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"With the help of the
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"When we told Explore that we
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NetSuite Tips
Explore Consulting provides our NetSuite customers with tips on how to use NetSuite more efficiently and how to perform complex or unintuitive tasks. We hope that you find these tips helpful.
- Inline HTML Fields for on-page Instructions
- Gross Profit Feature
- Global Search Prefixes
- Placement of Custom Fields on Transactions
- Default Landing Page on Login
- Extending the use of the Mass Update feature
- Get more from a Saved Search using Summary/Detail Results
- System Preferences Audit Trails
- Filtering the List of Items Available on Transactions
- Summary Criteria in Saved Searches
- Creating Custom Printed PDF Layouts
- Setting Custom Reminders
- Form Customization Best Practices
- NetSuite 2009.1 Mass Update Enhancements
- NetSuite 2009.1 Global Search Enhancements
- Email Preferences
- File Download with online form
- Using Report Snapshots
- Disseminating Reference Information in NetSuite for Internal Users
- Improve your E-mail Marketing Campaigns with DKIM
- E-mail Option Button on Transactions & E-mail Preference
- Account Usage Information
- Elimination Subsidiaries for Consolidated Reporting
- SuiteScript Inline Editing
- Lists Preference Settings
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) with NetSuite
- CSV Import Improvements for Mac
- Free Shipping With An Item
- Global Search Auto Suggest
- CSV Import Assistant Overview
- Multi-Website Capabilities in NetSuite
- Outlook Integration - Automatically save email threads in Outlook
- Campaign Subscription Categories
- Project Accounting - Assigning Resources and Time Management
- Publishing Dashboards
- Increase Your Exposure Through Website Product Feeds
- Excel Web Query
- Partner / Affiliate Capabilities in NetSuite
- KPI Scorecards Track and Compare Metrics all Year
- Coupons/Discounts Promotions in NetSuite
- Gift Certificates
- Long Running Reports
- Date Shortcut - a time saver tip
- Report Scheduling
- Relationships as Individuals or Companies
- Demand-based Inventory Replenishment
- Associating Promotion Codes to Items
- Minimum Order Amounts
- Using NetSuite Custom Code for Intelligent Online Forms
Inline HTML Fields for on-page Instructions
Many companies have complex or specific requirements around processing orders, creating customers, or completing other daily business tasks in their NetSuite account. While external documentation serves as a useful reference, often times it is more helpful to have instructions visible to the user while they are in the process of completing the particular tasks.
NetSuite has created a custom field type called Inline HTML. This custom field type allows users to create a custom field for any record type that will display content on the page for the user while they are interacting with the form. This content can be very helpful in providing instructions, descriptions, or other reference information. Just about anything that can be done with basic HTML can be done with this field.
Example: The business wants to ensure users select the appropriate value from a list of options to Categorize a new lead, because the Lead Routing rules have been configured around this field as a key trigger. Once the user has categorized the Lead, there are three very specific steps they need to follow to make sure the sales process can continue as quickly as possible. These instructions can be presented to the user using an Inline HTML field.
- Navigate to Setup > Customization > Entity Fields > New
- Give this field a name, check the “Customer” box so it will display on Lead records, and set the field to display on the appropriate subtab;
- In the Type field, choose “Inline HTML;”
- On the Validation & Defaulting subtab, enter your HTML into the Default Value field;
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When a user navigates to the form, they will now be presented with the very detailed instructions in a way that stands out from the rest of the page:
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Gross Profit Feature: Tracking Estimated Gross Profit on Transactions
Use Case
Tracking Estimated Gross Profit at the transaction level helps provide sales managers and reps with key data for negotiating pricing with customers, for establishing pricing policy, and for establishing and tracking commission plans. With this feature set up, sales reps and managers will see the Estimated Gross Profit on Opportunities on up to Invoices.
With the same feature enabled, NetSuite also allows managers in purchasing, operations and pricing to display the Projected Value on Assembly Build records, which includes Estimated Cost of labor and services for sale, thus providing additional insight that Item Inventory Valuation reports cannot provide – critical data for establishing product pricing policy, improving manufacturing process, and managing more profitable vendor relationships.
Setup
- Setup/Company/Enable Features/Transactions tab: “Gross Profit”
- Set Up Items: Select a Cost Estimate Type. This is different than the costing method, which drives true COGS. Cost Estimate Type is used by NetSuite only to determine the method by which you will define an Estimated Cost for establishing Estimated Gross Profit.
- Inventory and other Resale: Options include the Item’s Average, Purchase Price, Last Purchase Price, and Preferred Vendor Rate. Another option, Item Defined Cost, uses a separate value you provide on the Item record in the Item Defined Cost field. Finally, the Purchase Order Rate option will use the Rate value from the most recent PO, or a Special Order associated with the sales Transaction’s line item, such as Drop-Ship POs.
- Non-Inventory and Service For-Sale Items: Establish an Item Defined Cost.
- Assembly and Kit Items: Some of the same options are available as above, but you may choose Derived From Member Items. This establishes the Estimated Cost from that of each of its Member Items which often vary for an Assembly Item from Build to Build.
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- Transaction Forms: Enable and layout Transaction form fields and set Role permissions as required:
- Body fields: Estimated Extended Cost, Estimated Gross Profit, Estimated Gross Profit Percent.
- Column fields: Cost Estimate Type (with Role permissions, users are able to change this based on real-time conditions), Est. Extended Cost, Est. Unit Cost, Est. Gross Profit, Est. Gross Profit Percent.
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- Assembly Build Forms: Enable the Body field Total (Projected Amount).
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Reporting: Add the suite of fields available with this feature to Forecasts, Sales Reports, and Saved Searches.
Global Search Prefixes
NetSuite’s Global Search is one of the most powerful tools in the system. This single field, which displays on all pages in NetSuite, provides quick access to almost every record, page, report, and search in the system. There are several tricks that are helpful to know about the NetSuite Global Search that can make everyday use of NetSuite much easier.
Navigate to a Page:
In many accounts, users are assigned a role that is specific to their job functions, like an Accountant Role or Warehouse Manager Role. One difficulty that can arise, however, is that each role and center have slightly different navigation paths. While Opportunities are listed under their own Tab in the Sales roles, the link for creating new opportunities through the Administrator role is under the Transactions tab > Sales section. Remembering the navigation path for each role can be confusing, especially when switching frequently between roles. Instead, you can use the Global Search to find the page you are looking for. Type Opportunities into the Global Search, and you will see several options for Opportunity-related pages. Rather than memorize the navigation path to the New Opportunities page, you can link directly to the page from the Global Search.
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Find Reports:
Users will often create several reports that all have similar names. It can be difficult to remember the specific report name that was used, whether it was a report or search, or how specifically to find the list of reports or searches from within your role. Typing a keyword from the Report title into the Global search will quickly help you track it down. In this example, a saved search called “Estimated Billable Orders This Month” can be located in the Global Search, along with standard Estimated Commission reports.
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Open a record in Edit Mode:
Many of the NetSuite process flow improvements we see revolve around reducing the number of clicks a user needs to perform to complete a task. For example: a Customer calls and wishes to change their email address. A user could reduce their number of clicks by Global Searching for that customer and opening the record in Edit mode automatically. This can be done using a capital letter in the search prefix.
Example: our NetSuite user wants to edit the “Prototype Development” customer record to update their email address. Typing Cust: “Prototype” into the Global Search, and hit enter. The record automatically opens, and is already in edit mode.
