SubscriptionBridge: recurring billing and subscription management system - Documentation

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====== Getting Started ======

===== Overview  =====

Before you can start using //QuickBooks® Sync// and successfully synchronize transactions with QuickBooks, there are a few steps that need to be taken to make sure that data can be correctly transferred between the two systems. If you are already an active QuickBooks user this should only take a few minutes.

Please __carefully review the following paragraphs__. You will be asked to confirm that certain items exist in your QuickBooks Item List, or create new ones.  

  * If you are new to QuickBooks and have not yet setup your company file, that's where you need to start. The next section provides some instructions on how to do so.
  * If you have been using QuickBooks, open your existing company file and skip the next section and go to //Editing an Existing Company//.

===== Creating a New Company ===== 

To create a new company file in QuickBooks, start the application and click on //Create a New Company//. QuickBooks' //EasyStep Interview// will take you through several, intuitive screens in which you will be asked to provide general company information. Simply follow the instructions on the screen as you fill out information about your company's name, address, basic tax information, and more.

Here are a few things to note as you answer questions during the //EasyStep// interview:

  * //Select your industry// – Unless one of the selections from the list is a direct match to your particular business, we recommend that you select: //Retail Shop or Online Commerce//. In some versions it may say //Retail: General//. QuickBooks will create your company file after you finish configuring your company. If you receive an error saving your company file make sure the selected folder has adequate file permissions.
  * //Tracking inventory in QuickBooks// - Make sure to select "Yes" if you want to track inventory.
  * //Using accounts in QuickBooks//. You will be presented a predefined list of income and expense accounts, which is partially based on the type of business that you chose in the previous step. If you are unsure which accounts you will need or not need, then accept the default settings. We will come back to this later.
  * //Preferences//. When going through the //EasyStep// interview, please note the following:
    * //Sales Tax//. Select //Yes//. The __sales tax option must be turned on__ in QuickBooks before importing transactions, even if you do not collect sales tax in your business.
    * //Sales Tax Information// (if prompted)
      * //Single or multiple sales tax//. In most cases, you'll select the first option.
      * //Enter a short name for the sales tax//. E.g. "State Tax".
      * //Enter a sales tax description to be printed on invoices//. E.g. "California Sales Tax"
      * //Enter the name of the government agency to which you pay sales tax//. E.g. "California State Board of Equalization"

Complete the rest of the interview by following the instructions on the screen. When you are done, skip the next section and go to the section entitled //Adding Necessary Items to the QuickBooks Item List//.

<note>This User Guide was written using QuickBooks Premier 2008 as a reference. Menu items and feature names used in this document may be different in earlier or more recent version of QuickBooks. We apologize for the inconvenience that this may create.</note>

===== Editing an Existing Company ===== 

If you have just created a new company file, skip this section. If you are using an existing company file, note that __even if you don't charge sales taxes__, your company file has to be setup to __allow for sales taxes__. To check that this is the case, open your QuickBooks company and select //Preferences// from the //Edit// menu. From the left-side navigation, select //Sales Tax//. On the window that appears, click on the //Company Preferences// tab. Look at the following settings:

  * //Do You Charge Sales Tax?//. Select //Yes//. The __sales tax option must be turned on__ in QuickBooks before importing transactions from SubscriptionBridge, even if you do not collect sales tax in your business.
  * //Sales Tax Items//. Make sure you have at list one item listed in the drop-down menu (e.g. "Sales Tax").

===== Adding Necessary Accounts to the QuickBooks Chart of Accounts ===== 

The next step is to review your existing //Chart of Accounts// to make sure that a number of required accounts are listed. It is important to set up the following accounts in QuickBooks. This is true regardless of whether you just created a brand-new company file or are using an existing company file.

==== Income Account ====

Since all item types in QuickBooks (i.e. the product and services that your company sells) require an //Income Account//, you need an //Income Account// in your QuickBooks company file. This account is typically called "**Merchandise Sales**". Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts// to see if you already have an Income Account in your QuickBooks company file. If not, you must add one now:

  * Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts//.
  * Click on the //New// button and then select //Income//.
  * Under //Account Name// enter "Merchandise Sales".
  * Leave the rest of the fields "as is".
  * Click //Save & Close//.

