Initially when you are setting up suppliers, there are steps you can take to ensure best practice. They include:
- Searching for a supplier record
- Removing duplicated supplier records
- Delivery Method - set how you send suppliers remittance advice and work orders
- Bank Details - how to add your supplier bank account details
- Payment Method - record how you pay your supplier
- Payment Terms - how to delay payment to your supplier if required
- Commission - how to set up commission deductions from supplier payments
Warning
It's important that your supplier records are set up correctly before entering opening balances or accounts transactions onto Alto. Changes to settings after this will not be applied to existing transactions, only those created going forward
This article includes:
- Supplier setup
- Removing duplicated supplier records
- Account/work order delivery method
- Adding bank account details
- Payment method
- Payment terms
- Setting up commission charge
Supplier setup
To search for a supplier record:
- Click Contacts on the main toolbar
- Select the relevant contact (Supplier) from Recent & Favourite Contacts
- Alternatively, find the contact (Supplier) using the Search Contacts bar in the top right
- The supplier's Overview page will open
Removing duplicated supplier records
If you have duplicate records of the same supplier, now is the time to Archive (a record can be reactivated in future) or Delete (remove completely) any records that are no longer required.
- Click Contacts on the main toolbar
- Select the contact (Supplier) that is no longer required from Recent & Favourite Contacts
- Alternatively, find the contact (Supplier) using the Search Contacts bar in the top right
- Click Actions
- Within the dropdown menu, either click Archive or Delete
- Click OK
Account/work order delivery method
- Click Contact on the side menu
- Under Account/Work Order Delivery Method, tick the applicable delivery method(s). If you tick Email, a valid email address is required
- Click Save
Adding bank account details
To pay suppliers by BACS, you will need to enter valid bank account details.
- Click Contact on the side menu
- Click the Bank Details top tab
- Click Add Bank Account
- If the bank already exists in your system, use the Search bar, or, click a bank from the list
- To add a new bank, branch, and sort code to the list, click Add New
- Select the bank name from the Bank dropdown menu
- Enter the bank Branch Name
- Enter the Sort Code
- Enter the Postcode
- Click Ok
- Click Confirm
- The Add Bank Account Details window appears. Complete the bank account information for your supplier
- Click Add to save
Payment method
- Select the relevant contact (Supplier) from Recent & Favourite Contacts
- Alternatively, find the contact (Supplier) using the Search Contacts bar in the top right
- Click Contact on the side menu
- Click the Payment Details top tab
- Choose the Payment Method from the dropdown menu
- Click Save
Payment terms
You can defer paying an expense payable to the supplier, via Payment Terms within the Payment Details top tab. For example, if you enter 7 days, the system will not allow you to pay the supplier until the expense is 7 days old.
Setting up commission charge
- Select the relevant contact (Supplier) from Recent & Favourite Contacts
- Alternatively, find the contact (Supplier) using the Search Contacts bar in the top right
- Click Actions
- Within the dropdown menu, click Charge
- Click Add Commission
- As a minimum, enter the Commission %
- If required, choose the Expense Type which you wish to apply the commission
- Click OK
Note
Please be aware that if the agency is set up as VAT registered, Alto will deduct the commission percentage then add VAT to the commission amount