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Open a record in a new browser tab or window:
Users will frequently open multiple records across multiple tabs or windows while logged into NetSuite. This allows a user to easily switch between records for comparison purposes. With the Global Search, you can automatically open a record in a new Tab or Browser window (depending on your browser settings). First, type in the prefix of the record you are searching for. For example, type “Cust” if you are searching for a customer. Instead of a single colon, use two colons to separate the record prefix from the search term. For example, type Cust:: Prototype to search for the customer called Prototype Development. When you hit Enter on your keyboard, the record will automatically open in a new browser tab or window.
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Placement of Custom Fields on Transactions
Many customers create custom fields for transactions to track and store custom information, validate user processes, or alert users to special transaction requirements. Generally these fields are placed in the main “header” section of the form, or on one of the subtabs. One problem with these custom fields, however, is ensuring users notice them and provide a value when needed, as not every field can be made mandatory depending on business requirements.
One solution that can be used to bring attention to custom fields is the placement of the field on the form in a position that distinguishes it from other fields.
Consider this Example: The business requires management review of transactions when there’s a high likelihood the customer will change their order prior to fulfillment. This intuitive evaluation can’t be accomplished with scripting, and requires a user to manually flag an order for review. Most orders do not require review, so the business wants the default value of their custom list field to be “Review not Required.” However, with a default value specified, simply making the field Mandatory does not require the user to interact with the field, as it will already have a value and thus no warning will be provided on Save if the user does not change the field value.
One thing the Administrator may consider is to place the custom field somewhere on the form where it stands out from the other fields: on the center line next to the order total. This configuration is done on the custom field at Setup > Customization > Transaction Body Fields > [field name] > Display subtab. In the Insert Before field, select “Outside Columns at Bottom.”
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When the field appears on the transaction, it will be positioned in the center of the page next to the order total- apart from the rest of the fields.
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Default Landing Page on Login
NetSuite’s Dashboards represent a powerful tool for staying on top of important business metrics. The dashboard can display reports, lists of data, action items for the day, and reminders to help keep track of a user’s activities. Many NetSuite customers will customize not just the Home Dashboard, but also the other Tab Dashboards (Transactions, Reports, Activities, etc.). For many organizations, the “primary” Dashboard is NOT the Home Dashboard, but, instead, is one of these other Tabs.
Users can modify their preferences so that, upon login, they are automatically taken to one of these other Dashboard tabs instead of to the Home Dashboard.
To set a different Tab as your landing page on Login:
1. Navigate to Home > Set Preferences, or click the Set Preferences link in the Settings portlet on your Home Dashboard;
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2. Navigate to the Appearance subtab;
3. In the Centers and Styles section, look for the “Landing Page” field;
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4. Select the Tab that you would like to set as the default landing page when you log into NetSuite;
5. Click Save.
Now, when you log into NetSuite, the page selected in this field will be the first tab you see.
Extending the use of the Mass Update feature
If you have been using NetSuite for any length of time, you may be familiar with the Mass Update feature. If you haven’t looked recently, the list of pre-built updates in NetSuite has grown considerably. It is worth the time to look over the additional types of updates available. To view all the update types go to: List>Mass Update>Mass Updates.
Common Mass Update Uses
If you are new to mass updates, the following is a short list of the most commonly used mass updates.
- Update transaction sales order or invoice fields in the main section of the form.
- Update common fields on the main section on the customer record.
- Update prices or swap prices between price levels.
- Invite customer or contacts to subscribe to a new email subscription.
- Update Item purchase price from the most recent purchase.
- Reassign sales opportunities, estimates, and clients to a new sales rep.
- Reassign support cases to a new support rep.
- Move files from one folder to another or mass delete files in the file cabinet.
- Update fields on transaction or entity records.
NetSuite’s predefined mass updates do not include all fields on each record type available to update. For instance, fields available on the sales order record are limited to those found on the main section of the sales order. If the field you wish to update is on a tab, that field will not be available. In this case you have two options, either modify the form by moving the location of the field to the main section or create a custom mass update. The mass update list of fields only displays those fields on the main section.
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ustom mass updates allow you to update virtually any field on a given record. Additionally, custom mass updates can incorporate dynamic update logic. Based on conditions at run time, the update value can be calculated. This feature can be very helpful. For instance, a custom mass update could summarize data, perform formulas and pull data from other records and more. This ability is ultimately very powerful for conditional updates.
NetSuite recently released a new type of script called an Action Script. Action Scripts are used exclusively with the mass update feature and they work in tandem. The mass update component allows the everyday user to control which records to update and schedule the update, while the action script component determines which field to update and the value.
Before NetSuite released this capability, a developer would be required to write additional code to first search the records to be updated before updating the value. The scripting effort took much longer and typically could not be managed by most non-technical users. With action scripts, the code is often limited to 5 to 10 lines of code. The mass update feature simplifies the scope of the script to only updating and calculating.
Once a custom mass update is created it will show up under the custom updates folder shown below:
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Use Case
In this simple example a company changed their criteria for the classification of sales transactions into business lines. Historical transactions were out of step with the new classification rules and needed to be updated. The business line field was not an updatable field choice using the standard mass update. Using a custom action script, users were able to update all the applicable records. The user is provided a drop down parameter to select the new value for business line.
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This is the code used to update the business line field:
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As you can see, only four lines of code were required for this script. Most of the complicated work is eliminated by the mass update definition. The user controls which records are updated when setting up the mass update.
Although this example is simple, action scripts can become very powerful by expanding the logic included in the script.
Additional information on configuring action scripts and more sample code is found in the NetSuite help menu. If you have questions, contact Explore for a free evaluation of possible custom mass update solutions.
Get more from a Saved Search using Summary/Detail Results
Business Usage for Summary level searches:
The creation of summary level search results with drill-down capabilities is a very powerful method for simplifying complex sets of data. Summary level searches can help answer key business questions such as:
Report on repeat customers having more than a given number of orders in the last year while listing by order count and total revenue.
Display orders grouped by order type, customer category, or industry with total orders and revenue for each grouping. How the data is grouped and the search summarized is data determined by the user.
Show employees listed by total billable hours by month.
Report on customers with a total count of support cases. It may be beneficial to analyze which customers are having the most issues.
Each of these search examples is possible only by grouping the search results in meaningful ways. Also, the ability to add criteria based on the summarized result is important. For example, in our first example, only show customers with more than 3 orders by adding summary criteria.
This type of information is very powerful. My first example, having a list of customers that purchased more than 3 times in the last year may be very helpful when sending special promotions or discounts to your most profitable customers.
How to Create a Summary level search:
The process of creating a summary level search is fairly simple if you break it down into four basic steps. The first step is to define the search as you normally would or you can pull up one of your favorite searches you currently have. Second, determine which fields you want to summarize your data by placing a ‘group by’ function for each field. Third, determine the function to apply to the rolled up data such as sum, count, min max or average. There is a fourth and optional step to place criteria that applies to the summarized data such as where count is greater than.
For our example we are going to create a list of customers with more than 3 orders. The detailed view will include other details about each of the orders such as order number, date, and amount extra.
Example Steps
In the first screen shot, you can see the settings for the first three steps...
Step 1 - Create a typical search with all the fields you wish to see in the detailed view.
Step 2 - Create your summarized view by determining which fields to group your data by.
Step 3 - Set your function.
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Step 4 – Summary level criteria also known as “having” condition. Summary criteria is the only way to get a list of customers based not on the conditions of a single attribute but based on the summarization of the data. This could be customers with a certain number of transactions, total purchase amount or average purchase amount.