==== Cost Of Goods Account ====

This account is only required if your QuickBooks company file is setup to track inventory. Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts// to see if you already have a //Cost Of Goods Account// in your QuickBooks company file. If not, you must add one now:

  * Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts//.
  * Click on the //New// button and then select //Other Account Types > Cost Of Goods Sold//.
  * Under //Account Name// enter "Cost of Goods Sold".
  * Leave the rest of the fields "as is".
  * Click //Save & Close//.

==== Asset Account ====

Since you can import your transactions as //Sales Receipts// and //Sales Receipts// indicate that money has already been collected, QuickBooks needs an //Asset Account// to which the //undeposited funds// are allocated. This account is typically called **Undeposited Funds** (//undeposited// because you will later tell QuickBooks where the money has been deposited: e.g. you might have multiple bank accounts). 

Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts// to see if you already have an Asset Account account in your QuickBooks company file. If not, you can add it in two ways:

  - Automatically by creating a new Sales Receipt. \\ QuickBooks will automatically add an Asset Account to your company file when you create your first Sales Receipt. It is typically called //Undeposited Funds//.
  - Manually \\ You can manually add an Asset Account by following these instructions:
    * Select //Lists// and then //Chart of Accounts//.
    * Click on the //New// button and then select //Other Account Types > Other Current Asset//.
    * Under //Account Name// enter "Undeposited Funds".
    * Leave the rest of the fields "as is".
    * Click //Save & Close//.

===== Adding Necessary Items to the QuickBooks Lists ===== 

The next step is to review your existing //Item List// to make sure that a number of required items are listed. It is important to set up the following items in QuickBooks. This is true regardless of whether you just created a brand-new company file or are using an existing company file.

The actual item names (//Item Name/Number field//) can be different from the ones listed below, but the Item Type must be the one specified, and the //Account// must always be an income account.

==== Shipping Charges ====

Does you company file already have an //Item// in the //Item List// that is used for shipping or delivery charges? If yes, make sure that it has the properties listed below, and then skip to the next item. If no, add it now by following these instructions:

  * Select //Item// from the //Icon Bar// or //Item List// from the //Lists// menu.
  * Click on the //Item// button at the bottom of the page and select //New//.
  * As the //Item Type//, select: //Other Charge//.
  * As the //Item name/Number//, enter "Shipping Charges".
  * As the //Description// you may enter anything you wish.
  * Leave the //Amount// field set to 0.
  * Under //Tax Code//, specify whether this item is taxable or not. Shipping charges are often non-taxable.
  * As the //Account//, make sure to select an __income account__. For example, by default QuickBooks creates an account named //Sales: Shipping and Handling//. If this account doesn't exist, either use another income account or add it to your //Chart of Accounts// by selecting <Add New> from the //Account// drop-down on the //New Item// window.


===== Adding Necessary Sales Tax Items =====

==== Bypassing QuickBooks Tax Calculation ====

Tax calculation in QuickBooks will be bypassed and taxes will be added to a //Sales Receipt// as a "line item". That is: there are cases in which SubscriptionBridge must calculate and display taxes in a certain way, and QuickBooks should not be allowed to automatically calculate taxes on the subscription as it is transferred from SubscriptionBridge.

==== An Example ====

An example will help you understand this issue: If you are using the hosted checkout, with tax enabled, then taxes will be calculated differently depending on the customer's shipping address. A different tax rate picked from a list of possibly dozens of tax rates will be used depending on the customer's "ship to" address. These different tax rates typically do not exist in QuickBooks, where a Sales Tax Account item is associated with just one tax rate (e.g. 8.25%).

==== Required Sales Tax Items ====

In this and other scenarios, SubscriptionBridge will export tax information for the transaction as an item listed on the //Sales Receipt//, below other items (e.g. shipping charges, etc.), instead of letting QuickBooks automatically calculate sales taxes.

To properly handle these scenarios, you will need to **create two different Sales Tax Items** in your QuickBooks company file. Both Sales Tax Items __must have a 0.00 rate__.

