Using Solid Multi Vendors™, also referred to as 'Super Customer' or 'Third-Party Billing', allows invoices created by a DSD company to be paid to a supplier, who will then, in turn, reimburse the DSD company. Although that billing cycle is generally well understood, how to correctly set up MultiVendors and assign Customer Records to them tends to be a bit less clear. Therefore, this guide has been created to clarify the difference between situations requiring a new MultiVendor Record and what situations require a customer record to be assigned to a MultiVendor Record.
A Solid Route Accounting™ company will encounter situations regarding MultiVendors that will require one of the four following solutions:
- Create a New MultiVendor
- Bill an Independent Customer Record to a MultiVendor
- Bill a Head Office Customer Record to a MultiVendor
- Bill a Branch Office Customer Record to a MultiVendor
1. Create a New MultiVendor
A MultiVendor is not a customer; it's a supplier. We say that right off the start because this can be a point of confusion. Although a MultiVendor Record is directly linked to a Supplier Record, it resides within the Customer Record database. Therefore, the only reason that a new MultiVendor Record should need to be created is if:
- A new or existing supplier wants to start having invoices be paid directly to them for the transactions that their items are included on and will then, in turn, reimburse the DSD company.
- A supplier with an existing MultiVendor Record has an additional 'Pay To' address that specific customers are to send payment to, which is different from the address on the existing MultiVendor Record. In this case, a second MultiVendor Record, also directly linked to that same supplier, will need to be created to accommodate the two different pay to addresses.
If either of those situations applies, please follow the steps in Solid Know How Article #88 How to Create a MultiVendor in Solid Business Central™, which will guide you through all the needed steps on how to create a new MultiVendor Record.
2. Bill an Independent Customer Record to a MultiVendor
If an Independent Customer Record needs to be assigned to a MultiVendor Record, then the process is the same as for a Head Office Customer Record. To confirm that a customer record is indeed independent, in Solid Business Central™, navigate to [Datafile / Customer / View] and find the desired Customer Record. Once displayed, there should be nothing written directly to the right of the 'RT' field. If it says 'Head Office' or 'Branch of' in this space, then it's not an Independent Customer Record.
To assign this Independent Customer Record to a MultiVendor Record, please follow the steps in Solid Know How™ Article #165 How to Add a Customer Record to a MultiVendor / Super Customer.
3. Bill a Head Office Customer Record to a MultiVendor
If a Head Office Customer Record needs to be assigned to a MultiVendor Record, be aware that it will set all its Branch Office Customer Records to this MutiVendor. To confirm that a customer record is indeed a Head Office, in Solid Business Central™, navigate to [Datafile / Customer / View] and find the desired record. Once displayed, it should read 'Head Office' to the right of the 'RT' field.
To assign or confirm this Head Office Customer Record assignment to a MultiVendor Record, please follow the steps in Solid Know How™ Article #165 How to Add a Customer Record to a MultiVendor / Super Customer.
4. Bill a Branch Office Customer Record to a MultiVendor
If a Branch Office Customer Record needs to be assigned to a MultiVendor Record, it's done by way of its Head Office. To confirm that a customer record is indeed a Branch Office, in Solid Business Central™, navigate to [Datafile / Customer / View] and find the desired Customer Record. Once displayed, it should read 'Branch of ######' to the right of the 'RT' field. Once that's been confirmed, next look at its Head Office's Customer Record and verify that it has been assigned to the desired MultiVendor Record.
To ensure that the Head Office that this Branch Office customer belongs to has been assigned to the needed MultiVendor Record, please follow the steps in Solid Know How™ Article #165 How to Add a Customer Record to a MultiVendor / Super Customer.