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When you run the search you first get the summary view first. In our example, only two columns will display because we only selected one field to group by and that is customer. In our example, the results look like the image below:
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To drill down to the detailed view, double click on any one of the customers and you will view the orders that comprise the count of order numbers.
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NetSuite summary level searches are easier to create than many users think. The value these searches can provide in terms of extracting more relevant information out of the system is worth the effort. Apply these steps to create searches relevant to your own business.
System Preferences Audit Trails
In some occasions, multiple users are granted Administrator access to a NetSuite account. While this provides easy access and control for certain business scenarios, it has historically meant that certain configurations could be performed by a variety of users without any knowledge of who made those changes and when.
For example, prior to Version 2009.2, if a user changed an Accounting preference, there would be no way to know that the preference had changed without looking for its impact on transactions. If it was discovered that a change had occurred, there would be no way to know which user changed the preference or when, making cleanup- and future controls- very difficult.
With NetSuite’s version 2009.2 release, a new Audit Trail feature has been added to the following configuration pages:
- Accounting Preferences
- Enable Features
- General Preferences
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Clicking the link will bring up a page listing which preference was changed, by whom, on which date, as well as the previous and new setting of the preference. In this way Administrators will always retain a history of their previous system configurations and be able to easily manage how and when these preferences change.
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Filtering the List of Items Available on Transactions
While NetSuite’s default behavior is to display all active items in the Item dropdown on a Transaction, many customers wish to filter this list depending on business requirements. Examples include:
- A group of users who deal only with one product line, and management would like to prevent that group from adding any other items to a transaction;
- Preventing Sales users from adding repair, discount or other non-standard items to a transaction;
- Limiting customer support users from adding any physical items to an order, and only allowing them to select support and repair service items.
NetSuite has recently introduced a method that allows administrators to configure transaction forms to filter the list of items in the Item drop down so that only the desired items are available to add to the transaction. This is accomplished in two parts: a Saved Item Search and a customized Transaction form.
The first step is to create a saved search which contains the items users should see when they create a transaction. For this saved search, we should use criteria that relate only to the items we want to have available on the transaction form. Here, we’ll use the Department field on the item, which will return only those items associated with the “Support Operations” department.
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Once our saved search has been created, we need to create a transaction form for the Customer Support team. This can be done at Setup > Customization > Transaction Forms, and clicking Customize next to the Standard version of the Transaction form to open the form customization page.
On the Fields subtab > Columns subtab, you can select the saved Item search you created above in the Item Filter field:
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Once you have selected the Item search, you’ll want to assign it to the appropriate user group/role. This can be done on the same transaction form configuration page, on the Roles subtab. Find your Support user role, and check the box for “Preferred” to ensure that this is the preferred sales order form for anyone with the associated role:
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When you’ve completed any additional changes to the form (ie: showing or hiding custom fields or changing the sequence in which fields display on the form) click Save.
Now, when any users with the Acme Product Support role create a sales order for support services, this Support Repair sales order form will load as their preferred form. When the users add an item to the order, the only two items available will be the items that have a Department listed as Support Operations:
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Summary Criteria in Saved Searches
Many customers look for ways to target marketing messages at their highest performing customers. As an example, let’s say a user is putting together a marketing campaign to target Retail customers who spent more than $5,000 with your business in the last quarter. While Category and Date Range are standard, the $5,000 threshold requires a slightly different approach. In this case, a user will need to use a combination of standard criteria and summary criteria in order to retrieve an appropriate list of results.
The first part (customers who are categorized as Retail) is simple enough, because the Category and Transaction Date elements are available in the main Criteria drop-down. For this example, we should also limit the transaction types to only Cash Sales and Invoices so that we leave out Estimates, Sales Orders, and other non-posting transactions:
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The sales total, however, is more complex. The user’s first inclination might be to look to the “Transaction Fields…” selection where they found Transaction Type and Date, and add the criteria for Amount. Unfortunately, this would only return customers with individual transactions in excess of $5,000. Instead, the user needs to summarize the transactions for a customer, and then apply the Amount criteria.
This can be accomplished using the Summary subtab, located to the right of the Standard subtab above. Summary criteria allow you to group together a set of results and then apply your filter to the summarized values. With Summary criteria, you have access to the same grouping mechanisms as are available for Result columns: Minimum, Maximum, Count, Sum, & Average.
To find only those customers whose total sales exceed a threshold, we will want to select “Sum” as the summary type, as it will automatically add up all of the transaction amounts for the transaction types specified. Next, we will need to apply our summary to a field. Here, we are looking to Sum the transaction amount. In the Field drop-down, select “Transaction Fields…” to bring up a list of fields related to transactions for this customer, and, in the pop-up that appears, select “Amount,” and then specify “greater than” and “5000.”
When the three elements are brought together (summary type, transaction field, and amount), the Summary criteria will appear similarly to regular search criteria:
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When the user runs this search, it will return a list containing only those Retail customers whose total sales dollars for the specified period exceed the $5,000 minimum threshold:
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This saved search can now be used as the basis for a Dynamic group for email distribution lists, marketing campaigns, and other special targeted activities.
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Creating Custom Printed PDF Layouts
NetSuite provides a default “layout” for all transaction types which organizes the content (ie: address, order details, logo, items) into the various elements on the page. This allows users to begin using the system right out of the box without customization. Some customers, however, require special or differently organized information be displayed on their Invoices, Receipts, or other transaction forms- both internal and customer facing. NetSuite provides an easy-to-use interface for customizing transaction layouts, allowing users to tailor the look and feel of their printed forms to meet each business’ unique requirements.
First, determine the existing layout used for the transaction form you want to customize. This can be done by opening the form customization interface (setup > customization > transaction forms > click Edit/Customize next to the preferred transaction form) and looking at the PDF Layout field.
Next, find this transaction layout and open it in Edit mode. Transaction layouts can be found at Setup > Customization > Transaction Form [PDF/HTML] Layouts. For this example, we’ll use the Standard Transaction Layout (PDF), without disclaimer, for an Invoice. When this Layout is located, click Edit to open the layout customization interface.
The interface has three main sections: header, elements, and element properties.
The header section provides document sizing, orientation, and color customizations. So, if a user wanted to set the background color or text color to something other than the standard black & white, that can be done here.
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The Elements section displays all of the elements that are currently made available for this layout. It is important to remember that the presence of page elements provide a container into which individual fields are sourced from the transaction. If you wish to control which specific fields do and do not print within an element, you would control that from the custom transaction form itself. The elements on this page can be moved around and resized in this pane by clicking and dragging an element.
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The third section controls element properties. The element selected in the element pane dictates the properties being controlled in the element properties pane. If, for example, a user wants to change the size, font, and orientation of the text in the transaction columns, they would select the Columns element from the pane above and then control its properties in the properties pane below:
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In some cases, users need to add a custom element to their forms in order to display additional information. Clicking the “Add Custom Element” button just above the properties pane will allow users to do just this. In the example below, note that a combination of static text and a dynamically sourced field from the transaction (transaction date) are used to provide transaction-specific information to the Customer. Once a custom element has been created, users have access to all of the same formatting options as with standard elements.
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Once all necessary modifications have been made to the custom layout, click Save. The layout will now be available to select in the PDF Layout field on the transaction form customization screen. Moving forward, whenever this transaction form is used for an Invoice, the PDF will display the Invoice information using the new custom layout.
