One of the most significant features within MarketTime is the ability to enter in Line Item orders for your records, or for transmission to your customers and/or Manufacturers.
The process below is written with the "Mouse-less Item Entry" option enabled.
What you'll learn
- How to create a Line Item order
- How to make adjustments to items, their quantities or discounts as needed
- How to transmit orders to customers and Manufacturers
To begin writing an order, use the New Order option found under Orders in the Navigation Menu, or on the Dashboard.
Selecting a Customer
Select a customer to begin writing an order.
You can toggle between searching by Ship To or Bill To information using the toggle next to the Search field.
When searching by Bill To information, clicking on a customer will allow you to see it's additional Ship To locations to choose from.
The Search feature is similar throughout the site, and the Advanced option can be used to search with more accuracy if needed.
Once you've selected your desired customer, click the Line Item Order button to begin the process.
To view any in-progress orders you may have started but haven't returned to yet, you can use the Unfinished Orders button at the top of the window to filter those orders.
Adding Items
Adding Items on the Basket Tab
The most efficient way to begin adding items to your order is to filter by Manufacturer using the drop-down (1), and using the Search field to type in an Item Number (2).
The cadence in which the Basket tab allows you to enter in items quickly, and without the need to use your mouse, is : Item Number ENTER Quantity ENTER as shown below:
Adding Items on the Search Items Tab
Alternatively you can click on the Search Items tab to view the items to browse through. The Advanced option can also aid you in searching (allowing you to filter by Manufacturer, whether or not an item is available, etc.).
While browsing items on the Search Items tab, you can toggle your view between List, List with Thumbnail, and Grid view as well:
To select items, you can enter your desired quantity and press ENTER, or simply click the "+" button to add the item to your order to add it using the Minimum Quantity.
You can change the quantity you've chosen by clicking the Add/Save button, using the "+" or +-" buttons, then clicking Save to save your changes.
Additionally, you may add an additional copy of that item to your Basket from this button as well. This can be done multiple times to add as many copies of that item as desired.
This feature requires the "Enable to allow add Duplicate Items in Order" feature enabled on the Company Info screen.
Regardless of which method you choose to use when adding items to your basket, when selecting or updating the quantity of an item, you will be notified if you've broken the Quantity Increment of the item:
Using the "Selected Customer" toggle
When you are adding items via the Search Items Tab, you may notice the "All Items"/"Selected Customer" Toggle. Clicking on "Selected Customer" will allow you to see all items that this customer has ordered for the selected manufacturer, if any; as opposed to the default "All Items" toggle that is selected, which shows All Items the manufacturer has available.
Item History
In addition, you can use the Item History button for each item to see that customer's history ordering that particular item;
As well as the ability to filter the Search Items tab to view only items your customer has ordered within the last 6/12/24 months:
For items that have multiple Size, Color, or Style options, the icon will be different, and will allow you to view history for each option as well.
While adding items, you can toggle back and forth between your Basket and browsing items to see information about this customer's "session", including number of POs, Order Total, etc.
This screen also allows you to choose which Shipping Location you are writing your order for, by clicking the Switch button next to the Ship To location shown on-screen:
The customer may still be edited on this screen using the corresponding buttons next to each piece of info you'd like to update (Bill To, Ship To, Contact Info).
Basket
Here you can edit quantities, discounts, or continue to add items using the Search option as needed.
The Promotions icon below your Basket will show you any applicable Promotions for the relevant Manufacturers you have items selected for.
Minimum Met allows you to check the minimum for any Manufacturers you've added items in your basket for:
The "Sequence ID" filter coupled with the "Sort" toggle allows you to order your items in a variety of different ways:
Sequence ID: Sorts your items as they were added to the Basket.
Manufacturer: Sorts your items by Manufacturer.
Item Number: Sorts your items by Item Number.
Unit Price: Sorts your items by Unit Price.
You may also filter by Manufacturer using the associated filter:
Once you're satisfied, click the Finalize Order button at the bottom of the screen to complete the rest of the Order.
Bulk Editing Items
The Bulk Edit option allows you to select items on your order, and edit them all at once.
You'll select your items (1), click the Bulk Edit button (2) and choose how you'd like to edit the selected items in the resulting popup (3).
This feature allows you to edit information such as the Quantity of the items, Discount, Price Code, Unit Price, Notes, and even the Name.
Once you've made the desired changes, click the Apply button to confirm your changes.
Deleting Items
Items can be removed from the order by selecting the item and clicking the Delete button:
Adding a Custom Item
Creating a custom item that may not be found in your Manufacturer's catalogs for your order can be done using the Custom Item button, and filling out the relevant information for your item.
Finalizing an Order
On the final step of the Order Entry process, you'll enter information related to your order such as Order/Ship dates, Ship Method/Payment Terms, and any applicable notes.
The customer's information may be changed/updated as needed as well, by clicking on the corresponding Edit buttons. This can be done for the Customer and their Contact as well.
Fields marked with an asterisk are required to Save/Transmit your order. Fields that are bold have not been automatically filled out, and are required as well.
When selecting a Ship Method that requires an account, a relevant window will appear to allow you to select the applicable account that may already be in the system, or add a new one if needed.
When adding a Payment Term such as Discover, Master Card, Visa, or American Express, you'll be given a window to enter in the relevant information for that card.
The Save Card to Retailer option is checked by default, so you can use this card on future orders.
If this is a one-time use card, uncheck the option, and it will only be saved to this order.
If there is a Payment Term saved in the system you'd like to use, change the drop-down from "Add Card" to the relevant payment information:
Once finished, click Save Card Info to return to the order.
Additional Features/Tasks
The various options are found at the bottom of your screen:
Delete: Deletes the current order on-screen. This action can not be undone.
Promotions: This will show any applicable Promotions for this order. Click the green "+" button to add a Promotion to the order:
Discount: This button allows you to discount your order as a whole, letting you choose between discounting by percentage or dollar amount.
Print/Preview: Will allow you to view/print a PDF copy of the order on-screen and print if desired.
Track Payment: Allows you to view any Invoice/Commission information for this order.
Transmitting an Order
Once your order is complete, you may use the Send Order button also mentioned above to transmit the order to who needs to receive it.
Send Order: Allows you to choose to whom and how you'd like to send your order.
(1). Manufacturer
(2). Customer (with Bill To/Ship To toggle to choose the relevant email)
(3). Buyer/Contact
(4) Salesperson on order
(5). CC's you, the user if not the same as Salesperson on order.
(6). Includes a PDF with UPC Barcodes for items within this order.
Additionally, the Mark as Sent button allows you to mark the order as transmitted, which is handy if you know the Manufacturer already has this order (1).
The Item Without Image toggle allows you to choose whether or not the emailed copiesof this order will contain item images (2)
We recommend not enabling this option for large orders, as it may cause issues in your customer receiving it due to the large file size. All orders sent to customers from MarketTime include a link in their email that allows them to retrieve a copy of their order with images.
The Save and Finish button will save the order to be edited/transmitted at a later date.
Your orders can be viewed and opened back up to edit/transmit by navigating to the View Orders screen and clicking the Edit button found to the right side of the order.
FAQs
Below are some frequently asked questions we receive when Salespeople write line item orders:
Help! I can't see manufacturers or items when I try to write an order.
If you (as a sales agency admin) or your salespeople report that they cannot see items or manufacturers on the line item order screens, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the Salesperson's profile page
- Click Manufacturers
- Click Assign
- Click Save