Know which retainers and projects actually make money
Retainer burn, unbilled WIP, and project-level margin - tracked continuously in one AI accounting system, not reconciled once a quarter between the time tracker and the ledger.
Why agency finance drifts from reality
An agency sells a mix of retainers and project fees against a shared pool of billable hours. Generic accounting software has no concept of a retainer’s included-hours cap, no view of work delivered but not yet invoiced, and no per-project margin - so profitability is guessed at until the quarter closes.
- Retainers: included hours, overage rates, and true-ups need tracking against a client-specific cap every month.
- Unbilled WIP: hours delivered on a project but not yet invoiced are real revenue sitting uncollected.
- Project profitability: a fixed-fee project can look fine on the invoice and lose money on delivery cost.
- Utilization: a swing of a few billable points changes agency-wide margin more than any line-item expense cut.
How Fintra maps to agency operations
- AI accounting keeps a project-dimensional GL, so every hour, expense, and invoice rolls up to project and client margin.
- Quote-to-cash handles retainer invoicing and overage billing, with a tokenized customer e-approval portal for scope changes.
- Month-end close values unbilled WIP and ties it to what actually gets invoiced, shrinking revenue leakage.
- Budgeting and forecasting project retainer renewals and new-business pipeline against utilization and rate assumptions.
- Sales commissions handle new-business and account-growth credit splits for account leads and business development.
A worked retainer example
Retainer effective rate
Monthly fee ÷ included hours = $15,000 ÷ 90 = $166.67 per hour
Illustrative example: Fintra compares delivered hours to the included-hours cap each month and books overage automatically instead of at quarter-end reconciliation.
Time tracker + spreadsheet vs Fintra
| Workflow | Time tracker + spreadsheets | Fintra |
|---|---|---|
| Retainer overage | Reconciled manually at month-end | Compared to included-hours cap and billed automatically |
| Unbilled WIP | Discovered when someone remembers to invoice | Valued every close and tied to invoicing |
| Project margin | Known after the project wraps | Live budget-vs-actual per project and client |
| New-business comp | Contested spreadsheet at bonus time | Credit splits computed from project-level records |
Getting started
From time exports to project-level finance
- 1
Import clients and retainers
Load active retainers with included hours and overage rates, plus fixed-fee projects.
- 2
Connect time and expenses
Hours and project expenses flow into project-dimensional books.
- 3
Close with WIP valued
Your first close shows unbilled WIP and per-client, per-project margin.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best accounting software for a marketing or creative agency?
The best fit tracks retainers against included-hours caps, values unbilled WIP every month, and reports margin per client and per project - not just agency-wide revenue. Fintra does this natively rather than requiring a separate spreadsheet next to the time-tracking tool.
Does Fintra track retainer overage automatically?
Yes. Each retainer has an included-hours cap and an overage rate; Fintra compares delivered hours to the cap monthly and bills overage automatically, so true-ups don’t depend on someone remembering to check a spreadsheet at month-end.
Can Fintra show project profitability while a project is still in progress?
Every hour and expense carries a project dimension, giving a live budget-vs-actual view: fees earned against delivery cost as the project runs. A fixed-fee project burning ahead of its budget shows up mid-project, when a scope conversation is still possible.
How does Fintra value unbilled WIP?
Delivered hours and expenses that haven’t been invoiced are valued as unbilled WIP in every monthly close and tied to subsequent invoicing, so revenue leakage - work delivered but never billed - is visible while it can still be collected.
Stay in the loop
One practical finance briefing a week - new guides, checklists, and benchmarks.
Stop guessing which retainers are profitable
Fintra is free to start, no card required. Import your retainers and projects and see real margin in your first close.
Talk to us