Track Emails Sent to Customers in QuickBooks 2014
The problem encountered by some QuickBooks users was keeping a record of emails sent to a particular customer. Did a particular invoice get emailed, or not?
The transactions themselves record that information within the transaction window. So even in past versions of QuickBooks, one could go to the individual invoice and see if it had been emailed.
Now, however, with QuickBooks 2014, it is possible to track that historical record at the customer level, in the Customer Center.
See the screenshot below.
The image shows the Email tab in the Customer Center. You can see that two emails, with invoices attached, were sent on 9/27/2013. Moreover, the invoice number and amount are also kept in the record.
Other transactions emailed will also appear in the Customer Center. Since we now have the ability to create a receipt for customer payments, those can be emailed and the record will appear here.
A copy of the entire email is not saved. So, the information shown is the extent of the information kept in the record. The date column is the date the email was sent, not the date of the transaction.
For many, this will be a very useful addition to the Customer Center.
Sending Forms to Customers by Email
Sending (emailing) transactions like invoices to customers has been a very basic feature in QuickBooks. There was one email message. You could edit that message, but it would not save anywhere. The next invoice to be emailed would require you to make the edits all over again.
The next screenshot is from QuickBooks 2013.
This screen in preferences is where you could customize the email message. Note that a customized message could be created for each of several different transaction types, but only one message per transaction type. Any other modifications had to be made at the time of sending the email, and would have to be repeated each time a custom message was desired.
The next screenshot is from QuickBooks 2014.
As you can see, multiple email templates can be created in QuickBooks 2014. Any one of several can be designated as the default, and the default template changed at will.
In addition, fields that access QuickBooks data can be used in the template so that each email will be customized according to the transaction it sends.
Here we see a template for invoices, looking for a more casual approach to the customer. Thus the name, Casual Vet Invoice.
The first (top) arrow points to a field named [Transaction-Total]. This information will pull from QuickBooks to show the invoice total for any invoice that will be attached to this email. You can see a number of other fields in the email body that will pull information from QuickBooks.
The second arrow (bottom), points to the pop up list that appears when the Insert Field button is selected.
In this new version, it is possible to create completely custom email messages, several for each transaction type, and switch between them to suit the situation.
When emailing an invoice, the following screen is presented.
If you use the Attached Documents feature in QuickBooks, note that there is now an option to include those documents along with the invoice. Note the Med Specs.pdf attachment in the screenshot. This is optional with each use, you are given the option to include or exclude attachments when selecting the Send button on this invoice.
The small paper clip icon to the right of the list of pdf attachments allows the attachment of other documents you may want to send along with the email.
The arrow points to the template, Casual Vet invoice, which is the current default. It is possible to change the template at this point in the process.
Also notice how the fields used in the custom template are now filled in with the appropriate QuickBooks data.
As more small businesses use email for transmitting customer transactions, these new features can be very useful.
Hector Garcia, CPA
Certified Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor
12401 Orange Drive #136
Davie, FL 33330
954-414-1524
hector@garciacpa.com
