The Purchase Order System is a great feature that allows you to have a complete Purchase Ordering system in your app! Not only can your clients easily place new orders, but they can also submit repeat orders just as easily. In the App Dashboard you can manage your sales team, their clients, as well as all of the orders placed within your app. You can also send your clients the invoice for their orders right from the app dashboard!

Now that you know a little bit about the Purchase Order System feature, let’s go over what you need to do in order to set up the feature in the App Dashboard, then how your clients will use the feature, and finally how to manage the feature in the Admin Control Panel found in the App Dashboard. 

Before your clients can use the Purchase Order System Feature you’ll need to make sure it’s fully set up in our system. Here’s what you’ll need to set up before your clients can begin to use this feature:

When you’re in the Admin Control Panel of the Purchase Order System in the App Dashboard you’ll see on the very right the Settings Tab.

Here is where you’ll adjust the overall settings for the feature. Let’s go over all of the options in the Settings Tab.

In the Phone Number field type in the phone number that you’d like users who are not already registered as clients in the feature to call in order to be added as a client and gain access to the feature.

The Show Prices toggle allows you to show or hide the prices of your products in the feature. This is a great option if you want to encourage your clients to reach out to your sales team for product’s prices and availability. 

The Currency field allows you to change the currency type used in the feature. The default currency is USD, but you can change this to GBP, EUR, JPY, or any other currency type.

The next three toggles are directly related to steps in the ordering process. 

The default ordering process is as follows:

Step 1: The Client logs-in to the feature and adds items to their cart placing an order in-app which then sends a push notification to their assigned Sales Rep notifying them of the new order.

Step 2: That Sales Rep then reviews the order and approves the order in-app.

Step 3: Once the order has been approved by the Sales Rep the Client receives a push notification notifying them and they confirm the order in-app.

Step 4: The Manager views the order in the Admin Side and once the order has been shipped sends the Client the invoice for the order in the Admin Control Panel.

Don’t worry, we’ll go over this process more in-depth later in this article. 

The Requires Sales Approval toggle allows you to add or remove the requirement for your Sales Reps to approve an order before it can be fulfilled. Similarly the Requires Client Approval toggle adds or removes the requirement for the Client to confirm the order after the Sales Rep approves it for the order to move forward. Finally, the Requires Invoice toggle allows you to add or remove the requirement for an invoice to be sent before the order goes into the “Shipped” status. 

Next is the Google API Key field. Here is where you will need to upload the Google API Key that your Account Manager has had you to generate.

If you haven’t already generated a Google API key and need help doing so, we encourage you to check out our dedicated article on how to create one which you can access here.

The Google API key is required so that when your clients are placing orders they can have their address verified by Google Maps. You will need to make sure you have uploaded a valid Google API key in order for the Purchase Order System feature to work correctly.

Finally, next to Social Wall Plugin you’ll see a button that says “Add Feature”. 

In order for your Clients and Sales Reps to be able to communicate with each other within the feature you’ll need to create at least one instance of the Premium Social Wall so that you can pair it with your Purchase Order System feature.

Once you have at least one instance of the Premium Social Wall in order to pair it with the Purchase Order System feature all you need to do is click “Add Feature” which will bring up a list of all of the features within your app.

Locate the Premium Social Wall in the list and check the box next to it and click “Apply”. You’ve now paired a Social Wall with the Purchase Order System! Next we’ll go over how to set up the Managers and Sales Reps in the feature.

Next you’ll need to set up the Managers and Sales Reps for your app. You can do this in the Sales Reps tab:

You can either add them individually by clicking the “Add” button:

Or if you have a large amount of Managers and Sales Reps to add you can use the CSV template that we provide which can be downloaded by clicking on the arrow button and clicking on “Download CSV Template”:

IMPORTANT NOTE: You will need to make sure you add at least one Manager before adding a Sales Rep as Sales Reps need to be assigned to a Manager in order to be added to the app. This is the same case for Sales Reps and Clients. At least one Sales Rep will need to be added before you add any Clients as they will need to be assigned to a Sales Rep.

