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Adding Customers

Customer records must be set up before you can write invoices or enter payments for a customer. Each customer's record must have at least a customer name and the tax status (Taxable or Exempt) specified.

To add a new customer record:
  1. From the Brass Jacks Bookkeeper workspace, click the Manage Customers icon.  
  2. In the Customer List dialog box, click Add.
  3. In the Customer Detail dialog box, on the Contact tab type any information you have available. The information in the company name, number, billing address, and shipping address fields appear on invoices for the customer. You must provide at least a company name.
  4. To enter an opening balance for a newly added customer when you save the customer information, select the check box under Opening Balance.
    When selected, Brass Jacks Bookkeeper adjusts the balance when there is a new transaction.
  5. To provide sales tax rates, invoice terms, and custom data, click the Detail tab. (You must specify whether this customer's account is taxable or exempt.) 
  6. If the customer pays sales tax, select Taxable. Then, to specify the rate, select a rate description from the Tax Definition list.
    If the rate description you need isn’t in the list, you can create a new one by clicking the Tax Definition link. (For information, see Creating Sales Tax Definitions.)
    If the customer is exempt from paying sales tax, select Exempt and then type the customer’s Tax Exempt ID.
  7. To specify the typical discount for this customer, select an invoice discount definition from the Discount list.
    If the invoice discount definition you need isn’t in the list, you can create a new one by clicking the Discount link (For information, see Creating Invoice Discount Definitions.)
  8. To specify the typical payment terms for this customer, select the invoice terms definition from the Terms list.
    If the invoice terms definition you need isn’t in the list, you can create a new one by clicking the Terms link. (For information, see Creating Invoice Terms Definitions.)
  9. If you have set up custom fields, type any relevant information for this customer.
    To define the names of the custom fields, click a Custom Field link. (See Defining Custom Fields.)
  10. To provide a shipping address other than the contact address, click the Ship To tab and provide separate shipping information.
    By default, Brass Jacks Bookkeeper uses the address on the Contact tab for shipping. (For details, see Specifying a Customer's Shipping Address.)
  11. To provide electronic invoices instead of print invoices, click the Invoicing tab. Specify how to provide the invoice (PDF File or Plain Text), select the Send Invoices Electronically check box, and supply the necessary information for the customer's default invoice email message. (See Setting Up Customer Email Options for details.)
  12. To add a picture, click the Image tab. (See Adding Pictures to Customer Records for details.)
  13. If this customer has jobs associated with the account, click the Jobs tab. (For information about jobs, see the topics in the Managing Jobs section.)
  14. Click OK.
  15. If you selected the opening balance check box on the Contact tab, in the Customer Opening Balance dialog box, specify the Total Amount and other information as necessary to create the opening balance. Add any other necessary information. Click OK. (For details, see Entering an Opening Balance for a Customer.)