Dynamics GP Lockbox Processing and Write Off Functionality

This document is help in using the lockbox functionality in Dynamics GP.  Though the term lockbox is meant to represent a service provided by banks it can be used with any file representing monies from your customers.  

This definition should not need adjusting as we will manipulate our file to match it.  In this definition, we have made the following assumptions:

11)      The file will be a tab delimited file.

22)      The format type is single line, which means that the check information only takes one line.

33)      The decimal places in the file are 2.

44)      We want the invoices paid to be specific.  If there is not a match it is imported unapplied.

55)      The first record, the header, is ignored as its just text.

Other than for showing how we are changing a data file sent by your customer you should not need to go into the Lockbox Maintenance or make changes.

Data File

The data files sent to you by your customers can vary greatly.  We only need certain information from the file.  There are:

11)      Total check amount

22)      Check number

33)      Customer number

44)      Paid date

55)      Amount paid (per invoice)

66)      Invoice to apply to

77)      Row Indicator

As an example, see the screen shot below.

 

Depending on your customer you most likely will not have the check number, your customer number for them, or the row indicator.  You will add these to your file.  

The first line of your file is the header line.  The names and spelling are not important but they should stay in this order.  The first line of data is the check information.  The first column row 2 should be the check amount.  The next column is the check number.  If you have one, add it and copy down to all records.  The third column should be your customer number.  Again, enter it and copy down to all records.  The fourth column is the paid date.  This may be in your file.  If not, enter it and copy down to all records.  For the check record leave the amount paid and invoice number blank.  The last column you will enter the number 6.  This is what is called a row indicator.  6 means that it is the check information.  4 means it is invoice information.

For the detail of what is being paid you will start with row 3.  You will have already populated the check number and customer number in the above step.  The columns for Amount paid and Invoice number should be in the file you have been provided.  Copy them into these two columns.  Lastly enter the number 4 for the row indicator and copy down to the last record.

You now have the file in the order it needs to be in.  Now you will need to save it as a tab separated file.  See the image below.

 

 

  

Running Lockbox Processing

To run the lockbox processing go to the Sales Series, Transactions – Lock box entry.  You then pull up the windows below.  Do a lookup on Lockbox ID and find the Lockbox ID.  You will then need to find the file you created previously by browsing out to your computer.  The only other item required is a batch ID.  You can type in any alphanumeric characters.  When you tab off it will ask if you want to create the batch.  After creating the batch you will return to this window.  Click on transactions.

 

This will then import the transactions from your file, and like the normal cash receipts entry, will apply to each of the invoices in your file. You then be presented with the following screen.  It could have the green checkmark, which means it is fully applied, or it may have an exclamation mark for not fully applied.  If it has a red X you may have the wrong customer ID in your file.

When complete simply check the create batch and a cash receipts batch will be created.  You can then edit applied information or post to update your customer record.  This information will also go to your checkbook as a receipt.  You will then create a deposit to update your checkbook balance.

 

Taking care of Discounts and Writeoff’s

To address taking care of discounts taken on the invoices you just paid you can use the Write Off Documents feature in Dynamics GP.  You will select this from the Sales-Routines-Write Off Documents.  You will keep it using the type Underpayments.  You can filter on one customer.  Put in a write off limit.  You may want to look at your source file for the largest discount and enter it here.  You will also need to make sure that you allow write offs on the customer card under options.  That supersedes this window and without it marked with unlimited or a dollar amount, nothing will be done on this window.  After making these choices you can click on the Preview button.  

 

 

All about Landed Cost Formula

Just how much are you spending on importation? Is it worth it?

Starting a manufacturing or retail business can be tricky. You need to consider where you source your raw material supplies (manufacturing) and ready-for-sale products (retail). Clients who source materials from a different part of the globe are called Importers. They may experience miscalculation of pricing of goods the first time around because of improper cost accounting. As an importer, you should know that the cost of materials you buy is not the only amount you pay. There are other charges you may not know of yet. This is where the Landed Cost Formula comes in.

What is Landed Cost Formula?

In a nutshell, Landed Cost Formula is the full amount you spend per imported good or material. This takes into account the following: Price of Imported Good, Freight Costs, Insurance, Storage Costs, Customs Duty, Tax, Customs Clearance, and more.

