Header: allows you to set general parameters for the PO you are creating.

There are two sections underneath the Header tab: Store Information and Vendor Information. There is a also a Custom Fields and Custom Codes section at the bottom of the screen.

Store Information:

• Ordered: defaults to the current date.
  • You can change this date to whatever you want. You can either key in a new date or click on the arrow at the right of the field to bring up a minicalendar
• Buyer(optional): can be a worker in your store or whatever you wish to make it.
  • It is an option to put a little more specificity into the general PO parameters.
• Ordering Store: defaults to the current store, but you can select another store if you want.
  • The address of the store chosen will print on the PO form.
  • Beneath the Ordering Store, Electronic Ordering information displays, if applicable to this PO.

Vendor Information:

• Shipping Method: select the Shipping Method code you want to use fot the PO.
• Requested Ship Date: fields default to the current date.
  • You can change this date to whatever you want. You can either key in a new date or click on the arrow at the right of the field to bring up a minicalendar
• Cancel BackOrders After: checkbox to the left, field to the right default to the current date.
  • You can change this date to whatever you want. You can either key in a new date or click on the arrow at the right of the field to bring up a minicalendar
  • Checked = cancel backorders on this PO
  • Unchecked = do not cancel backorders
• Vendor Offer Code: key in the code provided to you by the vendor, if there is one.

At the bottom of the screen, there are three optional PO Custom Fields and three optional PO Custom Codes. 

• You can fill any of these fields in with any additional or unique information you feel is pertinent to this PO.
• It is up to you whether or not you use these fields.

Once you have set the Header parameters the way you want them

• Click on the Products tab.
• The Products screen pops up.
• This is where you will select products to put on the PO.

The Products screen is broken up into two basic components: the work screen and the selection grid.

The work screen is the upper portion, and this is where you select the products and quantity.

The selection grid is where the products display once selected to be included on the PO.

Let's take a look at the work screen first.

• The cursor defaults to the Product Number field in the work screen.
• At this point, you can scan the product you want to add to the PO,
• You can key in the product number or the value on any of the product's barcodes and press Enter,
• or you can click on the binoculars icon to the right of the Product Number field
  • Go to the Product Find screen
  • Select the product that way.

iMerchant Tip: For a product not yet on your system, key in the product number in the Product field and press Enter, or simply scan the product.

• This automatically calls up the New Product message box, where you begin the process of adding the product to your system's database.
• From there, you are taken to Product Properties, where you can fill out the pertinent fields for the product you are adding to your system.
• Or you can ignore these fields for now and fill them in later, after completing the PO.
• Once you are finished filling in the information in Product Properties
• Save it
• The system automatically takes you to the PO screen, where you can proceed as you normally would.

Take note of the Options menu at the top of the screen.

There are three options listed under this menu

Always Select Products From the Finder:  as long as the product already exists in your database, this will automatically call up the Product Find screen as soon as you key in a product number, or as soon as you scan a product, and the search criteria will already be filled out, automatically.

Use Product Finder as needed: this will call up the Product Find screen only when you tell it to by clicking on the binoculars, or when otherwise needed.

Always Check for Subscriptions: sets up the default for the Generate Customer Orders for Qualifying Subscriptions option in the work screen.

• Checked = the Generate Customer Orders for Qualifying Subscriptions field will default to being checked.

As soon as the product has been selected (regardless of the manner in which it was selected), the number in the Product Number field is underlined, becoming a link to the selected item's Product Properties page, and the other fields on the work screen become active.

At this point, the cursor defaults to the Quantity field.

• Key in the quantity you want to order on this PO.
• The Unit Cost and PO Retail Price fields fill in automatically based on the information within the system for the just-selected product.
  • The PO Retail Price field will display either the product's retail price, buying price, or MSRP value, depending on what you selected as a default under the Purchasing tab in Tools > Options
    • The Unit Cost and PO Retail Price fields will both initially come in as the item's Buying price IF the item's Product Properties page is set to Net in the List or Net field.
    • Additionally, if set to Net, the Discount % will always come in as zero.
  • You can change either of these values if needed.
• Fill in the appropriate discount percentage in the Discount % field.
  • If you have arrived at the PO Properties screen directly from Bulk Receiving
  • Whatever discount % you entered at that screen will carry over to here.
  • It can be changed here if you wish.

