Invoices

Invoices: General

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.

The Invoice List

To access the Invoice List, click on the Invoices (file cabinet) icon, located in the upper left-hand corner of the main window. In the displayed Invoice list

• The first column shows the invoice number. You'll notice these are an uninterrupted number sequence
• The next column is the date 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
  • A check-mark in this column indicated the invoice is paid and closed
  • A yellow warning triangle indicates there is still a balance on the invoice

Above the list is a date filter and search field, used to list and find specific invoices

Receiving Invoice Payment

Looking at an Invoice, an icon at the top of the invoice will indicate whether it's Paid or Unpaid. If the invoice is unpaid, select Pay at the bottom of the Invoice to receive payment. Select the payment method:

• Cash
• Debit Card
• Check
• Transfer
• Credit Card

The payment window will show the total amount due, total of prior payments, and balance due. If the received payment is greater than the balance due, Checkout displays the total amount of change due to the customer. (If the amount paid exceeds the amount due, the difference will be calculated as change. Checkout always considers change to be Cash.)

If the balance is completely paid, Checkout will display a Paid icon on the invoice. You can click on the History button at the bottom of the Invoice to reveal its history.

Print an Invoice

At any time, you can print an invoice by clicking the Print button at the bottom of the Invoice. This will open the print dialog box where you can select your printer and preferences. If a Star thermal receipt printer is selected, a receipt will print.

You can also set a preference to automatically print an invoice or receipt when a payment is received. This preference is set in the Manager > General tab.

Invoice Notes and Event History

To add a note to the invoice, 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 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.

Creating a Return Order

If a customer returns a product, find the invoice that purchase was recorded on and open it by double-clicking on it. On the bottom of the Invoice, 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 those products to remove them 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.

Processing Credit Card Payments

Checkout is encoded to use the Merchant Services of Forte Payment Systems (formally known as ACH Direct) to process credit card transactions. This is the only Merchant Services method integrated into Checkout. To use this feature, you would need to have an Forte Merchant Services account. To process a credit card payment, select Credit Card in the Payment window. Credit card information can be entered manually, or a card can be swiped using the optionally-purchased credit card swiper. After entering the card information, click the Process button to complete the transaction. You'll be ready to process the next transaction within seconds.

Debit cards, bearing a VISA, Master Card or other recognized logo, will be processed as credit cards. No other debit cards can be processed.

The integrated Forte credit card processing solution does not preclude you from procesing credit cards using the services of other Merchant Services providers, outside of Checkout. In these cases, just indicate Sale Invoices were paid by credit or debit cards. The Payment report will then correctly indicate the payment methods and amounts.