Add Customers and Vendors <Top>
In preparation to adding New Customers and Vendors into BusinessMaster, it is advised that you plan your naming convention so that your customers and vendors can be accessed readily throughout the system.
ID Naming Convention
Below is our suggested Customer/Vendor ID naming convention:
Suggested ID Convention = X-XXX001
The first is an Indicator Letter (preceding the dash separator) and the letters in our conventionwill are: C = Customer, V = Vendor, E = Employee, or O = Other.
The next 3 characters are a unique code determined by your company policies (the suggested method is the first 2 letters of the first name of the company and the first letter of the second name, if available).
For example: Dreamhouse Contracting = DRC
If they were a customer, their ID code would begin: C-DRC… If they were a vendor, their ID code would begin: V-DRC...
The last 3 digits provide a number sequence to differentiate between entries with common prior characters.
For example: Customers could include: Dreamhouse Contracting = C-DRC001
Dreeson Company = C-DRC002
Vendors could include: Cabinet Installers Inc. = V-CAI001
California Installation = V-CAI002
You can also create multiple accounts for the same customer, vendor, employee or other entity by using different numeric extensions. These could be necessary when different combinations of shipping/billing addresses are involved.
For example: Big Company (Main office) = C-BIC001
Big Company Division (T.I. Site) = C-BIC002
Once you have determined a basic Naming Convention, there are 5 basic steps to adding new Customers and Vendors into BusinessMaster:
Open the AddressBook
Click on the Address Link from the BusinessMaster Main Menu, then click on the Add Address link listed in the menu that pops up. There is also an Add New button in the column on the Switchboard that opens the AddressBook in Add Address mode.
Create New Customer/Vendor ID Code
Each customer and vendor in BusinessMaster must have at least one unique ID which will be referenced throughout the system.
With the Address form open, you will see the Customer/Vendor ID, Name and Type fields at the top of the form:
Click the Add button located at the bottom right of the Address form. This places the cursor in the ID field, ready to enter a new customer or vendor ID.
Enter Company Name
Once you have entered the unique ID, press the Tab key on your keyboard to go to the Company Name field. Type in the name of the customer that you wish to add to the system.
Select the Type
Select the company type for the contact information being added. C = Customer, V = Vendor, E = Employee, or O = Other. You can press the appropriate key on the keyboard, or click on the arrow in the Type field which will then bring up a combo box from where you can choose the type by clicking on it with your mouse cursor.
Enter Contact Information for Customer or Vendor
Now you are ready to go through the tabbed screens to enter the contact information for the customer or vendor being added.
The Notes tab is the first tabbed screen starting from the left. You can enter any notes you have for the customer or vendor here.
Click the Contact-General tab. Enter in the customer or vendors main contact data here in this screen. Remember that pressing the Tab key on your keyboard will quickly take you from one field to the next while entering in addresses and phone numbers, etc.
Click on the Contact-BillTo tab. If the customer or vendors Billing Address is the same as its main address, you can click the Same button to make it the same in the system. If not, use the tab key on the keyboard to go through the fields and enter in the Billing Address information.
Next click on the Contact-ShipTo tab. If the customer or vendors Shipping Address is the same as its main address, you can click the Same button to make it the same in the system. If not, use the tab key on the keyboard to go through the fields and enter in the Shipping Address information.
Note: Multiple BillTo/ShipTo Addresses: If you have a customer or vendor with multiple shipping or billing addresses, simply click the Duplicate Record button. This copies the information into a new record. Edit the ID so that it is unique from the other entries of the same customer or vendor, but related in its naming convention. Next edit the shipping and/or billing address for the new record. Do this for as many different shipping and billing addresses as necessary.
Click the CustomerInfo tab. Here you may enter Customer payment and credit terms. Pressing the {Tab} key on your keyboard will take you through each field here for adding the desired information. The contact information here is the same as was entered forthe BillTo contact information. If you would like information on how to add or edit the Customer terms, click here.
Click the VendorInfo tab. Here you may enter Vendor payment and credit terms. Pressing the tab key on your keyboard will take you through each field here for adding the desired information. Click here if you would like information on how to edit the Vendor Status options.
Click the Contacts tab. Use the tab key on your keyboard to walk through the fields here and enter helpful notes, comments, and reminders regarding this customer or vendor. These entries are for your reference only and the customer or vendor will not see them.
Click the Files tab. Click inside the Description field and enter a description for the File being linked. Next click inside the big white window beneath the Description and Path fields. This will activate the Insert Object menu button up on the BusinessMaster main toolbar. (Click here to see a picture of the Insert Object button.) Click on this button to open up the Insert Object file selection screen. From this screen that pops up, click the browse button to browse and select the desired file. Click the OK buttons to get back to the Files tab. Double-click the big white window to view your attached file.
