20. Daily Usage - Managing Invoices

Once you’ve got the orders in your system, you’ll need to invoice your customers to collect payment for your orders. Below is a breakdown of how invoicing works in Checkout Version 3.0. First, it must be noted that invoices can never be edited or deleted. Once an invoice is created, the only way to make any type of change would be to return the merchandise on the invoice. This is for bookkeeping purposes so that there is an audit trail of every entry made in the store.

20.1 The Invoice List

The Invoice List is very similar to the Orders List. To access the Invoice List, click on the filing cabinet icon in your toolbar towards the top-left corner. Now that you’re there, take a look at the screen. The first column is the invoice number. You’ll notice that these are an uninterrupted sequence. The next column is the date that the invoice was created. To the right of that is the name of the customer on the invoice. The next two columns show the total amount of the invoice and how much remains to be paid on the invoice. The final column will indicate whether the invoice has been paid or whether there is an outstanding balance. If there is a check-mark in that column, the invoice has been marked as paid and is closed. If there is a yellow warning triangle in that column, that indicates that there is still a balance on the invoice and further collection is necessary. Above the Invoice List, you will notice the filter bar. This bar allows you to filter the invoices that were created within the last day, the last week and the last month. It also allows you to show all invoices, if you so choose. Above the filter bar, you will see the search tool. As with all other screens, if you begin typing in that search field, the Invoice List will be filtered to show matching entries, should there be any. When you find the invoice you are seeking, open it by double-clicking on it.

20.2 Receiving Payment on an Invoice

When you’ve got an invoice open, the icon at the top of the invoice will indicate whether it is “Paid” or “Unpaid”. If the invoice is unpaid, select "Pay" at the bottom of the Invoice. This will open up the payment window where you will be able to select from the following payment methods:

• Cash
• Debit Card
• Check
• Transfer
• Credit Card - For more information on processing credit cards, see section 20.2.1

Once you have selected your payment method, you will notice the total amount that is due on the invoice, and below that, if there were any prior payments made on the invoice. Below that, the total amount due will automatically be entered in the payment field. If the amount being paid is more or less than the total amount due, enter the amount of the payment over the existing entry. If the payment is greater than the total amount due, you will notice that the system shows the total amount of change due to the customer. Once everything is entered on this screen and you are ready to proceed, click on the Pay button. If the balance on the invoice has been paid off, you will notice the indicator at the top will now say “Paid”. You can always see your payment history under the history button.

If the amount paid exceeds the amount due, the difference will be automatically calculated as change. Checkout will always consider all change to be Cash.

20.2.1 Processing Credit Cards

If you are accepting credit cards outside of your Checkout software, you can simply click the Credit Card payment method, and click on the Pay button to complete the transaction. However, to make things easier on you, having a Merchant Account with Forte Payments will prevent mistakes when manually entering the amount to be charged. You simply obtain a merchant ID number and a password, enter them into your store by going to the Manager Window, selecting the General option and then entering the necessary information. When you are set to receive a payment, click on the Credit Card option on the pay window. The screen will now ask you to input the information from the credit card. This can be done by manually keying in this information, or by using an optional credit card swipe reader. If you manually enter the information, click the OK button, and then select the Process button to complete the transaction. If you swipe the card, the payment will be processed immediately when you select Process, and you’ll be ready to process another order or complete other functions in the software within seconds.

20.3 Printing an Invoice

When you are ready to print an invoice, click the Print button in the bottom toolbar. This will bring up the print dialog box where you can select your printer and the preferences. If a Star thermal receipt printer is selected, a receipt will print. You can find compatible receipt printers on our features page.

20.4 Invoice Notes and Event History

If you ever need to add a note to the invoice, simply click the bar at the bottom of the invoice labeled “Click to add note…” and begin keying in your message. When your note is complete, click on the icon to the right or press the return key on your keyboard. If you need more than one note, click on the plus (+) sign to the right of the initial note or click on the History button in your bottom toolbar. The History page gives you the ability to add multiple notes and to view every action taken on the invoice from order creation all the way through receiving payment on the invoice. Each action is recorded with a date and time, what action was taken and which employee recorded the action.

20.5 Creating a Return Order

If a customer ever returns a product, find the invoice that purchase was recorded on and bring it up by double-clicking on it. On the bottom toolbar, click on the Return button. An exact copy of the original order will be created, however, each product on the order will now have negative quantities. If the customer is not returning all of the products on the order, change the order quantities to zero for the other products and they will be removed from the return. When the return is correct, click on the Invoice button at the bottom. If the product(s) being returned require a serial number, enter those numbers when prompted. The system will not allow you to continue unless the serial numbers are entered if that option is set on the product itself. Once all serial numbers have been entered and you are on the invoice screen, click on the Pay button to process the refund for the return. Creating a return order is the same as creating a regular order, the only differences being that you are returning items to your stock instead of taking them out of your stock and you are paying the customer instead of the customer paying you.