How do you export outstanding invoices from Exact?
To export outstanding invoices from Exact, navigate to the CRM section in your Exact Online dashboard, select “Outstanding Items,” apply any necessary filters for date range or customer, and then click the export button to download your data in Excel or CSV format. This process gives you a complete overview of unpaid invoices for follow-up activities and cash flow management.
What exactly counts as an outstanding invoice in Exact?
An outstanding invoice in Exact is any invoice that remains unpaid or partially paid beyond its due date. Exact Online categorises invoices based on their payment status: open invoices show the full amount due, partially paid invoices display the remaining balance, and fully paid invoices are marked as closed.
Exact considers several factors when determining outstanding status. The system looks at the invoice date, the payment terms you’ve set for each customer, and any payments received against specific invoices. If you’ve set 30-day payment terms and an invoice was issued on January 1st, it becomes outstanding after January 31st if no payment has been received.
The platform also tracks partially paid invoices separately. When a customer pays €800 against a €1,000 invoice, Exact shows this as outstanding with a remaining balance of €200. This distinction helps you understand which customers need gentle reminders versus more urgent collection efforts.
How do you access the outstanding invoices overview in Exact Online?
You can find your outstanding invoices by logging into Exact Online and navigating to the CRM section from the main dashboard. Look for “Outstanding Items” or “Debtors” in the menu, which provides a comprehensive view of all unpaid invoices across your customer base.
The dashboard offers multiple viewing options to help you prioritise your collection efforts. You can sort by due date to see which invoices are most overdue, filter by customer to focus on specific accounts, or arrange by invoice amount to tackle high-value outstanding items first. The system also provides ageing reports that group invoices by how long they’ve been overdue.
Within this section, you’ll see key information including customer names, invoice numbers, original amounts, outstanding balances, and days overdue. This overview helps you quickly identify which accounts need immediate attention and which customers consistently pay on time.
What’s the easiest way to export your outstanding invoices from Exact?
The simplest export method involves clicking the export button (usually represented by a download icon) once you’re viewing your outstanding invoices list. Exact Online offers several export formats, including Excel, CSV, and PDF, with Excel being the most useful for further analysis and follow-up activities.
Before exporting, you can customise which fields to include in your download. Standard fields include customer name, invoice number, invoice date, due date, original amount, outstanding balance, and contact details. You might also want to include payment terms, customer reference numbers, and any notes you’ve added to specific invoices.
The export process typically takes just a few seconds for most businesses. Once downloaded, you’ll have a spreadsheet containing all your outstanding invoice data that you can sort, filter, and use to create follow-up lists or import into other systems for automated processing.
Why won’t some invoices show up in your outstanding invoices export?
Missing invoices from your export usually result from filter settings that exclude certain date ranges, customers, or invoice statuses. Check your date range filters to ensure you’re capturing all relevant periods, and verify that customer filters aren’t limiting your view to specific accounts only.
Invoice status settings can also cause exclusions. If your filters are set to show only “overdue” invoices, you won’t see invoices that are outstanding but not yet past their due date. Similarly, if you’ve accidentally filtered out partially paid invoices, you’ll miss accounts where customers have made partial payments.
User permissions might restrict access to certain customer accounts or invoice types. Some businesses set up role-based access where team members can only view invoices for specific territories or customer segments. Contact your Exact administrator if you suspect permission issues are limiting your export data.
How can you automate the follow-up process after exporting outstanding invoices?
Once you’ve exported your outstanding invoices, you can streamline follow-up activities by importing the data into email marketing tools or customer communication platforms. Many businesses use the exported customer contact details to create payment reminder campaigns that automatically send personalised messages based on how overdue each invoice is.
Spreadsheet tools like Excel allow you to create templates for different types of payment reminder communications. You can set up gentle reminders for invoices that are 1–7 days overdue, more direct messages for 8–30 days overdue, and urgent collection notices for invoices beyond 30 days. This approach ensures your communication tone matches the situation.
For businesses wanting more sophisticated automation, integration platforms can connect your Exact data with communication tools to send automatic payment reminder emails, SMS messages, or even WhatsApp notifications. These systems can track which customers have received reminders and automatically escalate to different message types if payments aren’t received within specified timeframes.
The key to effective automation is maintaining a personal touch while saving time on repetitive tasks. We’ve helped many businesses transform their manual invoice follow-up processes into efficient, automated systems that improve cash flow while maintaining positive customer relationships.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I export and review my outstanding invoices from Exact?
Most businesses benefit from weekly exports to stay on top of cash flow, though high-volume companies might need daily reviews. Set up a regular schedule that aligns with your payment terms—if you offer 30-day terms, weekly monitoring helps catch overdue accounts early. Consider more frequent exports during busy periods or when cash flow is tight.
Can I set up automatic exports of outstanding invoices instead of doing it manually?
Yes, Exact Online offers scheduled reporting features that can automatically generate and email outstanding invoice reports at set intervals. Navigate to the Reports section, create your outstanding invoices report with desired filters, then set up email delivery on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. This ensures you never miss reviewing overdue accounts.
What should I do if a customer disputes an invoice that shows as outstanding in my export?
First, verify the dispute details in Exact by checking the original invoice, delivery confirmations, and any customer communications. Use Exact's notes feature to document the dispute and temporarily exclude disputed amounts from your collection efforts. Consider creating a separate filter for disputed invoices to track these separately from standard outstanding items.
How can I use the exported data to identify customers with recurring payment issues?
Sort your exported data by customer name and look for multiple outstanding invoices from the same account. Create a pivot table in Excel to count outstanding invoices per customer and calculate average days overdue. Customers with 3+ outstanding invoices or consistently high overdue days may need credit limit reviews or stricter payment terms.
Is there a way to include payment history in my outstanding invoices export?
While the standard outstanding invoices export focuses on unpaid amounts, you can run a separate customer payment history report and merge the data in Excel. Alternatively, use Exact's customer statements feature which shows both outstanding invoices and recent payment activity together, giving you a complete picture of each customer's payment behaviour.
What's the best format to export outstanding invoices for integration with other accounting software?
CSV format offers the best compatibility for importing into other systems, as it's universally supported and maintains data integrity. Ensure your CSV export includes unique identifiers like invoice numbers and customer codes to prevent duplicate entries. Excel format works well if you need to manipulate data before importing elsewhere.
How do I handle outstanding invoices that are in different currencies when exporting?
Exact Online typically converts all amounts to your base currency in exports, but verify this in your export settings. If you need original currency amounts preserved, include currency code fields in your export. For businesses dealing with multiple currencies regularly, consider running separate exports by currency to simplify follow-up processes with international customers.