Finally, some customers require much deeper customization capabilities with regard to PDF creation. These requirements may include the ability to print custom PDF copies of transactions from websites; layout requirements that cannot be created through the NetSuite interface; or the inclusion of information on the PDF that is not present on the Transaction record itself. Fortunately, NetSuite has recently provided an API that allows the creation of completely custom PDF forms using information from your NetSuite account. While this customization is a bit more complex than the method described above, it also opens many new doors with regard to available options for presenting information in PDF format.
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Setting Custom Reminders
The NetSuite Reminders portlet can be a very useful tool for providing links to relevant information only when it becomes relevant. Rather than occupying valuable Dashboard space with multiple saved searches, the Reminders portlet only tells you action is required when action is required.
With the v. 2009.1 release, NetSuite has added the ability to create custom Reminders to work in your Reminders portlet. By defining a saved search and configuring the Reminders portlet using the steps below, you can tap into the usefulness of the Reminder’s Portlet with your own custom search criteria.
Example:
In your company several employees have the permission to create Item records, but your Accounting department does not want those Items available for sale until their configuration has been approved. You have created a custom list/record field (Approval Status) on the Item record that defaults to “Pending Approval” whenever a new item is created. You would like your Reminders portlet to tell you when you have newly created Items that require approval.
1. Create a Saved Search that matches the required criteria: In this case, you would create an Item Search with criteria that looks for all Items where Approval Status is still “Pending Approval.” Remember: what displays in your Reminders portlet will match the name of the Saved Search, so be sure to name the search something intuitive (ie: Items Pending Approval).
2. Check the “Available for Reminders” checkbox in the upper-right corner of the Saved Search page;
3. Specify any Results you would like to see when you drill down to the list of Items pending approval (ie: Item Name, Item Number, Created By, Date Created, etc.).
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4. On the Dashboard that contains your Reminders Portlet, click the Setup link for your Reminders Portlet. If your Reminders portlet is not currently set to display you can add it to your dashboard by clicking the Customize This Page link in the upper right corner of your dashboard, and selecting “Reminders” from the pane on the left side.
5. Your new custom reminder will be at the bottom of the Reminders list. Check the box next to your new reminder, and click Save.
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6. Now, whenever your saved search has any results matching the criteria, a link will appear in your Reminders portlet that will take you to the results of that search.
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7. Click the link to drill down to a list of the results:
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Form Customization Best Practices
Have you ever wanted to hide the “Custom Form” field on your entry forms or transaction forms in NetSuite? Here is a five step method for more easily managing your custom forms and for making sure that all users are using the same form. This solution best fits those companies where one form is primarily used for the respective record type entry vs. multiple forms for record types depending on entity associated with the form, etc.
NetSuite has built in functionality to hide the “Custom Form” field on transaction or entry forms if there is only one active form available of any given type.
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- After navigating to Setup > Customization > Transaction/Entry Forms, check the Show Inactives box at the bottom of the page.
- This exposes the Inactive column on the left hand side of the custom transaction/entry form list pages.
- Place a check mark in the inactive (“inactivate”) the standard form or any other obsolete form(s) that you may no longer be using, until there is only one active form available of that type.
- Verify that you did not inactivate the preferred form for the respective record type.
- Click Submit.
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NetSuite 2009.1 Mass Update Enhancements
Last month Explore provided a tip on NetSuite's 2009.1 Global Search Enhancements. This month we would like to show you how NetSuite has enhanced the Mass Update functionality to make it even more powerful.
Have you ever wanted to schedule a mass update to run on a set recurrence pattern instead of having to run it manually? With NetSuite v.2009.1, you can now do this by specifying a schedule. (Note: the time of day is not definable, but the day of the week or month is. All scheduled mass updates will occur at approximately 2 AM Pacific Time.)
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With NetSuite v.2009.1, you can now also use a formula in your mass update to update fields with a calculated value. You can use a SQL formula to update fields dynamically vs. having to use a static value. For example, a user could set the preferred stock level on all inventory items to double (or 2x) the reorder point.
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NetSuite 2009.1 Global Search Enhancements
Have you ever wanted to customize the result columns displayed for a particular record type for the Global Search Results? With NetSuite v.2009.1, you can now customize the global search results on a per record type basis.
#1 Add/Remove Columns - you can now add additional columns or remove default columns from global search result pages on a per record type basis.
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#2 Global Search a Custom Field - Have you ever wanted to have the global search feature in NetSuite index a custom field, so that you can include this field in the global search for the records that the global search is searching on? With NetSuite, v.2009.1, you can now configure custom fields to be indexed for the global search feature.
- Any custom fields indexed by global search may take NetSuite a few minutes to index. Do not expect the custom field to be indexed immediately.
- There are some custom field types that NetSuite does not support for indexing with global search: checkbox, date, document, image, list/record, multi-select, password, rich text, and time of day.
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#3 Last but not Least - Direct List Editing & Quick Add row are now both supported in global search results.
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Email Preferences
NetSuite makes it possible to control how your outbound email signature looks. If you are like many companies, emails are sent from NetSuite and your regular email tool like Outlook. Regardless of the system you send from, having identical signatures at the bottom is important. This is one four email preference you can set and we will go through each.
To setup your email preferences go to: Home > Set Preferences > General tab.
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Nickname: When recipients look at their inbox, their name will be listed in the "From" field. If you wish to use a different name than your employee record, enter it here. For example, everyone may know you by Bobby not Robert.
Signature: In the Signature field type in either plain text or HTML to format your signature. For my example we are going to enter HTML to give us the richness it can provide and allow us to match our company standard signature.
To accomplish this, I copied the signature portion of an HTML type email and pasted it into NetSuite. There is a limit of 999 characters, but most email signatures are fairly basic and will fit. If your company's signature does not fit, you have the option of creating an email template. The signature will be embedded as a part of the email template, which has a much larger size limit.
Add Signature to Messages: This checkbox controls whether your email signature is automatically added to outbound emails. If you do not check this box, you will need to insert the < NLSIGNATURE > tag at the end of your emails. Note you can also include the < NLSIGNATURE > tag into your email templates.
From Email Address: If you want the email 'from' address to be different than the email address setup as your NetSuite login place it here. It is not unusual for a team to have a common sent from address such as customer_service@yourcompany.com.
Below is a simple example of a formatted signature using HTML to control the colors and fonts.
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File Download with online form
NetSuite provides the ability to download a file after completing an online form. This is a common approach many companies take to gain new leads. Frequently, an email will showcase a white paper, case study or presentation. Before you can download the file you will be required to complete a form with your name, email address etc. Many people are reluctant to share this information, for good reason. Identity theft and junk mail are valid concerns. Implemented correctly, however, prospects will see the value and share their contact information with you. First you must build credibility and provide something they value. Qualified leads are generated this way because their willingness to complete the form is an indication they have interest in your services/products or at minimum the content in your download.
This NetSuite tip will demonstrate how to setup an online file download form for your company and provide some basic guidelines to make it a success.
Step 1: Select your document for download: When selecting a downloadable file, focus on quality and relevant content for your prospects. Build a bridge to the customer in a non direct way by showing how your product and service will satisfy their needs. Documents that demonstrate a solid understanding of industry and best practices will build credibility. Education based marketing is effective because the focus is on the prospective customer and not a sale.
Step 2: Create your online form: When creating your online lead form it is a good idea to state what your purpose is and how you intend on using the data. If you intend on sending a monthly newsletter, state it. If you plan on responding with a follow-up call state it. Prospects will be more willing to share their contact information if they know how it is going to be used.
