Hi @CharlieB65,
I can see that you're looking for the best way to record what you receive from purchase orders or bills paid to suppliers.
It gets tricky when the suppliers don't fulfill the entire order and there are delays of 1-3 weeks, making it hard to figure out what's missing.
I'm here to assist you in addressing this challenge effectively.
To track customer orders and purchases with ease, we can utilize the Progress Invoicing feature in QBO. This feature allows us to monitor the quantity ordered and the items delivered, ensuring a clear balance between them.
Here's how:
STEP 1: Turn on the Progress invoicing feature in QBO.
- Go to Settings. Then select Account and Settings.
- Select the Sales tab.
- In the Progress Invoicing section, click edit. Then click it on.
- In the Update your invoice template? window, select Update.
- Select Save, then Done.
STEP 2: Create a bank deposit. Use the A/R category.
1. Go to the New icon.
2. Under Other, click Bank Deposit.
3. Fill out the necessary information:
- RECEIVED FROM: name of the customer
- ACCOUNT: Accounts Receivable.
- PAYMENT METHOD: choose the method used by the customer
- AMOUNT: received amount.
4. Click Save.
STEP 3: Create an Estimate and fill out the field provided.
1. Go to the New icon.
2. Under Customers, click Estimate.
3. Fill out the necessary information, then Save.
STEP 4: Copy the estimate to the purchase order.
STEP 5: After the purchase order is fulfilled, create the invoice from the estimate and send it to the customer.
STEP 6: Apply the advanced payment to the invoice.
However, I recommend contacting your accountant for best practices.
If you want to add estimates to the project, you can check out this article: Create and Manage Projects.
If you have other concerns aside from progress invoicing, please don't hesitate to reach out. Have a great day!