xTuple ERP Reference Guide

The Customer Number uniquely identifies the Customer. To search for an existing Customer, use the lookup feature located next to the Customer field. Use the "+" button to add a new Customer. And use the "!" button if you want to edit the Customer Number. If the "!" button is not selected, you will be prevented from editing the Customer Number.

Enter the name of the Customer or company you are doing business with. This field should not to be confused with the contact name of an individual at the company.

Specify the Customer Type the Customer belongs to.

Select if you are actively doing business with this Customer. Not selecting makes the Customer inactive.

Select to open the Customer's Account.

Select to manually enter billing Contact information in the fields below—or use the lookup feature to select pre-existing Contact information. If a new Contact is manually entered here, that Contact will be added automatically to the master list of Contacts. For additional documentation related to creating Contacts, see Section 7.1, “New Contact”.

Select to manually enter non-billing-related Contact information in the fields below—or use the lookup feature to select pre-existing Contact information. Examples of non-billing-related correspondence might include Price updates, holiday cards, etc. You may also enter additional contact information. If a new Contact is manually entered here, that Contact will be added automatically to the master list of Contacts. For additional documentation related to creating Contacts, see Section 7.1, “New Contact”.

Select to display Ship-To Addresses for the specified Customer. Every Customer can have multiple Ship-To Addresses, one for each of the destinations you ship goods to. Ship-To Addresses are specified at the point of Sales Order entry.

Displays the Customer Number and Customer name.

Specify a number or code to identify the Ship-To Address.

Enter the name of the company that will receive shipments at this Ship-To Address. Customers may maintain multiple Ship-To Addresses with diverse destinations.

Select to activate the Ship-To Address. If this option is not selected, then the Ship-To Address will be inactive.

Select if this is the default Ship-To Address for the Customer.

Manually enter delivery Address information in the fields below—or use the lookup feature to select pre-existing Address information. If a new Address is manually entered here, that Address will be added automatically to the master list of Addresses. For additional documentation related to creating Addresses, see Section 8.1, “ New Address”.

Manually enter delivery Contact information in the fields below—or use the lookup feature to select pre-existing Contact information. This field should not to be confused with the "Name" field that appears on the Ship-To Address label. If a new Contact is manually entered here, that Contact will be added automatically to the master list of Contacts. For additional documentation related to creating Contacts, see Section 7.1, “New Contact”.

Specify the following Ship-To Address defaults:

Select the "General Notes" tab to access this scrolling text field with word-wrapping for entering general Notes related to the Customer Ship-To Address. These Notes are for internal use only.

Select the "Shipping Notes" tab to access this scrolling text field with word-wrapping for entering Shipping Notes related to the Customer Ship-To Address. Shipping Notes are transferred to the "Shipping Notes" tab on the Sales Order header whenever a Sales Order for the specified Ship-To Address is entered. Ultimately, Shipping Notes may be printed on shipping paperwork.

To associate documents with a Ship-To Address, select the "Documents" tab.

When associating documents, you are presented with the following options:

NEW

Select to create a new document and associate it with the current record. You may create the following document types:

Image

Select to create a new Image association.

Incident

Select to create a new Incident and associate it.

To Do

Select to create a new To-Do and associate it.

Opportunity

Select to create a new Opportunity and associate it.

Project

Select to create a new Project and associate it.

EDIT

Enables you to edit associated documents. The edit screen is the same as that for creating a new document—except that when editing, the fields will contain document information. Double-clicking on a document will also bring you to the editing screen.

VIEW

Highlight a document and then select this button to reach a read-only view of the "Edit" screen

ATTACH

Select to associate already-existing documents. The following document types may be attached: Contact, Account, Customer, Employee, File, Image, Incident, Item, Opportunity, Project, Purchase Order, Sales Order, Vendor, Web Site, Work Order.

DETACH

Highlight a document and then select this button to remove the association.

To associate already-existing documents, select the ATTACH button. The following screen will appear:

Attach a Document

When associating already-existing documents, you are presented with the following options:

Relationship

Indicate how the document is related to the current record. The following relationship options are available: Related to, Parent of, Child of, Duplicate of.

Type

Specify the kind of document you want to associate. The following document types may be attached: Contact, Account, Customer, Employee, File, Image, Incident, Item, Opportunity, Project, Purchase Order, Sales Order, Vendor, Web Site, Work Order. When associating Files, you will also be given the option to save the File to the database.