When selecting the fields to add to your online form, keep it simple and relevant to the content to be downloaded. Customers will not complete a long survey if they do not see the relevance, less is more. A few well placed survey questions can be very effective when you turn around and market back to these individuals with targeted marketing campaigns. Strike a balance between quantity, context and type of fields on your form.
For more information on how to create an online form see the NetSuite User Guide.
Step 3: Publish your online form:
To publish your online form go to: Lists>Web Site>Publish Forms>New
Select form type 'Download file with online form'. There are four key fields to setup:
- Specify the online form the customer will be required to complete before downloading the file.
- Select the downloadable file from the file cabinet
- Specify the category on the website to publish the form. An ecommerce site is not required. It is relatively easy to enable and configure your web site to be information only.
- Select an image that represents or is associated with the file. This will add interest to the form.
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The completed user experience will appear as below:
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If the customer clicks on the link above, they are taken to the online form.
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After the user completes the form the download pops up and the user is able to view or save the document.
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In NetSuite the prospect's information is captured.
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Using Report Snapshots
Often overlooked in NetSuite, yet easily deployed is the ability to take your favorite report and place a snapshot of it on your dashboard. For information you reference frequently, snapshots can save a lot of time by making the report readily available. To publish a snapshot, perform the following steps:
Step 1: Find your favorite report, customize to your needs.
Step 2: In edit screen for the report, hit the 'Save and Create Snapshot' button.
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Step 3: Set Snapshot preferences before displaying on your dashboard, there are several key settings to configure that will affect the way the report looks. First, give your snapshot a title. Next, list options allow you to select which fields will display for both wide and narrow regions of your dashboard, depending on where you place it. Check the boxes next the fields you want to display for each.
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Step 4: Set graph settings
If you choose to display your snapshot as a graph, set which fields represent the X and Y axis.
Step 5: Display on your dashboard and configure
To customize your dashboard, click the link in the upper right hand corner of the page "Customize this page". Find your snapshot within the Custom folder and click on it. The snapshot should be added to your dashboard into a new portlet. Notice that if you drag and drop the portlet to the wide region, the fields listed change. Under the setup option, you can change the snapshot from list to a graph. The edit option allows you to modify other snapshot settings.
Use report snapshots to bring our favorite report results onto your dashboard for easy reference.
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Disseminating Reference Information in NetSuite for Internal Users
Companies are always looking for ways to disseminate information through the company. In large measure that is what NetSuite is all about, 'information', such as transactions and customers information. But what about general reference information like company procedures, sales tools and HR information? Where can it be placed it in your NetSuite account where users can easily find and reference it. Adding a custom tab to your NetSuite account is a great way to put together information for internal users. In the following example we will add a custom tab with a few different types of content. After showing how to add a few different types of information we will give examples of what else can be placed into these tabs.
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To create your custom tab:
- Navigate to Lists > Website > Tabs > New
- Give your tab a label and un-check the display in website box on the right hand side of the form. There are other options for customization but the default will be best unless you have more specific needs
- Specify the audience to determine who is able to see your custom tab, in our case we will choose "All Employees". This will not be visible on the ecommerce store.
- Save
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Your new tab will now display along the top level navigation bar in NetSuite. We can now start adding information to this tab. In our example we will add the Employee Directory, a page with text for reference information, and a downloadable document.
To add the employee directory to your custom tab:
- Navigate to Lists > Website > Employee Directory
- Click edit on the employee directory you wish to add
- Edit the "Subcategory of" field to reference your custom tab
- Save
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In next example we are going to add a down loadable document containing the companies holiday schedule. To add a downloadable document to the custom tab:
- Navigate to Lists > Website > Information Items > New
- Choose the item type you want, in our case formatted text
- Give the item a name to be displayed in your tab, and un-check the display in website box.
- Add appropriate html with a link to a document contained in the file cabinet (accessed by Documents > Files > File Cabinet) URL string to link to the document will look like: <a href="URL">document title</a> a. Where URL is the url found on the file record in file cabinet and document title is the link name or title you want to display instead of the long cryptic URL.
- At the bottom of the page select site category, which is the name of your custom tab
- Save
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The next example we are going to create an emergency contact list. To add a simple page of information to your custom tab:
- Navigate to Lists > Website > Information Items > New
- Choose the item type you want, in our case formatted text
- Give the item a name to be displayed on your tab, and un-check the display in website box
- Give the item any text that you wish to include in the description boxes below
- At the bottom of the page select site category, which is the name of your custom tab
- Save
In addition to the examples above the following types of content can be added relatively easily:
- Publish the results of a saved search
- Published an online form
- Publish a knowledge base
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Improve your E-mail Marketing Campaigns with DKIM
One of the most powerful ways to stay in touch with your customers is with NetSuite's e-mail marketing campaigns. This functionality provides an easy way to let you stay in touch with your customers for promotions, special events and important information that you just want them to know.
Unfortunately, your marketing efforts are hindered when your e-mails never reach your customers. By setting up your DKIM setting in NetSuite, it will help your e-mail reach your clients' Inbox.
DKIM is an industry standard developed collaboratively by set of companies such as Yahoo, Microsoft, IBM, Earthlink and more. The DKIM lets companies take responsibility of the message while it is in transit. DKIM provides a method for validating a domain name identity that is associated with a message. More information can be found at www.dkim.org
Before you follow the directions below, you will need to setup a new subdomain with your DNS provider with a CNAME pointed at shopping.netsuite.com.
1. Go to Setup -> Web Site -> Domains. Add a new domain name record for the subdomain you setup with your DNS provider. Under "Hosted As" choose "E-mail Campaign". Save your page.
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2. Go to Setup -> Company -> Printing, Fax & Email Preferences. Click on the Email subtab. At the bottom of the page:
- "Add DKIM to Mass Messages" - Checked
- "Domain Selector" - write "selector1"
- "Domain Name" - enter the subdomain you setup with your DNS provider.
- Click "Generate Key Pair" by Public Domain key textbox
- The "DNS Entry" field will populate. Copy the information from this box.
- Enter an e-mail address for test e-mails
- Save
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3.Now, return to your DNS provider and create a new TXT record using the selector and DNS entry from NetSuite. For:
- TXT Name: enter "selector1._domainkey"
- TXT Value: paste the text that NetSuite generated for DNS entry.
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E-mail Option Button on Transactions & E-mail Preference
E-mail Option Button on Transactions & E-mail Preference
Many NetSuite users were not happy with the inconsistency between the E-mail option button in the body of a transaction form and the e-mail option button on the messages sub-tab.
NetSuite has a preference located at Setup > Company > Set Up Printing, Fax, & E-mail > E-mail sub-tab > Transactions (section) called Use Popup for Main Transaction Email Button.
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When unchecked, the body level option button sends out an e-mail to the e-mail address on the messages sub-tab with no additional interaction when clicked.
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When checked, the body level e-mail option button brings up the e-mail message pop-up window which allows users to modify the e-mail text, copy others, and include additional attachments.
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Account Usage Information
NetSuite now offers customers a great new feature with regards to account usage through the Billing Information screen. This allows users to look more deeply into the usage of their NetSuite account. This allows for closer monitoring of required resources to determine if more storage, users, or modules are required. To access this information start on the Setup tab: Setup > Company > View Billing Information. This will bring you to a page with 4 tabs of information about your NetSuite usage. Additionally listed along the top of the main Billing Information is the Anniversary Date for your NetSuite account.
Billable Components
This page gives information on the amount of various billable components that a NetSuite account currently has available. Also this page gives the amount of these components that are currently being used, to determine a possible need for more.