=== Line Item Tax ===

The first Sales Tax Item must be called "Line Item Tax"

  * Select //Item// from the //Icon Bar// or //Item List// from the //Lists// menu.
  * Click on the //Item// button at the bottom of the page and select //New//.
  * As the //Item Type//, select: //Sales Tax Item//.
  * As the //Sales Tax Name//, enter "Line Item Tax".
  * As the //Description// you may enter anything you wish.
  * As the //Tax Rate// enter 0.00
  * Under //Tax Agency//, specify the vendor (tax agency) associated with this tax item.

=== Order Level Tax ===

The second Sales Tax Item must be called "Order Level Tax"

  * Select //Item// from the //Icon Bar// or //Item List// from the //Lists// menu.
  * Click on the //Item// button at the bottom of the page and select //New//.
  * As the //Item Type//, select: //Sales Tax Item//.
  * As the //Sales Tax Name//, enter "Order Level Tax".
  * As the //Description// you may enter anything you wish.
  * As the //Tax Rate// enter 0.00
  * Under //Tax Agency//, specify the vendor (tax agency) associated with this tax item.

===== Adding Necessary Customer Account =====

At least one customer account is required for transactions to be exported. Does your company file already have a //Customer// in the //Customer Center//? If yes, skip to the next item. If no, add it now by following these instructions:

  * Select //Customer Center// from the //Icon Bar//.
  * Click on the //New Customer & Job// button and select //Customer//.
  * Fill in all required fields.
  * Note: This is a generic customer account. You may name the customer //Generic Customer Account// or //Web sales//, etc.
  * Click //OK//.

===== Adding Necessary Item or Service =====

At least one item is required for transactions to be exported. Does your company file already have an item (e.g. Service, Inventory Part, Inventory Assembly, or Non-Inventory Part)? If yes, skip to the next item. If no, add it now by following these instructions:

  * Select Item from the //Icon Bar// or //Item List// from the //Lists// menu.
  * Click on the //Item// button at the bottom of the page and select //New//.
  * As the Item Type, select: //Service, Inventory Part, Inventory Assembly, or Non-Inventory Part//.
  * As the //Item name/Number//, enter the item's SKU (part number).
  * As the //Description// you may enter anything you wish. This is the name of the product or service.
  * Fill in all remaining fields.
  * Under //Tax Code//, specify whether this item is taxable or not. Shipping charges are often non-taxable.
  * Make sure to select all the required accounts. For example, all //Inventory Parts// require an income account. By default QuickBooks creates an income account named //Merchandise Sales//. If this account doesn't exist, either use another income account or add it to your //Chart of Accounts// by selecting <Add New> from the //Account// drop-down on the //New Item// window.  You may want to create a new income account for //Online Sales//.


===== Back-Up Company File =====

We strongly recommend that you backup your QuickBooks company file before using the sync for the first time.

<note important>To protect your data, regular backups should not be stored on your local computer, but rather on a separate, back-up storage unit (e.g. a different computer, a portable hard drive, a flash card, etc.).</note>

**To perform this task**

   - Open the company file you want to back up.
   - Go to the //File// menu and click //Save Copy or Backup// to open the backup wizard.
   - Click //Backup copy//, click //Next//, and then click //Local backup//.
   - If you haven't already done so, click //Options// to set your [[http://support.quickbooks.intuit.com/support/pages/inproducthelp/core/qb2k8/contentpackage/Core/File_Backup/backup_wzd_options.html|backup defaults]] and choose a location on your hard drive to store the temporary backup. Click //OK//.
   - Click //Next//.
   - Click //Save// and then click //Next//.
   - (Optional) If you want to change the name or location that QuickBooks suggests for the backup file, type your changes in the File name field and click the Save In drop-down arrow to select another location. Do not change the //.qbb// filename extension.
   - Click //Save// to start the backup.
   - QuickBooks verifies the integrity of your company file based on the backup defaults you set, temporarily closes your company file, and then creates the backup.
   - When the backup is complete, QuickBooks displays a message showing the location of the backup file. Click //OK//.

===== Next Step =====

[[QB_setup|Web Connector Setup]]

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