When you create a Manager there are a couple of required fields:

First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone Number, and Role are the required fields. City and State are optional but may be helpful if your company has locations across the United States. Since you are creating a Manager you’ll set that as their role. Once you have filled this information out to your liking click “Add”.

When adding a Sales Rep the required fields are the same. The only difference is when you select “Sales Rep” as the Role you will be prompted to assign that Sales Rep to a Manager.

Once you have set up your Managers and Sales Reps you can begin adding your clients which can be done in the Clients tab.

Just like adding Managers and Sales Reps, you can add Clients either individually or in bulk using the CSV template that we provide.

Just like adding Managers and Sales Reps, when adding a Client there are a couple of required fields and they are First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone Number, and Company. You will also need to assign them to one of the Sales Reps that you’ve already added.

Now that you have your Managers, Sales Reps, and Clients set up, you’ll need to add the Products that you want to sell. But before you can add Products, you’ll need to create at least one Category for your Products to be assigned to, as each Product is required to be assigned to a Category in order for it to be added to your app. To create your first Category go to the Categories tab.

Just like when you’re adding Managers, Sales Reps, and Clients you have the option to add Categories individually or in bulk with the CSV template that we provide.

If you decide to create your Categories individually the process is extremely simple as all that’s required in order to create a Category is to give it a Name. Over and above this we give you the option to assign a color to it, but this is completely optional. If you would like to assign a color to a Category, click this box underneath the Category’s Name:

This will bring up the Color Settings where you can select the color that you want to use from the color picker that appears when you click on the box next to “Color”:

Now that you’ve created at least one Category for your Products it’s time to add the final element of the puzzle: The Products themselves. To begin adding Products, click on the Products tab.

Just like Categories, you can add Products individually or in bulk with the CSV template that we provide.

When adding a Product the only fields that are required are Name and Category, though we highly recommend that you also include an image of the product as well as its SKU if you have a large catalog of products.

Now that you have set up your Managers, Sales Reps, Clients, Products, and their Categories your Purchase Order System feature can now be used! Next we’ll go over the process of an order being placed by the Client in your app.

Next, let’s go over how your clients place orders in your app, and what the process is for your Sales Reps and Managers to fulfill the order.

Step 1: The Client Logs-In To The App

When your Client taps on the Purchase Order feature in your app they’ll be asked to log-in to the app. If they haven’t already been assigned to a Sales Rep they’ll be asked to call the phone number that you entered in the “Settings” tab in the Admin Control Panel.

When they call that will allow your team to add them to your list of Clients and assign them to one of your Sales Reps. If they’re already assigned to a Sales Rep they will see this screen:

At the bottom of the screen they have three options. They can view their current and previous orders by tapping on this icon:

They can place a new order by tapping on this icon:

Or they can chat with their Sales Rep by tapping on this icon (this is if you assigned a Social Wall feature in the “Settings” tab in your Admin Control Panel):

Step 2: The Client Places An Order

Once your Client is on the order placement page they can begin adding items to their order. In order to do so all they need to do is enter in how many units of an item they want in the quantity section under the item, then they press the plus button next to it which will add it to their cart.

When they are ready to check out they will tap on the cart icon.

This will bring them to their cart in the app. Next if this is the first time they’ve placed an order in your app, they will need to add the address that the order will be shipped to by tapping on the down arrow.

Once they tap on the down arrow they will then tap on “+ New Address”.

They will then be prompted to add an address and apartment (if needed). This address will be verified by Google Maps as long as you uploaded the Google Maps API Key to the “Settings” tab in the Admin Control Panel.

After they have selected an address, they will tap on “Submit” to submit their order.

Once the order has been submitted it will then move over to the pending orders screen:

Step 3: The Sales Rep Or Manager Approves Order Either In-App Or In The Admin Control Panel

Now that the order has been submitted by the Client it has to be approved by the Sales Rep or Manager in the app or in the Admin Control Panel. The Sales Rep can approve the order in app by logging-in and locating the order. Once they find the order and have reviewed it, they tap on “Approve” to approve the order.