Clothing Manufacturing Business

Let’s say you are a clothing manufacturing business and you need to source out raw materials from China. You will definitely need cloth, sewing materials, and the like. If you check out your supplier’s prices, they seem reasonable. However, because that is not the only money you cash out upon delivery, it is important for you to understand other expenses you will be paying. Your Chinese supplier may not know the Customs Duties and Taxes in your state, so you may talk to your customs department for more information.

How Do I Calculate my True Landed Cost?

There are some clients who complain that they only get to know how much they really spent long after their shipments have arrived. Factors like foreign exchange rates, additional customs payments, and FOB can destroy your initial costing. This is why you need to have a clear idea of all costs you may be incurring and use estimates in your computations. To make smarter decisions, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software is readily available to help you do just that and focus on running your business instead of worrying about cost accounting.

How ERP Consulting LLC Can Help

ERP Consulting LLC has a dynamic knowledge on different businesses that plan to operate with global connections. We help to install Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio so you can better choose which materials to source for your products. Our firm also offers support and after-sale services so you need not worry about improper guidance. Check out our Web site for more information at erpconsultingllc.com or give us a call at 740-951-0220.

Microsoft Dynamics GP will help you gain better control on all aspects of your business. This includes management of costs, inventory, accounting, human resources, customer relationship management, and more. Call us today and take the next step to your business’ growth!

5 Advantages of ERP Software

If you want an all-in-one software for all workflow across your business’ departments, ERP Software Systems is definitely the solution for you! Whether you import raw materials (manufacturing) or retail products from abroad, your company will surely be better off with ERP solutions. Here are the reasons why:

• Integration to a Single Software Application.

  All the processes in all departments like Finance, Accounting, Human Resources, Logistics, and Marketing/Sales will be shown to you on one screen.

• Easy Functions.

  You will be able to check orders, track inventory, see improvements in revenues and sales, and more. This is especially important to import and export clients who need to always be on the lookout for more income and minimize on unnecessary expenses.

• Unified Reporting System.

  With all the work across all departments in one application, you will have a better working knowledge of what is going on and can better analyze statistics.

• Collaboration Across Departments.

  ERP solutions will give you better visibility across all departments and will enable faster and smarter work output. Your employees can work smarter instead of harder and you will thank ERP for enabling them to do so.

• Business Intelligence Functions.

  Now your ERP system will be able to give insight for you to have better decisions. It will give you insight on how to improve a current business process, as well as identify areas for improvement.

Running a business can be difficult at the start, but if you run it smart, you can focus on growing it more than running it. Getting smart tools to aide you will allow you to earn more with less effort. If you’re looking for ERP solutions, ERP Consulting LLC can help grow your business!

We offer Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio that overlooks all including Financial Management, Languages, Business Intelligence and Reporting, Human Resource Management, Supply Chain Management, Configuration and Development, Customer Relationship Management, and Project Management.

About ERP Consulting LLC

We offer dynamic ERP solutions in Pataskala, Ohio. Our President and Manager, Michael J. Taranto, has had 25 years of success in the consulting business where he offers his experience in all aspects of running a successful business. For more information about us, check out our Web site at erpconsultingllc.com or give us a call at 740-951-0220. Let us know how we can help you grow your business and earn more today!

Fundamental Costs of Start-up Business

The country’s economy today heavily relies on various corporations, partnerships and sole proprietors. Owners, partners, directors and stockholders of these business establishments and the government practice a mutual relationship. These businessmen provide employment and basic needs of the community’s citizen while the government protects their businesses through passing statutes which regulate the mechanism of trade. Hence, every business idea will be useful to the community and to the entrepreneur who earns money through that idea. Also, businesses are essential in the country’s economic survival. Despite these benefits and advantages, not all business ideas become applied and come into existence. No matter how novel and noble an idea is, it would be in futile if you do not have the capital to start-up the application of such. So, what are the possible costs you will incur once you want to start your own business? Here are some of the costs you should consider as enumerated by ERP Consulting LLC.

• Research Cost

  Nobody would want to go into a battle unprepared; and this is the very reason why every business idea should undergo a long period of rigorous, accurate and detailed research. The research necessary before beginning your business is not entirely about your proposed product or service per se.

  Before entering the market, you should also check the financial condition of your target market, the economic status of your community and the need for the particular product or service you are about to launch.