Edit Customers and Vendors <Top>
Click on the Address Link from the BusinessMaster Main Menu, then click on the Edit Address link listed in the menu that pops up. There is an Edit button in the Address column of the Switchboard that also opens the AddressBook in Edit mode.
Note: You can click the "Edit Customer", or "Edit Address" button when working with customers and vendors in the Purchasing Manager, or the Projects Manager. Clicking these buttons will link you directly to that customer or vendor contact information in the Edit Address form.
Find the Customer or Vendor to be Edited
Use the "Search For" drop down menu to locate the customer or vendor by scrolling down the alphabetic listing. If you have a middle wheel button on your mouse, you can use it to scroll through the address menu as well. If that does not produce fast results, then click in the Company Name field, or the ID field, depending on which you want to search by, then click the Find button (or press {Ctrl+F} on you keyboard) to bring up the Find Tool. Type the Company Name or ID in the Find What field, and then click the Find Next button. If you don't know all of the Name or ID, you can type asteriks (*) before and/or after the part of the Company Name or ID in order to search by the part of the Name or ID that you know. An asterik before the part will search for that part with anything before the part, and an asterik after will search for that part with anything after it. Asteriks before and after the part of the Name or ID you know will search in both directions.
Edit the Fields
To edit the customer or vendor, simply locate the desired field, highlight the data in that field with your mouse (click and drag), then enter the new data. You can then press the tab key on your keyboard to tab through the fields and edit any other fields that need editing. The changes you make are automatically saved.
If you change contact information on the Contact-General screen, and want the changes to be duplicated for the Billing and/or Shipping information, then click on the BillTo and or ShipTo tabs and click the Same button, located towards the upper right hand corner of these screens.
Note - When wishing to view but not edit Address information, it is advisable to use the "Add Address" button on the main Address menu. This will allow you to view but not edit (or accidentally alter) Address data.
Add and Edit Customers Terms <Top>
The Customer Terms Manager is for editing customer net payment term options for their accounts. These terms are set for customers in the CustomerInfo screen in the AddressBook.
How to Add a Customer Term
Open the Customer Terms Manager from the Addressbook Main Menu.
To add a customer term, click on the Add Button. This takes you to a new record entry on the form. Enter the name of the term, "Net 60" for example. Then press the tab key on your keyboard to place your mouse cursor in the next field and enter the decription of the new term. For our example, we'll say "Net 60 days from Invoice Date". When you are done adding terms, click the close button.
How to Edit a Customer Term
Open the Customer Terms Manager from the Addressbook Main Menu.
To edit a customer term, simply highlight the text in the field that you wish to edit. Type in your changes and when done making all your changes, click the close button. Your changes will be automatically saved.
Add and Edit Vendor Status <Top>
The Vendor Status Manager is used to set the types of statuses you have to define a Vendor which refers to your ability to Purchase from them. The default statuses set in BusinessMaster are Authorized, Approved and Certified. The status is set for your vendors in the VendorInfo screen in the AddressBook.
How to Add or Edit Vendor Statuses
To add a vendor status, click the Add Button. This takes you to a new record entry. We use numbers for the name of the statuses, so enter the name of the term, "4" for example. Then press the tab key on your keyboard to place your mouse cursor in the next field and enter the decription of the new status. For our example, we'll say "Suspended". When you are done adding statuses, click the close button.
To edit a vendor status, simply highlight the text in the field that you wish to edit. Type in your changes and when done making all your changes, click the close button. Your changes will be automatically saved.
Edit Customer/Vendor Files <Top>
Click the Files Tab in the AddressBook while viewing the Company you wish to associate files with, or edit existing file associations for.
Enter a simple Description in the Description field, or find an existing record with the record selector and edit the existing Description if you wish.
Click with your mouse cursor in the white area.
Click the Insert Object button from the main menu.
In the Insert Object dialog box, specify a path to the file. If the path is unknown, then click the Browse button.
Any file on your network can be linked to. Most files will display as icons when attached, but Microsoft Word and Excel and bitmap files by default will display where you can view the contents, unless you check off the Display as Icon box.
Select the Display As Icon check box if you want these types of objects to appear as an icon instead of as the object itself. Displaying these types of objects as an icon can be helpful when an object contains supplementary information that doesn't have to be displayed. Displaying an object as an icon also uses less disk space.
If the application being copied from supports OLE drag-and-drop editing, the file can be dragged directly from Windows Explorer or the desktop instead of using the Object command.
The size and proportions of the object can be adjusted after being pasted.
BusinessMaster running on Access 2000, and 2002 should show jpegs and gifs as images, but it has been reported in some cases that it will not work with Access 2002. If that is your experience, and you need to show the image instead of it displaying as in icon, then convert the image to a bitmap first.
In Access 2003, the only image format that will show as an image is bitmap (.bmp).