If a Manager wants to approve an order in-app they can do it on their Sales Rep’s behalf by logging-in, then tapping on the Sales Rep for that Client in their Sales Reps list which allows them to access the Client’s order and approve it on their Sales Rep’s behalf.

Or if the Manager wants to approve the order from the Admin Control Panel, all they need to do is go to the “Orders” tab and click on the pencil icon next to the order:

There they can adjust the order if need-be, and Approve it.

Step 4: The Client Confirms The Order

Once the order has been approved by a Manager or Sales Rep, the Client will need to Confirm it in the app. They will see a notification in the feature letting them know that the order has been approved in the Pending Orders screen.

The Client will then tap on the order and confirm it by tapping on “Confirm Order”:

Step 5: The Sales Rep Or Manager Sends An Invoice For The Order To The Customer 

Finally the Sales Rep or Manager goes back to the order in the “Orders” tab of the Admin Control Panel and sends the Client an invoice which serves as verification that the order has been shipped. They send the Invoice by clicking on the pencil icon next to the order:

Then they click on “Upload Invoice” which will bring up the File Explorer on their computer where they then locate the invoice file and upload it.
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Once the invoice file has been uploaded the Sales Rep or Manager clicks “Invoice” in the bottom right corner of the order’s page to send the invoice to the Client.

After the invoice has been sent the order’s status moves to “Shipped” letting the Client know that the order is on its way. If a customer would like to re-order that same order, all they need to do is tap on the order on their order list:

Then tap on “Reorder”:

A Sales Rep or Manager can also reorder an order on the Client’s behalf by accessing that Client in their Client’s list then going through the same process.

If a Client, Sales Rep, or Manager needs to cancel an order here’s how to cancel an order.

How a Client cancels an order

Once an order has been placed by the Client they will see it in their order history. If they would like to cancel a pending order all they need to do is tap on the order from the order list:

Then tap on “Cancel”.

The Client has the option to cancel the order up until an invoice has been sent to them which confirms to them that the order has been shipped.

How a Sales Rep or Manager cancels an order

If a Sales Rep or a Manager needs to cancel an order all they need to do is log-in to the Admin Control Panel and go to “Orders”. Once there they click on the pencil icon next to the order that they want to cancel:

Then they click “Delete Order”

Note: An order can only be cancelled by the Sales Rep or Manager before the order has been confirmed by the Client, but the Client can still cancel the order as long as it’s before the Sales Rep or Manager sends the invoice for the order.

Additionally to approving Client’s orders in-app, Sales Reps and Managers can add new Clients in-app. If they would like to add a new client all they need to do is go to their client list in the app and tap on the plus button:

This will allow the Sales Rep or Manager to add that person to their list of Clients.

Finally let’s go over some of the additional actions and tools that you can utilize in the Admin Control Panel of the Purchase Order System.

Reassigning Clients To Sales Reps and Reassigning Sales Reps to Managers 

From time to time you may need to reassign Clients from one Sales Rep to another, or Sales Reps from one Manager to another. In order to do this, you’ll need to first add the Sales Rep that you’re going to reassign the Client to, or the Manager that you’re going to reassign the Sales Rep to to the list of Users of the feature in the Admin Control Panel.
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Once that is done, in order to reassign a Client or Sales Rep, all you need to do is click on the pencil icon next to that user:

Then type in the name of the Sales Rep (if they’re a Client) or Manager (if they’re a Sales Rep) that you’re going to reassign that user to and click “Save”.

Viewing Analytics For Your Clients and Products

In the Admin Control Panel you can view analytical data on the Clients and Products in your app. This can help you see who your most active clients are, and which products are most ordered. If you would like to see the analytics of a Client or Product simply click on the chart icon next to that user or item:

This will display analytical data over the course of the last 30, 60, and 90 days.

Congratulations! You now know how to use the Purchase Order System feature! We know that there was a lot to cover, but we hope this article helped! If you would like to get in contact with one of our App Specialists to learn more about adding this feature to your app, we encourage you to reach out to us at:

Where one of our App Specialists will be more than happy to discuss this with you.