Some useful elements of this tab include:
- Email Volume available
- Employee Center size
- File Cabinet Size
- Sandbox Refreshes
- Web Store Items
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Add-On Modules
The Add-On Modules page gives a listing of what additional components a NetSuite account is utilizing along with others that are available. This is a quick reference for which modules can be added to an account.
Provisioning History
The Provisioning History tab gives a historical listing of the changes in billing in any NetSuite account.
Component Usage
The Component Usage tab presents a log of when quantity changed for components from the Billable Components tab, including the date of the change.
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Elimination Subsidiaries for Consolidated Reporting
When managing and reporting on the activities of multiple consolidated entities, it may be necessary to eliminate revenue or expenses when those companies transact with each other. Intercompany loans, sales, and inventory transfers are all examples of transactions between entities that may require these eliminating entries.
NetSuite provides for the creation of "Elimination Subsidiaries" to which journal entries can be posted to balance consolidated books. After the transaction has posted to the two companies' books, you would create an inter-company journal entry to record the elimination and balance the effect of the transaction.
To set up these elimination subsidiaries:
- Navigate to Setup > Company > Subsidiaries > New
- Provide a name for this elimination subsidiary, and specify to which parent it relates
- Check the "Elimination" checkbox. This will ensure only Journal Entries can post to this subsidiary (it cannot be accidentally selected on transactions)
The new subsidiary shows up in the list of subsidiaries, and is designated as an Elimination Subsidiary.
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SuiteScript Inline Editing
Workflow Management Using List Views:
Inline Editing in a list view is very convenient for quickly updating records with out having to open each record individually. This is especially useful for managing company-specific workflow processes because you can easily run through a list and check boxes or change status fields for many records in a short amount of time. By using different filters in a list view, records can move from one list to the next as field values change.
Word of caution:
If you use SuiteScript on your record that is based on a user event such as save, the SuiteScript will not execute when changes are made from a list view. Event based SuiteScripts only execute when the record is opened and saved from within the form.
This is acceptable most of the time unless the fields you are changing in the list view correlate to the business rules or automation provided by the SuiteScript. In this situation you will need to prevent users from editing records from the list view. This can be done by changing a preference on the form. Find the preferred form for your record type, select Edit, and uncheck the field "Enable Field Editing on Lists". Although you many have different forms for a given record type, the list view always looks at the preferred form to determine if inline editing is possible.
Use Case Scenario:
Foster Services has implemented a new workflow to help streamline their new hire process. They start by adding a "Hire Status" custom field to the employee record. When the status is changed to "Offer Accepted" NetSuite tasks are automatically created to setup their email account and order building access cards. Since the company depends on the creation of these tasks, they could not allow users to update the status field via inline editing so they unchecked the "Enable Field Editing on Lists" option on their preferred employee form.
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Lists Preference Settings
You may have noticed in NetSuite, that in some cases you will find a field based on a list of values that gives you a convenient dropdown list, and in other places you only get a popup window. Take a look at the two pictures below of the same sales order form. In the first shot, a little button is shown, and in the second shot of the same field, the dropdown option is gone. What controls this change in behavior?
The preference is found at Home > Set Preferences. On the General Tab, find the field labeled "Maximum Entries in Dropdowns". By default, the value is 200. You can set a maximum of up to 500 items and a minimum of 0. Entering 0 will always result in a popup window.
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Search Engine Optimization (SEO) with NetSuite
There are several ways to improve the ranking of your website in search engine listings. A NetSuite-generated site will rank higher than other dynamic sites because you can change your own meta tags, Alt image tags and page titles.
Meta tags are found in the head tag and include information about the page, including author, copyright and keywords. When customers use search engines to find companies and/or products, they type in keywords that search through all websites to find matches. The more keyword matches, the higher your ranking and the more visibility your site will have to potential customers.
To setup meta tag keywords go to Setup> Web Site > Set Up Web Site. On the General tab, you will add your keywords into the Meta Tag HTML box under Search Engine Optimization. You may also add keywords to your tabs, categories and items on their respective records using the same Meta Tag HTML field.
Another great feature to mention is the Page Title and Descriptive URLs feature. These fields allow you to create a title that is descriptive of what is included on that page, and further specifies the names of your tabs, categories and items all within the URL. These friendly URLs are easy to remember and rank well on search engines.
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CSV Import Improvements for Mac
With the upgrade to version 2007.1, NetSuite has made it easier to import CSV documents from your Mac. NetSuite's CSV Import Assistant has been improved to include a new character encoding option for MacRoman to support Mac Excel CSV format. This makes uploading CSV files by Mac users an easier process.The Import Assistant can be found at Setup > Import/Export > Import CSV Records
If you created your CSV file on a Mac, select MacRoman as the character encoding method:
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Free Shipping With An Item
You can offer free shipping promotions when your customers buy certain items. When you use this preference, the shipping for the entire order automatically changes to zero when the item or items are added to the cart.
You can decide if only one of the items in the promotion can make an order ship for free, or if all items in the promotion must be purchased for the order to ship for free.
Note: Free shipping is only offered with the shipping methods where you set this preference. To make sure that customers receive the offer of free shipping in a NetSuite Web site, you may want to make sure your default shipping method in the Web site is the method with the promotion.
To offer free shipping with certain items:
1. Go to Lists > Accounting > Shipping Items.
2. Click Edit next to the shipping item that should be free when the items are purchased, or click New to create a new shipping item for the promotion.
3. On the Free Shipping Items subtab, select an item that should be offered without a shipping charge for this shipping method, and click Add. You can also click the Add Multiple button to quickly add several items that should have free shipping.
4. Continue to select and add each item that should have free shipping.
5. Check the All Items Must Be Purchased box to require that all items you selected be on an order before free shipping is offered for this shipping method. Clear this box to offer free shipping on the order if any of the items listed are purchased.
6. Click Save.
7. Dependent upon your Checkout and Shopping cart settings, customers on your website can see the Free Shipping when the item(s) is chosen, or you can create a promotion that highlights the Free Shipping.
8. At Checkout the Customer can choose the UPS Ground method and get Free Shipping or some other shipping method.
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Global Search Auto Suggest
With the new Global Search Auto Suggest feature available from Version 2007.0, searching has never been faster. When you enable this feature, you can scroll through a list box of suggested matches as you type into the Global Search field. You can quickly select one of the suggested matches by using the mouse, or the up and down arrows, and select from a list using the mouse, Enter, or Tab.
To enable or disable this feature:
- Go to the Home tab>Set Preferences
- On the Reporting/Search tab, check or uncheck the Quick Search Uses Keywords and Global Search Auto Suggest boxes
As you type into the Global Search field, suggested matches appear in a list box below your entry. You can select from this list, or click the Go button to return a list of all matches.
The record type of each suggested match is displayed in parentheses to its right. Next to the record type, you will see the Edit and View Dashboard links. To select, click on the appropriate link.
The suggestion box displays a maximum of 25 results. If there are more matches, a More link is provided that you can click to view all suggested matches.
If only one suggested match is returned, NetSuite automatically selects that record.
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CSV Import Assistant Overview
The new CSV Import Assistant helps you import business and customer data from comma-delimited CSV files for common record types. The Import Assistant replaces the rigid, template-based import page from previous versions and is designed to provide an easier, faster, and more robust way to import and manage data in NetSuite. With the CSV Import Assistant, you simply select a record type for import (and subtype, if applicable) select one or more CSV files, select data handling options, map your fields to NetSuite fields, and start your import.
