project & client finance records

Client and project finance records for video editors

When income and costs for a client or project are spread across tools, it is impossible to see what a job actually involved without hunting through everything. For video editors, the fix is a consistent place to keep the records rather than a smarter tool. Cash Workspace gives you one place to record each item, attach its file, and keep it where you can find it. It is free.

The problem

Why video editors lose track

When income and costs for a client or project are spread across tools, it is impossible to see what a job actually involved without hunting through everything.

  • Buying stock footage and plugins without tagging them to the client edit, so per-project costs are impossible to reconstruct.
  • Filing subscription invoices in email instead of with the finance records, so recurring software charges go unreviewed.
  • Losing track of which stock and music licenses belong to which delivered project.

The workflow

How video editors keep it organized

A simple, repeatable way to project records records without special software.

  1. 1

    Give each client or project its own folder

    Create one place per client or project so everything about edits lives together instead of being scattered.

  2. 2

    File its invoices and its costs side by side

    Keep the project's invoices and the expenses it ran up in the same folder, so income records and cost records sit next to each other for you to review.

  3. 3

    Attach the agreement and key documents

    Keep the client agreement, scope, and any change notes with the finance records so the full picture is in one place.

  4. 4

    Close the folder at project end

    When the work wraps, confirm the records are complete and archive the folder so it stays a clean reference.

Record structure

What each record holds

The fields that make a project records record complete and findable.

Client / project
The organizing tag everything is filed under.
Record type
Invoice, expense, or document — what the entry is.
Amount
The figure on the record.
Date
When it happened, for ordering within the project.
Attachment
The invoice, receipt, or agreement kept with the record.
Project / edit
The editing job a record ties to, so assets and subcontractor costs group under one project.
Client
Who commissioned the edit, so a repeat client's jobs stay under one name.
Revision round
Which round a cost or delivery relates to, useful when scope expands over several passes.
License / asset
The stock clip, track, or template a cost covers, kept with the record so proof of license stays attached.

Example setup

An example structure

One way video editors can lay this out in Cash Workspace.

Edit — invoices

Every invoice raised for that edit.

Edit — expenses

The costs that job ran up — Editing software & subscriptions, Plugins & effects packs, and Stock footage & music licensing — with receipts.

Edit — documents

The agreement, scope, and any change notes kept alongside the finance records.

Common mistakes

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Buying stock footage and plugins without tagging them to the client edit, so per-project costs are impossible to reconstruct.
  • Filing subscription invoices in email instead of with the finance records, so recurring software charges go unreviewed.
  • Losing track of which stock and music licenses belong to which delivered project.
  • Mixing one-off asset purchases with ongoing subscriptions in the same category.
  • Not recording freelance colorist or sound-subcontractor payments against the project they supported.
  • Mixing one client’s costs into another’s folder.

How it helps

How Cash Workspace helps

Record it, don’t re-key it

Enter each item once — date, vendor, amount, category — and attach the file to that record. No bank sync, no receipt-reading; the record is deliberate and yours.

One consistent structure

The same categories and folders every month, so video editors always know where a record goes and where to find it later.

Income and cost side by side

A project’s invoices and expenses in one folder for you to review. “Project” is an organizing tag, not a computed profit figure.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Does it calculate project profit?
No. Cash Workspace does not calculate profit, margin, or ROI. It keeps a project’s income and cost records side by side for you to review and draw your own conclusions.
How does project tagging work?
Each record is tagged with its client or project so everything about one job files together. The tag is an organizing convention, not a computed figure.
How do I keep each client’s records separate?
Give each client or project its own folder so invoices, expenses, and documents for that job stay together and never mix with another client’s records.
What should I do when a project closes?
Confirm the folder holds every invoice, expense, and document for the job, add any closing note, and archive it so it stays a clean reference you can return to.

Records side by side, not a calculator

Cash Workspace keeps a client or project’s income records and cost records side by side for you to review. It does not calculate profit, margin, or ROI, and “project” is an organizing tag rather than a computed figure. You see the records; the judgement stays with you.

Organize your project records records

Cash Workspace is a free place for video editors to keep records and their files organized. Start a workspace and set it up your way.