Tip

There is no file size restriction when saving Files to the database. However, excessively large files could cause storage and performance issues.

Document

Use the lookup field to identify the specific document you want to attach. The data entry options will vary depending on the document type you select.

Select the "Transmission" tab to associate EDI Profiles with the Ship-To Address. EDI Profiles are used for transmitting Orders and Invoices to Customers electronically—via email or FTP. Associating an EDI Profile with a Ship-To Address overrides the association of an EDI Profile with the Customer.

When associating EDI Profiles with EDI recipients, such as Customers, Ship-To Addresses, and Vendors, you are presented with the following options:

EDI Profiles

Display lists EDI Profiles associated with this recipient (e.g., current Customer) for a particular document type. It also shows whether EDI will be sent via email or FTP.

The following buttons are unique to this screen:

ATTACH

Connect an existing EDI Profile to this EDI recipient for a particular document type.

DETACH

Detach the selected EDI Profile from the recipient for the selected document type.

Note

Selecting the EDIT button will open the EDI Profile so you can change it. All EDI recipients who share this EDI Profile will be affected by changes.

To attach an existing EDI Profile to the current recipient, select the ATTACH button. The following screen will appear:

Attach an EDI Profile

This screen lets you attach an existing EDI Profile to the currently selected Recipient for a particular Document Type. This tells xTuple Connect which documents should be sent by EDI and the EDI Profile to use when sending documents of that type to a particular Recipient. The Recipient and Recipient Type are displayed for your information while attaching the EDI Profile.

Recipient

This shows the number of the Customer, Vendor, etc. which will receive EDI using the selected EDI Profile.

Recipient Type

This shows whether the Recipient is a Customer, Vendor, etc. This reduces confusion in cases where a Customer and Vendor have the same number (i.e., the same CRM Account is both a Customer and Vendor).

Document Type

Choose from this list the type of document you want to use the EDI Profile for. The list of available Document Types changes depending on the Recipient Type. For example, if the Recipient Type is Vendor, the Document Type list will not contain "Sales Order".

Show All EDI Profiles

The list of EDI Profiles shows only those EDI Profiles that have an EDI Form for the currently selected Document Type by default. If this box is checked, all EDI Profiles will be listed. You may attach an EDI Profile without an appropriate EDI Form but it will not be used until the right EDI Form is added to the EDI Profile.

EDI Profiles

Choose from this list the EDI Profile you want to attach for the selected document type.

The following buttons are unique to this screen:

ATTACH

Attaches the EDI Profile to the recipient and closes the screen, returning you to the previous screen.

If there is no existing EDI Profile that suits your needs, you can create a new one by selecting the NEW button. This does the same thing as clicking the NEW button on the EDI Profiles window (see Section 13.2.7, “EDI Profiles”). After you have created the new EDI Profile and saved it, the Attach EDI Profile window will appear with the new EDI Profile selected. Now you can select the Document Type and click ATTACH. If you click CANCEL, the new EDI Profile will still be saved but will not be attached to the recipient.

Select to specify the default preferences for the Customer.

Select to specify credit-related information for the Customer.

Select to specify the default Tax information for the Customer.

Select to enter Credit Card information for the Customer. This option will only be enabled if your site is configured to use and process Customer Credit Cards.

Specify a default Sales Representative for the Customer. This Sales Rep will be used for Customer Orders, unless a particular Ship-To Address for the Customer specifies a different Sales Rep.

When you first associate a Sales Rep with a Customer—or with a Ship To Address—the system will copy in the commission from the Sales Rep record as a convenience. This commission may be changed locally at the Customer record level, but any changes will not be inherited by the Sales Rep record. Similarly, if you update the commission percentage on a Sales Rep record, that update will not recursively update all the commission records wherever that Sales Rep is used.

Specify the default Ship Via to be used for the Customer. You may enter a free-form Ship Via simply by typing the name of the Ship Via into the field.

Specify the default Shipping Form to be used for the Customer. This field is optional.

Specify the default Shipping Charges to be used for the Customer. Shipping defaults specified on the Customer master will transfer to the Sales Order header when a new Sales Order is entered for a Customer.

