders.  It seems this has been considered but not planned.  Regulatory issues surrounding use of SMS/Text messages.  See that request here.

If you want to see this feature added, be sure to Like and reply to it on that board.  The more votes, the better!

[Electrician]

So this won't work then.  My goal was to leave email out completely, since I communicate with customers thru text message normally.  I just figured it would be easier to have Square send everything thru text.  But apparently it doesn't have the same functionality.

[Electrician]

I thought that the notification settings located at Invoices -> Settings -> Notifications are for MY notifications, not the customers?

"Push & email notifications

Push notifications are automatically sent to your mobile device; while email notifications are sent to your email account. These notifications help keep track of things like invoice and estimate updates, your outstanding cash flow, and your sales trends."

[TheRealChipA]

Sigh.  You are correct.  Payment (received) notifications always go to the customer via email.  I assumes that this setting applied to customers too, but obviously it doesn’t.  I created a test email with myself as customer and paying it sent me (owner) a payment received text, but only sent me (customer) an email.  

So, to summarize and remove my bad information above…. Currently all notifications sent to a customer about an invoice, including payment reminders and payment received notifications, are sent via email.  Because of current federal regulations regarding text messages, Square does not give us the option to send transactional notifications like those via text.

Wow.  I’m sorry I made that more complicated than it actually is.  My business is closed for a few months and I need to get my head back in the game!

Be well,

[Electrician]

No biggie, I appreciate you talking this through with me.

This just seems odd because what happens if you don’t put a customers email address in?

It gives me the option to send a customer an estimate or invoice via text message, so it’s odd that it won’t send them the receipt after they pay. 

[TheRealChipA]

@Electrician A Square customer success person might have to weigh in here. But as I understand it the federal text regulations allow you to send a one time thing like an invoice via text. But any automated, or “transactional” messages require written opt-in as well as a mechanism for the customer to stop them at any time. I am betting (guess only) Square is working on this but don’t think it is fully there yet. 

For now it’s best to always collect email addresses. 

Maybe @JJ_ can weigh in here. 

[_Violet]

Hey there @TheRealChipA and @Electrician 👋 Violet here, stepping in for @JJ_

I can certainly reach out to the Square Invoices Product Team to get their feedback on this. I'll be sure to follow up with the info they provide me 🙂

[Electrician]

Thank you!

Currently I send customers estimates via email, they then have the option to accept them and then I will send them an invoice for the deposit and then after the job I will send them a reminder which will give them a link so they could pay the balance of the invoice.  I know that they also receive emails notifying them when they make a payment, to serve as the receipt.

My goal, if possible, would be to stop doing that through email and do it all through text message, since I already am engaged in text messaging those customers.

If I could do this through Square it would be great. Or I guess I could just choose to manually share the link to the estimates and invoices and paste the link into text messages myself. But then they wouldn’t get any payment receipt unless I send it as well. 

[_Violet · Accepted solution]

Hi there again, @Electrician. Thanks for your patience here! 🙏
I have received the following from our Product Team:

“Invoice paid” notifications do go out via SMS. They will say "You have been sent a receipt from {merchant_name}. Visit {invoice_url} to view."

We do not allow Sellers to manually send or configure reminders via SMS, but if the Seller configures the invoices with a deposit and balance payment, we will send an SMS notification to the customer on the day the balance is due."

I hope this information is helpful but please do let me know if you have any additional questions 🙂

[Electrician]

Thank you very much for the information!

I do have one further question. I don’t actually use the invoice due date. Instead, as soon as I finish doing the job for the customer, I “nudge“ them by manually clicking to “send a reminder“.  This reminder includes a link for them to click on and pay the balance of the invoice.

Since this is manual, will I be able to do this through SMS?