Some advantages include:
- Easier and faster importing
- Saving and re-using a mapping that you defined in the import assistant
- Importing Contacts and Entities (Leads, Customers, and Prospects) Together
- Better error messaging
Importing CSV files lets you import records from other applications into NetSuite. The import can either update existing NetSuite data for a record type, add new data to it, or either add or update data for that record type depending on what is required.
To add or update data in NetSuite:
1. Export lists from your current program into one or more CSV files
2. In NetSuite, go to Setup > Import/Export > Import Tasks > Import CSV Records
3. The CSV Import Assistant Welcome screen opens. Click OK to proceed
CSV Import Assistant Welcome Screen
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4. In the Scan and Upload CSV File screen, select the type of record to import:
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5. If appropriate, select the subtype of the record type to import. This dropdown list is only available when a record type has subtypes and usually a default subtype is selected when available. In cases where subtypes of the record type are used, you must select a subtype in order to proceed.
6. Select the type of character encoding to use.
7. Select one or more CSV files to import. When choosing multiple files, the first selected file will be the primary record and will contain the primary key for the import. Subsequent files will be linked to the primary file. Depending on the record type you selected, NetSuite will provide a list of optional linked files that you would be able to use to link to the primary file. Click Next.
(Note: When entering numbers into a CSV file, many spreadsheet programs do not allow leading zeros. For example, if you use Auto-Generated Numbers, you cannot enter 01543 to reference a record. You can eliminate this problem by formatting the cells in your spreadsheet as Text cells instead of numbers. For information on formatting the cells, please refer to the help system for your spreadsheet software)
8. If your CSV file contains incorrect characters or other errors, an error message will display the type and number of errors. You can then download a zip of the CSV file (s) with an additional column in each file indicating the errors, fix the errors, and then relaunch the Assistant and reupload the files. If no errors are detected, the Assistant will proceed to the Import Options screen.
9. In the Import Options screen, choose the desired option(s) for importing your data. Click Next.
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10. In the File Mapping screen, define the primary key column in the primary file and the column(s) it will map to in any linked file. Click Next.
(Note: This screen will not be available if you are only uploading one CSV file)
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11. In the Field Mapping screen:
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(From the right-hand pane drag and drop your fields into the center mapping pane or single-click to add the field. From the left-hand pane, drag and drop or single-click the NetSuite fields to map to your fields. Click Next.)
12. Your CSV file is checked for metadata level integrity. If errors are found an error message will display the type and number of errors. You may elect to:
- Ignore these errors and proceed with the import, or
- Download a zip of the CSV file (s) with an additional column in each file indicating the errors. Fix the errors and then relaunch the Assistant and reupload the files. If no errors are detected, the Assistant will proceed to the Save and Start Import screen.
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In the Import Map Name field, enter a name for this import that you can refer to to track the progress of the import. (Optional) Provide a description of this Import. Click:
- Save and Run to Save the settings (including field mappings) of this import for reuse and start the Import job.
- Save Only to save the settings (including field mappings) without starting the Import Job.
- Run to start the Import job without saving any of the settings specified in the previous screens.
- Click the Status link to review the status of this and other Imports.
- Click Start Another Import to launch the Assistant and start another import.
- Click View Saved Imports to review the list of saved Import Maps and start an import Job based on one of those Maps.
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Multi-Website Capabilities in NetSuite
Since Version 2007.0, many new website features have become available in NetSuite:
- Multiple Website publishing all from one account
- Web Site Assistant for step-by-step guidance as you build your site
- Content Manager to provide easy access to your website pages and items
- Shopping Cart customization for item information and layout control
- "Email a Friend" link that allows shoppers to email the item page to a friend
- "Call for Price" message to showcase items without displaying their price
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Each website can sell different items, or share items across sites. NetSuite makes this process quick and simple by allowing items to be published to multiple sites.
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All orders can be tracked based on the site they originated from.
Companies can also build and operate one single, global site where visitors can select the country or geographical region they belong to, each region having its own language, currency, products and/or services. For further convenience, once a customer shops from a particular region, they will always be directed back to that region.
With NetSuite's new multiple website capability, Explore Consulting makes it easy to expand product lines or manage individually customized sites for different countries, giving way for businesses to grow as they expand globally.
Learn more about how your business can take advantage of the new features in NetSuite.
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Outlook Integration - Automatically save email threads in Outlook
With the Outlook Integration feature, you can save both messages that you are sending and messages that you have received directly into relationship records in your NetSuite account.
To enable the Outlook Integration feature, go to Setup > Company > Enable Features > CRM, check the Outlook Integration box, and click Save.
Before you can begin using the Outlook Integration feature, you need to download and install the client.
1. Close Outlook if you currently have it open.
2. Go to Home > Settings > Set Up Outlook Integration.
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3. Click the link to download and install the client. Note your Account ID which will be needed when setting preferences below
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4. Follow the steps provided in the setup wizard
5. When you reopen Outlook, you will see two new buttons available in the toolbar:
Save in NetSuite - You will use this button to save messages you have received in Outlook to your NetSuite account.
NetSuite Options - You will use this button to log in, set preferences and set up your NetSuite address book.
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To log in to NetSuite through Outlook:
6. In Outlook, click NetSuite Options to open the dropdown menu.
7. Select Set Login Values...
8. In the NetSuite Login popup, enter the email address and password you use to log in to your NetSuite account as well as your Account ID found in the previous step above.
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9. Check the Save values and login automatically box to have your email address, password and account number saved in Outlook.
10. Check the Automatically save in NetSuite if exact match is found box to have a message automatically saved when there is an exact match for the record in your NetSuite Address Book.
11. Click OK to save your preferences.
If a match is not found, the Save Message to NetSuite window pops up, where you can manually search for records in your account and you can choose to save attachments included in the message as well.
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Messages save on the Files subtab of each record you save this message to and in the Attachments to Send or Attachments Received folders of the File Cabinet.
You can save up to 5MB for each attachment and a total of 10MB for each message.
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Campaign Subscription Categories
With the Campaign Subscription Categories feature available from Version 2007.0, customers and others with whom you communicate via bulk email, can choose which types of campaign communication they want to receive. When you turn on this feature, you can create your own campaign subscription categories in addition to the following default subscription categories - Billing Communication, Marketing, Newsletters, Product Updates, and Surveys.
To create a new subscription category:
1. Go to Setup > Marketing > > Campaign Subscriptions > New.
2. Enter the name of this subscription category and a description.
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3. Check the Unsubscribed by Default box if you want new records to be unsubscribed to this campaign subscription (Entities must manually subscribe to subscriptions that they are unsubscribed to.)
4. In the External Name field enter the name of this subscription category as you want it to appear in the Campaign Subscription Center.
5. In the External Description field, enter the description of this category that you want to show in the Campaign Subscription Center.
6. Click Save.
You can associate subscriptions with marketing and email templates. When you select a template on a campaign record or in an email merge, this subscription category is chosen by default. Email is only sent to the recipient group members with this subscription.
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When you send email through a campaign or bulk merge operation, email is only sent to members of the group with the subscription selected in the Subscription field. The Subscription subtab on customer, contact, partner, vendor and employee records shows the subscription status for each subscription category.
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By logging in to the Campaign Subscription Center from the Customer Center, recipients can choose which subscriptions they want.
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Project Accounting - Assigning Resources and Time Management
With the Advance Project Accounting module you can assign resources and designate their role on a project record. You can also specify on the project record to limit time record entry for that project to assignees only. This will reduce the number of projects that consultants see when entering time and help to alleviate time entry errors.