Select to indicate whether the Customer accepts Backorders. A backorder is defined as an unshipped Line Item on a shipped Sales Order. For example, if a Customer orders three Line Items, but only one of the Line Items is shipped, the remaining two Line Items would be on backorder. Not selecting this option indicates the Customer does not accept backorders or partial shipments.

Select to indicate that free-form Ship-To Addresses may be entered when Sales Orders are created for the Customer. If not selected, you are indicating that free-form Ship-To's may not be entered for the Customer. Instead, Ship-To's must be entered using predefined information.

Select to indicate that free-form Bill-To Addresses may be entered when Sales Orders are created for the Customer. If not selected, you are indicating that free-form Bill-To's may not be entered for the Customer. Instead, the predefined Bill-To found on the Customer master will be used.

Specify the preferred selling Site, if any. This is an optional setting. If a preferred Site is selected, then this Site will be used when entering Sales Orders for the Customer. At Sales Order entry, the preferred Site will be the default Shipping Site for the Sales Order—as well as the default selling Site for Sales Order Items.

Specify the default billing rate for the Customer.

Specify the default billing Terms for the Customer.

Enter the default discount—if any—which the Customer should receive. Customer discounts are applied to either a) the List Price for an Item if the List Price is being used or b) a specific Sale if a Sale is in place which the Customer is assigned to. The discount does not get applied to Pricing Schedules.

Specify the Currency to be used when transacting business with the Customer. With the system's multi-currency support, you can do business with Customer's in their Currency, using Exchange Rates to normalize transactions in your base Currency.

Select to mark the Customer as having credit in good standing. Customers with credit "In Good Standing" may have Sales Orders issued for them. A black-colored typeface will be associated with their account.

Select to alert sales staff to possible credit problems with the Customer. Non-privileged users will be prevented from issuing Stock to Shipping for any Customers on credit warning. An orange-colored typeface will be associated with their account.

Select to inform sales staff that the Customer's credit has been suspended. Non-privileged users will be prevented from issuing Stock to Shipping for any Customers on credit hold. A red-colored typeface will be associated with their account.

Select to indicate that the Customer uses Purchase Orders. If selected, users will be required to enter a Customer Purchase Order Number when entering a Sales Order. In addition, selecting the option will prevent users from entering duplicate Customer Purchase Order Numbers—unless the Customer is marked as using Blanket POs.

Specify one of the available methods for handling open balances for the Customer:

Specify the credit ceiling you are willing to extend to the Customer.

You have the option of assigning a credit rating to the Customer. Any value entered here is purely informational. The system does not use the credit rating in any calculations.

Select this option to automatically place the Customer on Credit Warning if their open Receivables balance exceeds their Credit Limit. This option must also be selected for a Customer's open Receivables to be evaluated when the Update Late Customer Credit Status utility is run. If a Customer is on Credit Warning, Sales Orders may not be entered for the Customer—except by users with override privileges. Once the Customer's Receivables open balance falls below their Credit Limit, Sales Orders may once again be entered for the Customer.

Select this option to place all new and existing open Sales Orders on Credit Hold if the Customer's Credit Limit is exceeded. The contents of Sales Orders placed on Credit Hold may not be issued to Shipping—except by users with override privileges. Once the Customer's Credit Limit is no longer exceeded, Sales Order contents may be issued to Shipping.

Select to specify an alternate number of grace days for the Customer, to override the global grace period defined at the system level in the Accounting configuration. To learn more about configuring grace days, see Section 11.1.1, “Configure Accounting”.

Specify the default Tax Zone you want to associate with the Customer. By default, the specified Tax Zone will be used on Sales Orders and Quotes for the Customer—unless a Ship-To Address in use specifies a different Tax Zone.

Display lists Tax Registration Numbers for the specified Customer.

Displays the Customer Number for the specified Customer.

Specify the Tax Zone the Tax Registration Number is valid for.

Specify the Tax Authority associated with the Tax Registration Number.

Enter the Customer's Tax Registration Number for the specified Tax Authority. The registration number is used by Tax Authorities to identify businesses and/or individuals. An Employer Identification Numbers (EIN) is an example of a Tax Registration Number.

Specify the date range the Tax Registration Number is valid for:

This is a scrolling text field with word-wrapping for entering Notes related to the Tax Registration Number.