Status (optional): You can set up and maintain as many Status codes as you want.

Expected Arrival: defaults to the current date.

• Key in the appropriate date or click on the arrow to the right of the field and select the date from the minicalendar that pops up.

Notice, once you have selected a product and are defining the remaining fields on the work screen (Quantity, Status, etc.), the selected product is displayed in the selection grid at the bottom of the screen.

However, the product has not been applied to the PO yet.

The Generate Customer Orders for Qualifying Subscriptions checkbox applies to the Customer Order Subscriptions program.

• Checked = if any Customer Orders are scheduled to be created via the Customer Order Subscriptions program, they will be.
• Unchecked = no Customer Orders will be created automatically for any customers, even if this product has been subscribed to them via Customer Order Subscriptions.

To apply the product to the PO:

• Click on the Apply to PO button at the right of the work screen
• Press Enter.
• The product remains listed in the selection grid but no longer displays on the work screen.
• The cursor defaults back to the Product Number field, and you can select the next product to put on the PO.
• From this point, simply repeat the process until you have included all of the products to include on the PO.
  • If you arrived at the PO screen directly from Receiving, via the Add to This PO option
  • You will be returned directly to the Receiving screen after selecting this option.

During this process of adding products to the PO, the products will continually be added to the selection grid.

• For example, if you have applied eleven products to the PO, all eleven will display in the selection grid at the bottom of the screen.

The selection grid lists information for each product on the PO.

• This information is system-generated, and informational, you can't change it here.
• Notice, for example, the Receive Status column. This tells you whether a product on the PO has been received in full yet or if it is still pending.
• When adding products to a new PO, the Receiving Status will come in automatically as Pending.
• Later, when received in full the status will automatically update to Complete.

If you highlight a product in the selection grid and right-click on it, a menu appears.

• This is a Links menu, and it will take you to whichever program you select.
• Right Click helps you navigate fluidly through various applicable programs in the system.

To select a product already applied to the PO:

• Scan the product's barcode.

Or . . .

• Locate the product in the selection grid at the bottom of the screen.
• Highlight the product by clicking on it.
• The product's information is immediately displayed on the work screen.
• From this point, you can alter any information you need to (such as Quantity), and the apply it to the PO again by clicking on the Apply to PO button or pressing Enter.

If you have selected a product in the selection grid and are making changes to it in the work screen

You can cancel the changes and have the product's PO information default back to the way you had set it originally.

• Click on the Cancel button at the right of the work screen.
• The product is immediately taken off of the work screen.
• None of the information has been changed.

You can also immediately receive a product as well as soon as you have established the desired values on the work screen:

• Click on Receive
• The product will automatically be applied to the PO, and you will be taken directly to the Receiving Detail screen for the selected product.
• If you arrived at the PO screen directly from Receiving, via the Add to This PO option, you will be returned directly to the Bulk Receiving screen after selecting this option.

To delete a product already applied to the PO:

• Locate the product in the selection grid at the bottom of the screen.
• Highlight the product by clicking on it.
• The product's information is immediately displayed on the work screen.
• From the menu at the top of the screen. Select Edit > Delete Product.
• The product is immediately removed from the PO.
  • If the product has already been received, the system will not allow it to be deleted from the PO.

To view the Product Properties screen for a product in the work screen:

• Click on the product number in the Product Number field.
• You will be taken directly to that product's Product Properties screen.

To view the Vendor Properties screen for the vendor you are sending the PO to:

• Click on the vendor's name in the Vendor field.
• You will be taken directly to that vendor's Vendor Properties screen.

Notice the top of the Purchase Order Properties screen (above the work screen). This portion of the screen is strictly informational. In the upper left corner, the PO number and vendor to which this PO will go are displayed.

In the upper right corner, the number of products on the PO, total cost of the PO, total retail of the PO, total units on the PO, and number of miscellaneous items are displayed.

• These are running totals and are automatically updated as you add products to the PO.

Miscellaneous: is an optional screen that allows you to attach miscellaneous items to the PO.

Miscellaneous items will be charged for but are not inventory items

• such as service charges, display racks, etc.

