Items FAQ

Item Frequently Asked Questions

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1. How can you change an item’s inventory type?

While it is simple in iPoint to change an inventory type (you simply change the dropdown item) it is not so easy when it comes to QuickBooks. QuickBooks will not let you change the inventory type of an item after it has been used. But have no fear, you still have options.

1. In QuickBooks, find the item to be changed.
2. Make adjustments so there is zero inventory for the item.
3. Mark the item as inactive.
4. Rename the QuickBooks item. We recommend adding “.old” to the end of the name.
5. Now, go to iPoint and open the item you want to modify.
6. Change the Inventory Type to the correct type.
7. Clear the QuickBooks Item Name field under the Product Image
8. Click the Push as New button.
   

There you have it. Your inventory type has now been changed in iPoint AND QuickBooks.

Update: We now have buttons to do this work for you.

• To adjust a single item, go to Items module > Item Details > Compare button. On the popover window, there is a new button: Convert QB Item to non-inventory. Clicking this button takes care of all the steps above.
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  If you’ve decided to covert ALL of your inventory in QB to Non-Inventory, there are a couple of steps you need to take!
• First, navigate to Settings > QuickBooks > Items and check the box to Push All Items as Non-Inventory.
• Then, to adjust your entire item list from inventory to non-inventory, go to Items > Options > Views > QB Sync List > Options > Advanced (tab). Click the red Convert All Item to Non-Inventory in QuickBooks. This will do the above-listed steps for every item in your database.

Note: This process changes every inventory item that has been previously synced to QB regardless of any sort or filters applied to the item list. If the item has not been synced or is currently a non-inventory item, it will be skipped during the conversion process. You will need to be in single user mode in QB.
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2. How does iPoint detail with Special Order items (like Lutron Shades)?
If you have an item that you don’t want to add to your Items database, but would still like the ability to add the item to a proposal/work order/project, then request and track that product through installation, you may want to create an item called “Special Order” in your Items list.

Step 1: Create a NON-INVENTORY item, and name it something like “Special Order”

*We generally recommend creating an item for each “Special” item category. Such as “Special Order – Shade” – This will save you time in the long run for items you commonly have to special order.

Step 2: Add the “Special Order” Item to your Designer, Estimate or Invoice, and enter the cost and price for the item. If you don’t know what the final price will be, you can use this field as a “budget” and use a change order (in the case of a Sales Order) or change the price of the item once final pricing has been established. This is also a good place to add a description specific to THIS item.

*Remember, when you add an item to your design, estimate or invoice, the item is a “snapshot” of the item, at the time it was added. So you can update any information about this “Special Order” Item without affecting any other invoices or proposals that item is being used.

Step 3: Select the Item in the Designer by clicking on the Item name:
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Step 4: Click the “Override Tab” of the Item pop-over. (This CAN be done after the proposal has been converted to a Sales Order)

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Step 5: Rename the Item with your Special Order Item Name and Part # of your Special Order Item.

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Step 6: You can proceed to Request the Product as you would any other Item and it will appear in the Purchase Request Manager as the correct Item Name and Part Number

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3. Can an Item have multiple labor phases?

In the American frontier, many occupations required you to be a jack of all trades and perhaps king among them was the pioneer doctor. Pioneer doctors were regularly tasked with being general physicians, dentists, pharmacists, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and more. As they were often the most educated person in town, doctors sometimes took on even more diverse roles. David “Doc” Swinson Maynard, a physician in Washington Territory in the 1850s, had his finger in pretty much every pie in the bustling village that is now present-day Seattle. In addition to his physician duties, he was the hospital administrator, druggist, superintendent of schools, justice of the peace, lawyer, notary public, and enterprising businessman.

Items Are Like Pioneer Doctors

Items, like pioneer doctors (okay, okay, so it’s kind of a stretch), often require labor above and beyond one single labor phase. That’s why iPoint makes it easily to add multiple labor phases to a single item—allowing you to plan for all of the necessary labor time on a work order, as well as get paid for each of those labor phases.

Setting an Item’s Labor Phases

An item’s primary labor phase is set in the Items module, in the main Product Details tab.

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Setting Additional Labor Phases

Any additional labor phases should be added as accessories to the item. For example, programming a TV would be beyond the primary labor phase of System Install.

To add additional labor phases to an item:

1. Go to Items module > Accessories Tab
2. In the next available Item field, add your Labor Phase; for example, Programming
3. Enter the number of hours in the Qty field

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Note: The accessory Default checkbox is ticked by default—meaning that this additional labor phase will show up as an accessory to the item each time you add the item to a proposal.

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4. What do I do when I change vendors for buying items?

Sometimes you will need to stop ordering an entire brand of items from a specific vendor, and start ordering it elsewhere. Maybe you just prefer buying your items from a different vendor and need to switch (kind of like how you stopped buying your pants from Walmart and now shop at Target). Or in reality, perhaps you now simply have to start buying items from a manufacturer through a different vendor. For example, say all Middle Atlantic products now need to be ordered through Legrand AV. Making the switch in iPoint can be easy with these steps:

1. Create the new Vendor you need to start ordering from.
2. Go to your Items module
3. Find an item made by the manufacturer that needs to be changed and open up the details of the items.
4. Inside the details of the item, in the middle, change the default vendor to the new vendor you would like to start ordering from.
5. You can edit multiple items simultaneously using the bulk edit option.

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5. How do I send items back to a vendor in iPoint?
# Create an RMA to record all the information about the return

1. Go to Items > Stock (tab) and create a manual stock adjustment [ Read How ]
   • Set the adjustment Type to Return to MFG.
2. In QuickBooks, go to the Vendor menu and select Enter Bills
3. When the bill opens, there is a Credit option at the top. make sure you select Credit (rather than the default Invoice)
4. Enter the item you have returned along with the price you will be refunded
5. QB will adjust inventory to reflect the return of the item. It will also leave the credit on the vendor account to use to apply to another bill later on.

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