  If you fail to conduct a well-versed research, you will be preparing to fail.

• License and Permit Fees

  Whatever your business idea is, if you are serious and are willing to pursue it, you have to be prepared of the requirements laid down by the government. Whether it is a product or service, the government will conduct inspections on the place where you are to manufacture, distribute or carry out your product or service.

  Moreover, starting-up of any business has a corresponding license and permit fees provided for by the applicable statutes in your location. You will have to file the required documents plus the fees before you can begin your business operations.

  This is one of the consequences of the mutual relationship between business owners and the state.

• Supplies and Equipment Expenses

  No business establishment can operate without the basic materials at their place of business. In fact, even service-providers need office supplies before they can start to work.

  For this reason, you should also take into account the amount you will need to pay for the pieces of furniture, machineries, raw materials and all other things you would need to create your product or offer your services to your clients or customers.

  In choosing supplies and equipment, you should remember to not just look at the price but also their durability and quality.

• Marketing Expenses

  What is a product without an end-user? What good is a service without a client or customer?

  A product, if not purchased, is nothing. Each service, without anyone who appreciates it, is for naught. Thus, every establishment shall capture their market through various marketing strategies like advertising and promotions.

  To persuade people to purchase what you offer, you have to take into consideration the fundamentals of marketing:

  • You should offer a need.
  • If not, you have to make them need it.
• Employee Fees

  Even if a business sells product alone, the owner would still need manpower to do certain acts in the furtherance of manufacturing or producing the object to be sold. More so, service-providers would necessitate employees who will be trained to carry out specific tasks for the company’s clients.

  Therefore, as an owner, you should also take into account the probable costs of hiring your employees. You can start with reading the applicable labor laws on the matter to know the minimum price of hiring the people you need, as well as their rights which you need to consider.

Manpower is the best asset of every business, you should take care of yours even before you start-up your business operations. Being an entrepreneur could be very fulfilling, financially and morally. However, you should monitor your business well; otherwise your efforts would be pointless. To help and guide you in monitoring your business, you can seek the help of experts of ERP Consulting LLC, your provider of Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio and your professional partner for growth.

Why there’s a Need to have a Mission and a Vision in Businesses?

The terms “Mission” and “Vision” are no longer new to us. Probably, we have first encountered these words in grade school where we were initially introduced to a formal organization or institution. Until today, when we have already been visited or worked at various institutions or companies, we might have still continued knowing their mission and vision statements.

But have you ever asked yourself why they have these kinds of statements? Why does every organization need to have lines painted on the walls of their office buildings or printed in every formal document they submit or file?

If you have attended business school, you could answer their difference and their purpose. For some who do not have a background on these two, they might just seem like two words with a similar meaning.

“Mission” and “Vision”

A mission statement is a short sentence or paragraph used by an organization to explain and summarize its purpose. The mission line of each company serves as both a goal for employees of the business organization to finish their tasks at hand and as a motivation to move towards their company’s growth and progress.

A vision statement, on the other hand, sets the map where the organization is headed to. It sets out the ultimate objectives of the company as well as its economic foresight to guide its leaders in making decisions for the organization.

Mission statements are short-term while vision statements are long-term.

Why should you have a mission statement?

• Coherent business plan.

  Mission statements are probably the first thing you see in every business plan. As a proprietor of a business idea, it would be advantageous to include your mission in the executive summary of the plan for your possible investors, partners or co-incorporators to know where your paper is heading to. Through these statements, they will easily find what they are looking for.

• Delineating the purpose from making profit.

  Although business establishment is pioneered to gain profits, earning money should not be your organizations sole goal. Maybe, you can incorporate the basic need in the community which you aim to fulfill or satisfy. Through the mission statements,

• Advertising scheme.

  Companies sometimes include their mission statements in their advertisements as taglines. Through doing so, they communicate the ultimate intention of their business; and people could find your product or service worthy of their time and interest through these statements.

Why should you have a vision statement?

• Providing organizational effectivity.

  Vision statements serve as the magnet of each organization. It keeps everyone in the company informed of the reason why they are doing their tasks as well as where they are going to in the future. Through orienting every member of the establishment with the true meaning of each line, their concentration and focus aligns in the same path creating the necessary cooperation inside the company.

• Guiding decision-making.