If you have a miscellaneous item to attach to the PO

• Key in a description of it in the Description field.
• Click on the Add to PO button at the right of the screen.
• Fill in the remaining fields.
  • Unit Cost
  • Retail Price
  • Reason (optional): something you can define that makes sense to you.

Once you have set the parameters the way you want them

• Click on the Apply to PO button at the right of the screen.
• The miscellaneous item is now attached to the PO and displays in the selection grid at the bottom of the screen.

Repeat this procedure to add as many miscellaneous items as you need.

Notice the Notes toolbar icon at the top of the Purchase Order Properties screen.

• You can access this from any of the three tab screens (Header, Products, and Miscellaneous).
• There are three types of Notes for POs:
  • PO Notes
  • PO Product Notes
  • PO Miscellaneous Notes.
• Click on the Notes icon, you will get the type of Note that is appropriate to the screen you are in.

To select one of the three types of Notes

• Click on the arrow to the right of the Notes icon.
• A menu appears, displaying the types of Notes available.
• Click on the type you want.
• If a Note exists for the Note types displayed, a checkmark will appear to the left of it. If there is no checkmark, no Note currently exists.

Once the Note window opens up, you can create a Note, update a Note, or delete a Note.

The Undo toolbar icon deletes all changes made to the PO since the last Save.

If you have not saved the PO, Undo will delete the entire PO.

The Sales toolbar icon open up the Sales window for whichever product you have highlighted.

• Next and Prior navigate you to the next (or prior) PO in the system--helping you to navigate through POs easily.
  • Please note, you can also use the Alt-Page Up (Next) or Page Down (Prior) keys on your keyboard to navigate through POs.

When you are finished creating the PO, save it by clicking on the Close toolbar icon.

To print the PO

• Click on the Reports menu at the top of the screen.
• Click on Print PO (number). The PO will print.
• The printed copy will automatically be sorted by product description and number.

To access an existing PO:

• Click on the Purchase Order icon in the iMerchant toolbar.
• The Find Purchase Order screen appears.
• Find the PO by its number
• Click on the Properties button.
• You will be taken to the Products tab screen portion of that PO and can, at this point, make any changes to the PO you want.

To delete an existing PO:

• Once you have accessed the PO you want to delete, on the PO Properties page
• Select Edit > Delete PO from the menu at the top of the screen.
• A prompt box asks if you want to delete the PO.
  • If no, choose No.
    • The PO is not deleted.
  • If yes, click Yes.
    • The PO is deleted.
    • Only users with security access to delete POs will be able to do this.
• Once a PO has been deleted, you are automatically returned to the Find PO screen.
• The just-deleted PO appears in the grid at the bottom of the screen, with a strikethrough line running through it.
• You can reactivate the PO, if you wish.
  • To reactivate a deleted PO
  • Select it from the grid.
  • A message prompt appears, asking if you would like to restore the PO.
  • If you select Cancel
    • You are returned to the PO Find screen, with the deleted PO still having a strikethrough line running through it.
  • if you select Yes
    • You are taken to the PO Properties page for the PO.
    • When you close out of PO Properties the PO will now be active, and will no longer have a strikethrough running through it in the grid.

You can also reactivate a previously deleted PO at a later point.

• Run a search for existing POs. But before running the search, be sure that the View > Show Deleted Items selection from the menu at the top of the screen is checked.
  • If it's not checked, deleted POs will not display after the search is run.
  • If it is checked, any POs that have been deleted at a prior point will display, along with the active POs, in the grid at the bottom of the screen.
  • The deleted POs will have a strikethrough line running through them.
  • Select the PO.
  • A message prompt appears, asking if you would like to restore the PO.
  • If you select Cancel
    • You are returned to the PO Find screen, with the deleted PO still having a strikethrough line running through it.
  • If you select Yes
    • You are taken to the PO Properties page for the PO.
    • When you close out of PO Properties the PO will now be active, and will no longer have a strikethrough running through it in the grid.

To change the vendor on an existing PO:

• Select Edit > Change Vendor from the menu at the top of the screen for the selected PO.
• The Vendor Find screen appears.
• Select the vendor you want.
• You will be brought back to the PO Properties page, and the vendor you just selected will now be in the Vendor field near the top of the screen.
• Only users with security access to delete POs will be able to do this