Order processing (SOP settings)

Choose whether to use order prices on your invoices including or excluding VAT. Select either Order prices exclude tax or Order prices include tax.

How you want to handle the tax element of prices may depend on whether the types of items you are selling are exempt from tax. A price inclusive of VAT may be appropriate when selling to the public.

Once you have recorded an order you cannot change its tax basis.

• Select Allocate stock on order entry to allocate stock automatically to customer orders during order entry. The stock is allocated on a first come, first served basis.
• Clear this option to use the additional methods to allocate stock. You can allocate stock manually or based on the way that you set up your Sage 200 system. You can use these additional methods when there is insufficient stock available or to amend an allocation.

If you decide to use automatic allocation, you can print picking lists automatically. This is set on the SOP settings Printing tab.

Note: When entering sales orders using the trade counter order entry, stock is allocated to the order automatically regardless of this setting, provided there is sufficient stock available.

The picking lists detail stock items and their locations. They may also detail the batch/serial numbers assigned to an order. We strongly recommend goods are selected for despatch in accordance with the picking list.

Anomalies can arise when retrieving goods from stock, which may cause deviations from the picking list. If you are using multiple locations or you need to control the despatch process, you may need to amend the picking list to match the goods retrieved from stock.

• Select Allow picking lists to be amended if you want to amend the picking lists.

  The associated stock allocations are also updated. However, in certain circumstances you may need to amend the allocation records.

• If you clear this option, you must make manual amendments to the order allocations to resolve despatch anomalies. Alternatively the anomalies can be dealt with during a stocktake.

Before you can select this option, you must also select Print picking lists for orders on the Printing tab.

Note: This does not apply to the picking lists generated using trade counter order entry.

Choose when you want stock quantities to be updated in the Stock Control module for processed orders. Updating the stock control module removes or reduces the stock allocated to that customer.

• Select Order despatch is confirmed to update stock when the goods are confirmed as despatched.

• Select Invoice is posted to update stock when the invoice is posted.

  Select Use the invoice date on the stock history, to use the invoice date on your stock history reports.

  Clear this option to use the date that the stock is despatched on your stock history records.

Note: You cannot change this setting once there are live orders on the system.

Use these options to control when to print your invoices.

Invoices are only generated when the goods are despatched. If you have orders containing free text lines, services, and labour order lines, no despatch occurs. In this case, the order is classed as despatched and the invoice is available to print immediately. This can result in invoices being sent to customers before the services are supplied.

Select the following from the drop-down lists to choose when invoices for Free text order lines and Service/Labour order lines are printed.

• Confirm with Goods Despatched/Received

  Select this to confirm Service and Free Text lines using the SOP - Confirm Goods Despatched option. The SOP- Confirm Services Despatched option is not used.

  Both stock and free text items appear on the despatch note. This option prevents invoices being sent to customers before the services are supplied.

• Confirm as Service/Free Text

  Select this to confirm Service and Free Text lines using the SOP- Confirm Services Despatched option. The SOP- Confirm Goods Despatched option is still used for normal stock items.

  Stock and free text items appear on separate despatch notes.

• Confirmation not Required

  Select this if the service and free text line does not require despatching. After entering the order (and optionally printing the acknowledgement) the line may be invoiced in the same way as you would using the Confirm as Service/Free Text option.

Note: You can only override the confirmation settings, if you have the correct user permissions.

• Select Record details of cancelled orders for future analysis to save a history of cancelled orders. You can then analyse your cancelled sales orders.

  All orders cancelled in full are saved in the history file. When you remove individual items from an order or reduce an order quantity you can choose to save this, as you amend the order.

• Clear this option if you do not want to store cancelled orders, whether full or part.

  Note: If you clear option after saving some orders in the history file, you will need to confirm that you want to change the setting. Once you confirm this, the system will remove the stored history of cancelled orders.

This controls how your customer accounts are updated in the Sales Ledger. Transactions which are linked to a payment, are always posted to the relevant customer account immediately.

• Select Add directly to the Sales Ledger to update your customer accounts as soon as all invoices and credit notes are posted. This provides up-to-date figures on your customer records.
• If you do not select this option:
  • Transactions which have a payment linked to an invoice or credit note, are posted to the customer accounts immediately.
  • Transaction with no linked payment are sent to the Pending Posting file. The customer accounts are updated when the pending transactions are processed in the Sales Ledger.

If you choose to update customer records directly, this will affect your processing speed if you have a lot of transactions.