  Exemplary skill in making rational and calculated decisions is necessary whenever you start operating your own business. Once faced with difficult situations and conflicting options, you could go back to the vision statement and choose which one aligns with what your company’s plan is.

• Motivating and inspiring employees.

  Actually, corporate directors and incorporators, partners, proprietors and their employees will be benefited by the vision statement. The owners of business will have a clear plan where the company will be heading to in two, five or ten years. Meanwhile, employees would be inspired to work hard knowing where they will be after a couple of years if they always finish their tasks properly.

Not only big companies need mission and vision statements. ERP Consulting LLC, an expert in monitoring one’s business through Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio, not just encourage clients of making these statements as foundation of their businesses but will also help them to succeed through enterprise resource planning (ERP) software sales, installation, configuration, integration and support in order to provide them with expert guidance and project leadership while empowering complete control of their finances, resources and decision-making processes.

Steps to Pricing Your Imported Items

Distributors and manufacturers deal with landed cost every day. The Business Dictionary defines landed cost as “the total cost of a landed shipment including purchase price, freight, insurance, and other costs up to the port of destination.” Landed cost may also include other taxes involved in the shipment such as customs duties and VAT. Landed cost is an important factor in coming up with a pricing strategy for products manufactured. It is crucial for companies who import goods for distribution or raw materials for product manufacturing to understand how much landed cost is or how it should be calculated in order to gauge profitability and pricing margins. Here are the steps to pricing your imported items with careful consideration of the landed cost:

• Ensure you have all your costs accounted for. This pertains to all costs associated with getting your products from the supplier up until they reach your warehouse. You will be surprised with all the costs involved in your shipment. These are just few of the costs you will encounter:
  • Freight charges
  • Handling fees
  • VAT
  • Payment fees
  • Custom duties
  • Document fees
• Determine the landed cost. As defined above, your landed cost is the value of your goods, which is the supplier price multiplied by the rate of exchange (ROE), plus all the shipping fees, duties, ancillary costs, handling costs and associated costs.
• Make use of this formula to determine you selling price: (Cost of goods x ROE) + freight and shipping costs + duties and fees + markup + VAT = selling price

However, if you are a company that deals with numerous shipments abroad twice or thrice every few weeks, tracking of the costs manually would take ages for you to finish. You would need an ERP software to make things easier for you. ERP Consulting LLC is a company that provides an ERP software, Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio. Microsoft Dynamics GP is an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software systems for SMEs or small and medium-sized enterprises. It is a solution provided by ERP Consulting LLC to help businesses manage their financial transactions, inventory and operations. If you want to make use of the Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio today, call ERP Consulting LLC at 740-951-0220 or email your queries at mtaranto@erpconsultingLLC.com.

Keeping Up with Microsoft Dynamics GP

Starting a business is not a piece of cake. The same goes for ensuring the business gains traction upward as soon as it is put in place. There are so many things to worry about aside from target sales are reached – there’s all the finance aspects you need to keep track of (employees’ wages, budget, operational expenses, etc.), inventory of products and services, customer support, payroll, and so many more. In order for new businesses to grow, they need a tool that will aid them in various aspects of operations. ERP Consulting LLC recommends the use of the Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio. Microsoft Dynamics GP is a software solutions that helps small and medium-sized enterprises with their financials, inventory and operations. In summary, the software empowers businesses to:

• Manage finances and accounting

  With account-level security, it is now safer and more convenient to manage and keep track of all details of monetary transactions.

• Manage inventory

  To know what’s going in and out of both virtual and actual shelves, the tool gives you the power to track deliveries, orders, refunds, lacking stocks and vendor details of various products.

• Manage sales and service

  The tool helps you manage all sales transactions and all contracts made with clients, vendors and other resources.

• Track updates and growth

  It aids you in coming up with the data for the company’s performance in terms of sales as well as various teams’ performances on the field. It is specially designed to include analytics that will provide a visual representation of the company’s performance as a whole.

• Manage employee profiles and payroll

  You get to input all your employees’ profiles as well as encode details for their payroll. It’s a one-stop shop for HR personnel to help them manage details of all company employees.

If you want to enjoy the benefits of having to use the Microsoft Dynamics GP in Pataskala Ohio, give is a call at 740-951-0220 or email us at mtaranto@erpconsultingLLC.com.