How to Handle Client Billing in UniLink Agency (Charge Clients for Their Plans)

Choose the right billing model for your UniLink Agency — consolidated, per-client, or hybrid — and set up payment collection, invoicing, and dunning for each.

One of the first operational questions every new agency faces on UniLink is deceptively simple: who pays for what? The answer shapes your cash flow, your client relationships, and the administrative overhead you carry every month. UniLink gives you three models to choose from, and picking the right one at the start saves significant restructuring later.

What Client Billing Models Exist

The consolidated billing model means the agency pays UniLink directly for the Agency plan and all sub-account seats. Clients do not have a direct billing relationship with UniLink. You bill each client separately through your own invoicing system — whether that's Stripe, FreshBooks, QuickBooks, direct bank transfer, or any other method. The client pays you; you pay UniLink. Your margin is the difference. This model gives you full control and full privacy — clients never see the platform cost.

The per-client billing model means each client provides their own payment card to UniLink for their sub-account subscription. The agency account still manages and controls all sub-accounts, but the recurring charge goes directly to the client's card rather than through the agency. This model reduces your cash flow risk (you're not carrying platform costs on behalf of clients who might not pay), but it exposes UniLink's pricing to clients and reduces your ability to mark up the service.

The hybrid model is the most flexible and the most complex to administer. Some clients are on consolidated billing (typically higher-value, long-term clients where you want to control the relationship) and others are on per-client billing (typically smaller accounts or pilots where you want to minimize your exposure). Most established agencies start with consolidated, run a few tests with per-client, and settle on mostly consolidated once cash flow is predictable.

How to Get Started

1. Audit your current client contracts. Before changing any billing settings, review what you've already committed to clients. If your service agreement says "we handle everything," you're implicitly on a consolidated model. If contracts mention "platform fee passed through," per-client billing may align better. Match your billing configuration to your existing commitments.
2. Access Agency Billing settings. Log in at app.unilink.us and go to Agency → Billing. This section shows your platform subscription details, your current sub-account count, and billing configuration options for how sub-accounts are charged.
3. Set up your external billing infrastructure (consolidated model). If you choose consolidated billing, set up recurring subscription billing in your invoicing tool before your first client invoice is due. Create products in your billing tool that correspond to your agency pricing tiers. Automate recurring invoices so billing runs without manual intervention each month.
4. Decide on a billing cycle date. Align client billing dates to reduce administrative burden. Billing all clients on the 1st of the month, for example, means one reconciliation session per month instead of tracking individual billing anniversaries. You can prorate the first month when a client starts mid-month.
5. Document your billing policy for clients. Write a clear billing policy section for your service agreement that covers payment terms (net 7 or net 14), acceptable payment methods, what happens when payment fails, and cancellation terms. This protects you legally and sets expectations before disputes arise.

How to Manage Client Billing Day-to-Day

1. Issue invoices consistently and on schedule. For consolidated billing, send invoices 3–5 days before the due date using your billing tool. Include a line item for the UniLink service, your tier name, and the billing period. Consistent invoicing trains clients to expect and pay on time.
2. Handle dunning proactively. If a client's payment fails or an invoice goes unpaid past the due date, your billing tool should trigger an automated reminder. Send two automated reminders (day 3 and day 7 past due) before making a personal contact. Most late payments resolve after the first automated reminder — only escalate if it doesn't.
3. Reconcile platform costs against client revenue monthly. Once a month, compare what you paid UniLink (Agency plan + seat fees) against what you collected from clients. This reconciliation confirms your margin and flags any sub-accounts where you're billing a client but have misconfigured or not yet assigned their tier.
4. Suspend non-paying client sub-accounts promptly. If a client is significantly overdue (7–14 days past due after two reminders), suspend their sub-account in UniLink before your next platform billing cycle. You are paying for active seats — keeping a non-paying client's sub-account active is a direct cost to you.
5. Generate and share receipts or invoices for each client. Clients on paid plans expect a receipt or invoice for their records. Your billing tool should auto-generate and email a receipt on successful payment. For annual plans or larger contracts, a formal invoice PDF is often required for the client's accounting. Make this automatic so it never falls through the cracks.

Key Settings

Get the Most Out Of Client Billing

The consolidated billing model only works well if your own payment collection is reliable. A client who pays late, disputes a charge, or stops paying entirely still costs you the platform seat fee every month. The solution is a combination of automated billing, clear payment terms in your contract, and a consistent dunning process. Agencies that lose money on consolidated billing almost always have manual, inconsistent invoicing — not a structural problem with the model itself.

Separate your platform cost from your service fee on invoices, even if the total is a single bundled price. An invoice line that says "UniLink page management — $99/month" gives the client context for what they're paying for without revealing your platform cost. It also makes upselling easier: adding a second page or upgrading their tier is a natural line-item addition, not a confusing price change.

Build payment collection into your offboarding process too. If a client decides to cancel, collect any outstanding invoices before deactivating their sub-account. The moment the sub-account is deactivated and the page goes offline, your leverage for collecting overdue payment drops significantly. In your service agreement, specify that the sub-account remains active only while invoices are current — this gives you a clean, contractual basis for suspension and final payment collection.

For high-value annual contracts, consider requiring payment upfront or in two instalments. A client paying $1,200 per year upfront gives you the cash to cover the annual Agency plan cost immediately, eliminates 12 months of invoicing overhead, and reduces churn risk — clients who have paid annually are much less likely to cancel mid-year than month-to-month subscribers. Offer a small discount (5–10%) for annual prepayment to incentivize it.

Troubleshooting

Frequently Asked Questions