Pay methods & shipping providers

Pay methods and shipping providers are the reference lists that feed your purchase orders. A Pay Method is how you pay a vendor, and a Shipping Provider is the carrier that delivers your order. Because they’re used on POs, you’ll find both of these under the Purchase section of the left menu rather than under Lookups.

Before you begin

• Like purchase orders, these lists are part of the Complete edition and require a role with access to the Purchase menu.
• Set them up before your first purchase order so the Payment, Ship Via, and Ship Method fields are ready to pick from.
• Add a shipping provider before its methods — each method belongs to a provider.

Tip

When you create a new pay method or shipping provider (not when you’re editing one), a Save and add another checkbox appears next to Save. Check it before saving to jump straight back into a blank form — handy when you’re entering several values in a row.

Pay methods

A pay method is a payment option you can select on a purchase order — for example, “Credit Card”, “Check”, or “Purchase Order Account”.

Add or edit a pay method

1. Open Pay Methods from the Purchase menu to see your list.
2. Click New, or click an existing pay method to edit it.
3. Enter the Pay Method name in the Pay Method Details.
4. Click Save.

The pay methods you set up here appear in the Payment list when you create a purchase order.

To delete one or more pay methods, select their checkboxes in the list, click Delete, and confirm.

Shipping providers

A shipping provider is a carrier you receive shipments from. Each provider can have one or more shipping methods beneath it — for example, a carrier named “Express Freight” might offer “Ground”, “2-Day”, and “Overnight”.

Add or edit a shipping provider

1. Open Shipping Providers from the Purchase menu.
2. Click New, or click an existing provider to edit it.
3. Enter the Shipper Name.
4. In the Shipping Methods grid, click Add to create a method under this provider, enter its name, and save it. Click a method to edit it, or select methods and use Delete to remove them.
5. Click Save.

On a purchase order, you first choose the provider in Ship Via, and the Ship Method list then shows the methods that belong to that provider.

To delete a shipping provider itself (not just one of its methods), go back to the Shipping Providers list, select its checkbox, click Delete, and confirm.

Caution

A shipping provider needs at least one shipping method before you can save it. If you see a message asking you to add a method, add one in the Shipping Methods grid first.

Note

Because these lists drive the choices on your purchase orders, it’s worth setting them up before you create your first PO — that way the Payment, Ship Via, and Ship Method fields are ready to use.

Troubleshooting

• The Payment list is empty on a purchase order. Add at least one pay method under Pay Methods first — the PO’s Payment field only shows methods you’ve set up.
• Ship Method has no options. The methods shown depend on the provider chosen in Ship Via. Pick a provider first, and make sure that provider has at least one shipping method defined.
• I can’t save a new shipping provider. Every provider needs at least one shipping method. Add one in the Shipping Methods grid before clicking Save.
• I can’t delete a pay method or provider. If it’s referenced by an existing purchase order, it’s protected so order history stays accurate. Leave it in place, or reassign the orders using it first.

Related

• Purchase orders — where Payment, Ship Via, and Ship Method are used.
• Receiving — the next step after an order ships.
• Lookups overview — how all the reference lists fit together.