Creating a New Contract
This article will show you how to create new rental transactions from beginning to end. A new rental contract will always begin as a quote or a reservation. The contract will go through a life cycle consisting of Quote, Reservation, Order, Received, and Closed. Once you select the New Rental icon, you will be starting the contract's life cycle process.
Topics in this article include
- Steps for Creating a New Rental Contract
- Event Location
- Delivery/Pickup
- Ski Feature
- Contract Screen
- Rental Discount
- Convert from a Quote to a Reservation
- Send the Document to the Customer
- Notes
- Reminders
- Cancel Quote Configuration
- Copy Transaction
- Transaction Sub Status
Steps for Creating a New Rental Contract
Enter the first few characters of the customer or the company name.
A list of customers will populate based on the characters entered into this field. From the list, select the correct customer by clicking either on the customer's name or selecting the checkmark in the bottom right corner of the customer record.
Note: If the customer does not exist, click + New Customer in the upper right and enter the information to add them.
Once the customer is chosen, enter the rental start date by selecting the calendar next to the start field and selecting the time from the drop-down.
Note: If no time is selected, then the hours will default to the store hours.
Duration Icon - The duration icon allows users writing the contract to enter the rental period along with the return date of an item. Selecting the calculator will open a display box allowing the user to set the interval period.
Due Date - The estimated time the items are due back.
For event companies, you will be able to set the event start/end date, time, and location. In this case, you would set your start and due dates as the delivery/pick-up dates. The event dates would then be the exact dates of the event. You have the option of selecting the customer’s address on file or a different location address. You can add notes within the event location section to be printed on the contract.
Note: Make sure the event start/end dates and times are between the start and due dates. This gives your delivery guys time to deliver, set up, and pick up the event.
You can very easily indicate delivery or pickup by checking the For Delivery or For Pickup box located under the start date. When checked, you have the option of selecting the customer’s address on file or a different delivery and/or pickup address. You can add notes within the delivery/pickup section to be printed on the contract.
- Use Customer Address - This option allows you to use the customer address on file.
- Use Saved Location Address - This option allows you to use the jobsite location.
- Use New Address - This option allows you to enter a new address.
- Delivery Address (Pickup ONLY) - This option allows you to use the delivery address.
- Event Address (Pickup ONLY) - This option allows you to use the event address.
This feature allows you to add information for ski/snowboarders including name, height/weight/age, whether they are using skis or a snowboard, and what level they are on. This is an add-on feature.
Once all the dates are entered and all delivery/pick-up information is entered, click Create Quote or Create Reservation (if you don’t require payment upfront for a reservation).
You will now see the contract number, customer information, start/due back dates, and the duration along with any delivery/pick up information. Delivery and pick-up information can be shown by clicking the "+" next to the delivery/pick-up information section.
Next add the items that the customer wants to rent. To do so, just start typing either the name, key, tag, or any other information that you know about the item. Any item with these keywords in any of the item fields will populate for you to choose from. You will enter the quantity of the item the customer is to rent and click Rent Item. This will add it to the contract.
If there are any optional, choose one, and/or automatically suggested items attached to this item, you will see those listed under the item to be selected.
Once added to the contract, you will see the list of items, quantity, rate, and total fee. Want to give a one-time item or contract discount? Just click on Rate next to the line item and enter the new price or percentage discount amount. This will give only this item a discount which will show the original amount, discount percentage, and discount amount next to the item. You can also adjust the due time to be different per item for proper rate calculation if you like.
Want to give an overall contract discount? Just click the Add Rental Discount or Add Sale Discount button to the left of the totals section.
Now you're able to enter the new dollar amount or the percentage discount. Once either has been entered, click Save.
The rental discount will now show as a line item on the transaction.
Don't want the rental discount to show as a line item on the transaction? No problem. From Configuration > Company Configuration > Printing Options, you can hide discounts and damage waivers from being line items. They will still show in the Totals section.
If you have a deposit on an item while in quote status, there will be a column showing that deposit amount. You can click on it and adjust it to a different amount if desired.
Convert from a Quote to a Reservation
Now you have your customer quote. This is only a quote and will not take any quantities out of availability nor is it a firm confirmation.
When everything is on the quote and the customer confirms, you can convert the quote to a reservation. Right above the customer information, click the Reservation tab. This will automatically convert the transaction from quote status to reservation status.
Once the transaction has been converted from a quote to a reservation, the payment screen will populate. You can choose to collect payment here or click Skip Payment to collect payment later.
If you accidentally convert the quote to a reservation, just click the quote button again and the reservation will revert back to a quote.
Want to send the reservation confirmation to the customer? Click Contract above the customer information. Click Email to Customer (or Print if the customer wants a paper copy), make sure the customer's email address is entered, and add any necessary messages before you click Send.
Send the Document to the Customer
If you have the e-Signature feature and/or are set up to collect credit card payments within Essentials, you will have the option to request signature or request payment. If you have both features, you will have a drop-down to select Just Send the Document, Request Payment, Request Signature, or Request Signature and Payment.
Do you have notes or reminders to add to the transaction? Once the transaction has been created, click Add Note at the bottom under the Additional Custom Terms and Special Requests fields. Any notes you add will be added to the bottom of the transaction.
Reminders will be located at the top of the transaction until they are marked as completed. To complete, just click the check next to the reminder.
Let's say you've created a new rental transaction, but the customer never got back to you to confirm the reservation. The transaction is still in quote status. Are your quotes only valid for a certain length of time? From within Configuration > Company Configuration > Date and Time Options, you can enter the length of time you want your quotes to be valid before they are canceled.
You can even set it to where any old, unpaid reservations are canceled when quotes are canceled, too.
Copy Transaction
You can also copy a transaction, where you can add/remove items and change the delivery/event info/change customer. The most practical use is a reservation where the customer wants the same items as they had before, or someone else had the exact same thing, then you can change the start and due dates.
In configurable dropdowns, you can set a selectable sub status for Quote/Reservation/Order/Received. You can also set one of these statuses to be the ‘default’.
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