Retainer management software that shows the overservicing this month.
Most retainers lose money quietly: an extra post here, a quick favour there, and nobody counts until the year-end review. Ancor counts every deliverable against what the client pays for, while there is still time to say something.
Last reviewed: 7 October 2026
What is retainer management software?
Retainer management software tracks what a client pays for each month against what the agency actually delivers. In Ancor, each retainer has a scope with allowances by deliverable or by hours, a burn-down that flags a scope at risk or over before the month closes, automatic monthly or quarterly invoices, overage drafts for work above the allowance, and change requests that must be priced before the client can approve them. It runs in the same system as your timesheets, client approvals and margin.
Agreed, delivered, billed. On one screen, every month.
Allowances by deliverable
A scope holds lines per deliverable type and brand, for example 20 posts and 4 reels a month. Hour-based retainers work the same way.
A burn-down per scope
Each line shows used against allowed, with the scope marked healthy, at risk or over. Switch it on and the client sees it in their portal.
Rollover, your rules
Per retainer: no rollover, full, capped, or expiring after a set number of periods. It applies to hours and to deliverable allowances, so 3 unused posts carry into next month.
Invoices on schedule
The retainer raises its monthly or quarterly invoice through the GST engine. Pause, resume or end it without losing history.
Overage, drafted
Work above the allowance becomes a draft overage invoice, or a short scope note to the client, from the burn-down.
Real lead times
How long each deliverable type really takes in your agency, at the median and the slow end, so promises match history.
"Just one more" is fine. Unpriced, it is a discount.
Scope creep on a retainer rarely arrives as a big request. It arrives as small asks that each feel too minor to charge for. Ancor gives you three responses, from gentlest to firmest:
- A scope note. Tell the client the allowance is used, with the burn-down to back it.
- An overage invoice. Draft an invoice for the work above the allowance, straight from the scope.
- A priced change request. Your team must price it before the client can approve it, and the client accepts in the portal by typing their name. Ancor keeps a signature record of the name, email, time, IP, the terms version and the amount.
Most tools track the retainer as hours. Agencies sell deliverables.
| Capability | Ancor | Typical PM or PSA tool |
|---|---|---|
| Allowance by deliverable type | Yes, per type and brand | Usually hours or a budget amount only |
| Burn-down the client can see | Yes, in the no-login portal | Often internal reports only |
| Rollover of hours and deliverables | None, full, capped or expiring, for hours and per deliverable type | Varies; Productive puts rollover on its top tier |
| Priced change request with a signature record | Yes | Rare without a separate e-sign tool |
| Import an existing Excel tracker | Yes, sheet or workbook | Usually CSV of tasks only |
| Recurring invoice with Indian GST | Yes, CGST and SGST or IGST by place of supply | Generic tax rates |
Competitor notes from public product and pricing pages, October 2026.
Honest limits, before you trial.
- Revenue recognition and WIP. Ancor does not do accrual accounting. Your accountant's system stays the ledger.
- Very large retainers with media buying. Ancor is built for 10 to 100 person agencies selling services, not media.
Retainer management. The questions worth asking first.
What is retainer management software?
Retainer management software tracks what a client pays for each month against what the agency actually delivers, so overservicing is visible before the month closes. In Ancor that means allowances by deliverable or hours, a burn-down per scope, automatic retainer invoices, overage drafts and priced change requests.
Can Ancor track a retainer by deliverables, not just hours?
Yes. A scope holds lines per deliverable type and brand, for example 20 social posts and 4 reels a month, and the burn-down counts each one delivered. Hour-based retainers work too.
Do unused retainer hours roll over?
You choose per retainer: no rollover, full rollover, rollover up to a cap, or rollover that expires after a set number of periods. The same policy applies to deliverable allowances: if the client was due 20 posts and got 17, the 3 unused posts carry into the next scope. Carried hours and units are spent first and count in the burn-down, the overage figure and the client's view.
How does Ancor stop overservicing?
The burn-down shows when a scope is at risk or over before the month ends. From there you can send the client a scope note, draft an overage invoice for work above the allowance, or raise a change request that must be priced before the client can approve it.
Can the client see the retainer burn?
Yes, if you switch it on. The client sees the burn-down in the same no-login portal where they approve work.
Does Ancor invoice retainers automatically?
Yes. A retainer raises its monthly or quarterly invoice on schedule through the GST engine, and you can pause, resume or end it.
We track retainers in a spreadsheet today. Can we import it?
Yes. Ancor reads an existing Excel or CSV deliverable tracker, a single sheet or a workbook with one tab per client, into scopes.