What Is Xero Projects? Should You Be Using It?

Some of you may have noticed that Xero is running around touting two new features more than others recently. Namely, Xero Projects, & Xero Expenses. Today, we're looking at what Xero Projects is all about, why you should care, and whether you should be using it.

Xero states it will "drive profitability," and give users better visibility across projects. Sounds good right? Let's take a deeper look.

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What is Xero Projects?

Xero Projects is Xero’s brand new project management tool designed to keep track of all of your time and costs. Then from there, you can issue invoices based on a percentage of the total fee, time & materials incurred to date, or the entire project all in one go. It makes it super easy to keep track of how much you have invoiced the client. But it also makes it super easy for the client to know how much they should be paying you. As an example. They pay the entire deposit invoice of $100, instead of paying $100 of your $1000 invoice, with some amount to be paid who knows when.

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Why Should You Care About Xero Projects?

If you run a business, time is money. Knowing whether you're gaining a return on your time is what Xero Projects is made for. Making sure that you are seeing a return on each and every job you complete for your customers.

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Should You Use Xero Projects?

If you have ever wondered whether it is actually worth your time to build websites, re-work a client's SEO, complete that tax return, or whatever it is that you do, Projects is worth a look. What it allows is for you to be certain that when you are sending that final invoice to the customer, you can take a little bit home for yourself. Profit.

It is perfect for those who are in professional services, are creatives, or any other job-based service business. Where it falls down is in the trade sector, where a dedicated add on such as Tradify or Servicem8 are your best bet with their fantastically focused trade workflow.

What now?

Projects comes at an additional cost to Xero, starting at an addition $10 per month for the first user, and $7 per month per user for person there after.

If you have any questions about Xero Projects, and whether it is right for your business, feel free to get in touch with the team here at Illumin8, and we would be happy to have a chat!