Display lists Credit Card records for the Customer.

Highlight a Credit Card and then select this button to move the Credit Card up in the sequence of Credit Cards. Sequence numbers are automatically adjusted to reflect the change in position.

Highlight a Credit Card and then select this button to move the Credit Card down the sequence of Credit Cards. Sequence numbers are automatically adjusted to reflect the change in position.

Displays the name of the Customer associated with the Credit Card record. The name of the Customer will also be displayed.

Specify the type of Credit Card. The following Credit Card types are currently supported: Master Card, Visa, American Express, and Discover.

Enter the Credit Card Number. After the Credit Card record has been saved, all but the last four digits of the Credit Card Number will be encrypted for security purposes.

Select if the Credit Card record is active. Do not select this option if the specified Credit Card is inactive or invalid for any reason.

Enter a name to describe the Credit Card record.

By default, the Customer's Billing Address will be entered here. However, you may specify an alternate billing address for the Credit Card record using the Address lookup feature located in the lower right-hand corner of the screen. For additional documentation related to creating Addresses, see Section 8.1, “ New Address”.

Enter the month when the specified Credit Card expires. The month must be saved in the format "MM". For example, the month of January would be represented as "01".

Enter the year when the specified Credit Card expires. The year must be saved in the format "YYYY". For example, the year 2006 would be represented as "2006".

Display lists the Characteristics related to the Customer.

Select a Characteristic from the list of Characteristics designated as being available for use as Customer Characteristics.

Enter a description of the Customer Characteristic.

Select to view a list of all Contacts associated with the Account. On this screen you can manage an Account's Contacts—either by adding new Contacts or attaching/detaching Contacts from the Account. Any changes made here also update the CRM Account record. For additional documentation related to managing a Contacts associated with a CRM Account, see Section 6.1, “New Account”.

Select to view the To-Do list associated with the Account. On this screen you can manage all of the To-Dos, Opportunities, and Incidents related to the Account. Any changes made here also update the main To-Do List. For additional documentation related to managing the To-Do List, see Section 2.2, “ To-Do List”.

Select to view high-level sales history information for the Customer, including year-to-date sales, last year sales, total backlog value, and more. For more detailed Customer sales history, see the wide range of sales analysis options available in the Sales Module menu here: Sales > Analysis.

Select to view the list of Quotes associated with the Customer. On this screen you can create new Quotes or edit existing ones. You may also view historical Quotes converted to Sales Orders or Invoices if your Sales Module is configured to allow this. For additional documentation related to entering Quotes for Customers, please see Section 1.1, “ New Quote”.

Select to view the list of Sales Orders associated with the Customer. On this screen you can create new Sales Orders or edit existing ones. For additional documentation related to entering Sales Orders for Customers, please see Section 2.1, “New Sales Order”.

Select to manage Returns associated with the Customer. On this screen you can manage most aspects of the Returns process—from creating new Return Authorizations to processing Credit Memos. For additional documentation related to managing Return Authorizations, please see Section 4.1, “Return Authorization”.

Select to view information related to the Customer's open Receivables. On this screen you can manage most aspects of the Receivables process—from creating new Receivable documents (e.g., Invoices, Credit Memos, etc.) to printing out Customer statements. For additional documentation related to managing Customer Receivables, see Section 2.6.2, “Open Receivables”.

Select to view information related to Cash Receipts from the Customer. On this screen you can view Cash Receipt and cash application history, as well as enter new Cash Receipts for the Customer. For additional documentation related to Cash Receipt history, see Section 2.6.5, “ Cash Receipts”. And for detailed information about entering Cash Receipts, see Section 2.3.1, “ New Cash Receipt”.

Select to view information related to transactions involving the Customer's Credit Card(s). On this screen you can view Credit Card transaction history, authorize Credit Card pre-authorizations, and print Credit Card receipts. For additional documentation related to Credit Card history and the method for processing pre-authorizations, see Section 2.4, “ Receivables Workbench”.

Select to enter Notes related to the Customer. This is a scrolling text field with word-wrapping for entering Notes related to the Customer. Any Notes entered on this screen are for internal purposes only.

Select to review or add Comments related to the Customer. Any Comments entered elsewhere in the CRM Module related to the Customer's CRM Account will also be shown here.