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Industries · Professional services

For independent professionals

Many business owners in the trade know these situations well. Under each one you can read what Ainio does for you.

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  • Hours get noted down in different places, and at the end of the month some of them never get invoiced.

    You log hours on the job, and at the end of the month you get them as hourly invoices per customer. The hour bank shows how many of the agreed hours are left.

  • The assignment runs over, and you only notice the agreed hours were exceeded when you make the invoice.

    The quote shows how many hours are agreed for each stage. When 80 percent of the hours have been used, Ainio reminds you to tell the customer in good time.

  • Comments on drafts arrive scattered across emails, and there end up being more rounds than agreed.

    You send the draft as a link, and the customer comments on it in the same place. You see which comment round you’re on and how many the quote includes.

  • For a foreign customer the quote and invoice have to be in English, and VAT on EU sales raises questions.

    You get the quote and invoice in English. Ainio checks an EU business customer’s VAT number in the EU’s own service (VIES), and the invoice gets a reverse charge note.

  • More requests come in than you have time for, and it isn’t clear which assignments are worth taking. In the Huippu plan

    Ainio tells you which of the jobs on offer fit into your week and which of them earn you the most. You also see why the others were left out.

Start free trial →Try the demo →

Try it free for 30 days and get set up in about 10 minutes. Nothing goes to the customer without your approval.

A designer drawing a plan in an office
Video

See how the paperwork gets done during the day

2 min 43 s, no sound

Example · Professionals

How one assignment runs through Ainio

A company needs copy for its new website. Ainio does the paperwork, and you decide what goes to the customer.

A laptop on a desk in front of a snowy landscape
  1. Message

    The customer asks for a quote

    Kauppahuone Lehto asks by email for a quote for the copy for its new website.

    Ainio drafts the reply.
    Reply to Kauppahuone LehtoWebsite copy
    Ready

    Hello, thanks for the quote request! How many pages of copy do you need, and when will the site go live? I’ll send a quote as soon as I know.

    Send
  2. Quote

    You send the quote

    The customer says there are eight pages. You check the quote and press Send.

    Ainio makes the quote at your hourly rate and records the agreed hours in it.
    Quote
    Kauppahuone Lehto Oy · Website copy
    Copy for 8 pages, 40 h × €95€3,800
    Comment rounds3
    Total (excl. VAT)€3,800
    Valid for 30 daysSend
  3. Calendar

    The job goes into the calendar

    The customer accepts the quote online, and you agree on a kick-off meeting.

    Ainio puts the meeting in your calendar and keeps track of how many of the agreed hours have been used.
    MON10:00
    Kick-off meetingAccepted
    Kauppahuone Lehto Oy · 1 hVideo call
    Call
  4. Invoice

    The invoice is ready when the work is done

    The customer approves the copy, and the work took 38 hours.

    Ainio invoices the hours used. If the invoice isn’t paid on time, you get a reminder ready to send.
    Invoice
    Kauppahuone Lehto Oy · Website copy
    Copy, 38 h × €95€3,610
    Total (excl. VAT)€3,610
    Used of the agreed 40 hours38 h
    Due in 14 daysSend

Nothing goes to the customer without your permission. Kauppahuone Lehto and Viestintätoimisto Kide are made up, and the prices are examples.

These 4 things are included in every plan

Plans start at €99 a month (+ VAT), and during the trial you get the full Huippu plan (with trial usage limits).

See all features →See plans and prices →

Try the same steps yourself

The demo shows the everyday work of a sample business. It opens in your browser without signing up, and nothing is sent from it. Parts of the demo are in Finnish.

Open the demo →
Frequently asked questions

What independent professionals often ask

Here are the answers to the questions independent professionals ask before they start using Ainio.

Does Ainio suit an IT company, an advertising agency, an accounting firm or an architect?

Yes. Ainio has ready-made checklists for, for example, IT and marketing projects, design, bookkeeping and accounting services, consulting assignments and translations. Based on the request, Ainio asks only for the details that are missing from it.

How does the hour budget work?

You give the estimated working time in the quote and, if you like, stages with their hours. As you log hours, Ainio shows how many of the agreed hours have been used. When 80 percent has been used, Ainio reminds you to tell the customer in good time, and if the budget is exceeded, you see the overrun in hours. A finished stage can be invoiced as an instalment.

Does the customer need an account to comment on a draft?

No. The customer opens the draft from a link and writes their comments there. The draft can be a file of up to 1.4 megabytes, and the link can be withdrawn, after which the customer can no longer comment on that version.

How are conflicts of interest checked?

You enter the opposing parties of a new matter, and Ainio also suggests names from the text of the request. Ainio checks whether the same name has been your customer or an opposing party in another matter, and you can mark the check as done. The search only covers your own work, and it isn’t a legal assessment.

Can the customer accept the terms and conditions at the same time as the quote?

Yes. You attach your own terms or your industry’s standard terms to the quote as a PDF, and the customer accepts them from the approval link before accepting the quote. The terms of an accepted quote can no longer be changed.

Can a translator price by word count?

Yes. You set a price per word and, if you like, a rush surcharge and a minimum charge, and Ainio works out the price in the quote. When you add the file to be translated, Ainio counts the words. If counting doesn’t work, you enter the word count by hand.

Does Ainio send anything to the customer without me?

No. Ainio drafts replies, quotes and invoices, and they go out only once you approve them.

Is Ainio time tracking and invoicing software for independent professionals?

Yes, and a bit more. You log your hours and get invoices per customer from them, ready to send. You also get quotes and replies to customer messages ready, and you see which invoices have been paid. The bookkeeping is still done in your accounting software.

How much does Ainio cost?

Plans start at €99 a month (+ VAT), and depending on the plan you can have up to 3, 8 or 15 users. You can try Ainio free for 30 days, and during the trial you get the full Huippu plan (with trial usage limits). There is no lock-in, and you can cancel at any time.

See prices and plans →