To assign resources:
Navigate to the resources tab on the project record.
On the resources tab choose the individual you would like to add to the project. Their email address is sourced from their record and you can designate their role. Resources can be both employees and vendors.
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To limit who can enter time for this project, check the checkbox on the general tab for “Limit Time to Assignees.” Now only the name in the resource list will be able to see this project record on the time entry screen.
Back to topPublishing Dashboards
You can customize dashboards and apply them to your employees' accounts. Publishing dashboards allows you to make sure that everyone with the same NetSuite role views the same information. This also saves time by allowing one person to set up every team member's dashboard.
When you publish dashboards in NetSuite, you can choose to allow or restrict employees from making changes to their dashboards. You must have one of the following Administrator roles to publish dashboards: Administrator, Sales, Marketing, Support or System Administrator.The role you use to customize your published dashboard determines which roles you can assign the dashboard to. For example, Sales administrators can publish dashboards to sales administrators, sales manager and sales reps.
To publish a dashboard:
First, customize the pages in your account to appear as your employees should view them. This includes adding, customizing and arranging portlets on each tab in your account. You can customize which information appears on a tab by clicking Customize this Page on each tab, in the top right corner.
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1. When your dashboard is set up, go to the Settings Portal in the lower left corner of the Home Page and click on Publish Dashboard.
2. On the Publish Dashboard page, enter a name for this dashboard.
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3. In the Notes field, enter a description for this dashboard.
4. On the Apply to Roles subtab, choose one or more roles you want to assign this dashboard to.
5. Check the Override Existing User's Settings box only if you want to replace your employees' current dashboards with this saved dashboard.
6. Click Add.
7. Click the Apply to Tabs subtab.
8. On the Apply to Tabs subtab, check the box in the Apply column next to each tab you want this dashboard applied to.
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9. For each tab you check, your employees' dashboards will be updated to include the same information you have set up.
10. In the Mode column, choose one of the following for each tab:
Unlocked: this lets employees change all aspects of their dashboards
Locked: this restricts employees from making any changes to their dashboards
Add/Move Content: this allows employees to add new content to their dashboards and also to move the portlets you have created. Employees cannot remove content.
Note: Once you have applied a dashboard to a role, you can no longer change the tabs that a dashboard is applied to.
11. Click Save.
Your saved dashboard is now assigned to the roles you chose.
Increase Your Exposure Through Website Product Feeds
You can increase the exposure of your Web site and items by exporting lists of items to Web site comparison search engines, Yahoo Shopping, NexTag, Shopzilla, Shopping.com and Froogle. These search engines display your items and information in shoppers' search results. For example, if you sell printers in your Web store, you can export information about the printers to Froogle. Then, when shoppers search Froogle for printers, your printers that match their search criteria show in the list of results. Shoppers can see an image of the item, get pricing information and click to open the item in your web store.
In order to provide information specific to these sites, optional fields have been added to the following item records: Kit/Package, Non-inventory Item for Sale, Non-inventory Item for Resale, Assembly (lot and serialized), Inventory (lot and serialized).
Enter information in these fields before exporting your item lists. You can use direct list-editing to quickly enter this information on your items list.
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Once you have entered the information into your NetSuite items, you then export the item lists:
- Go to Setup > Web Site > Product Feeds.
- Click the name of the comparison engine you want to export to.
- A list of your online items appears showing only the fields required for the comparison engine you chose.
- Click Export.
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The final step is to upload your exported item lists to each of the search engines, which require you to have an account set up with them.
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Excel Web Query
To help you operate more efficiently without constantly relying on a technical staff to provide custom reports and key metrics in a specific format, NetSuite provides the ability to create "Web Queries". They allow you to pull real-time data from any NetSuite report into Microsoft ® Excel. This gives you a powerful and familiar environment for crunching numbers and generating highly customized reports from your NetSuite data. To do this, customize any report, navigate to the "More Options" section of the Report Builder, and click on the "Allow Web Query" checkbox.
Save and run the report. Then, click the "Export - Excel Web Query" button.
When you open the document in Microsoft ® Excel, you will be prompted for your NetSuite username.
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You can now update the information in the report at anytime by clicking on the refresh button in Excel.
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Excel Web Queries can be used for easy access to your NetSuite information. They can also provide the ability to build reports including information that may not be stored in NetSuite.
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Partner / Affiliate Capabilities in NetSuite
Included in the standard NetSuite account is the Partner Center Role for partners. A partner is a company you have a business agreement with who isn't a customer or a vendor. The Partner Center role lets your partners view their Customers, Sales and Promotion Codes and reports.
NetSuite's partner management software extends your sales organization while allowing you to maintain full control of every element of the selling process, including promotional discounts and marketing campaigns. NetSuite lets you provide promotional discounts through your channel as one-time-use discounts, or limited time offers. Support your partners' marketing efforts with campaign tracking capabilities, which allow you to monitor and optimize channel programs via a referring URL.
Based on the level of access you set, the partner management software allows your partners to view customer records, manage their pipeline more effectively, enter leads and process orders. Additionally, with partner management software you'll be able to track sales activity and view forecasts on your partner channel.
You can even give channel partners access to the latest campaigns and product information via an intranet. As a result, your partners can sell and service customers more effectively.
If you do not have partner records enabled in your account, an administrator can enable them at Setup > Enable Features. On the CRM subtab, check the Partner Relationship Management box, and click Save. To assign the Partner Center role to a partner, the Partner Access feature must be turned on at Setup > Enable Features > Web Site.
To assign the Partner Center role:
- Open the partner record.
- On the Access subtab, check the Give Access box.
- In the Role field, select Partner Center.
- Check the Send Notification Email box if you want to notify this partner that they have been given access. This e-mail explains login procedures. However, it does not contain the partner's password. You need to communicate this information to the partner.
- Enter a login password for this partner.
- In the Confirm Password field, re-enter the password.
- If you want to allow this partner to give access to its subpartners, check the Can Give Login Access to Subpartners box.
- Click Save.
You can preview what your partner sees by clicking on the Access subtab on the Partner record and click the Login As Partner link.
*An Advanced Partner Center role is also available for an additional fee, which gives partners access to more records, transactions and reports, and in addition, with the Incentive Management module, NetSuite lets you pay commissions to partners.
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KPI Scorecards Track and Compare Metrics all Year
The KPI Scorecards feature allows you to add a portlet to your dashboard that shows the results of multiple KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for multiple date or period ranges within a single portlet. The scorecard-like functionality also allows you to compare one KPI to another within the same portlet. For example, a sales manager can track the sales of multiple sales team simultaneously. In our example, we are providing a KPI displaying Revenue Target Metrics for members of the Board of Directors.
When comparing KPIs, you can select Ratio or Variance, Absolute or Percent differences. Historical pipeline and forecast data are also supported.
To enable the KPI Scorecards feature:
- Go to Setup > Company > Enable Features.
- On the General subtab, check the KPI Scorecards box.
- Click Save.
Setting Up a KPI Scorecards Portlet On the KPI Scorecard page, you can set up the KPIs you want to include in your KPI Scorecards portlet. You can define date ranges to apply to each KPI and also define an audience to share your portlet with. Once your setup is complete, you can click Customize this Page on any standard or custom tab in your account to add the KPI portlet to that page.
To set up a KPI Scorecards portlet:
- Go to Setup > Customization > KPI Scorecards > New.
- On the Content subtab, select the KPI you want shown in the portlet.
- On the Content subtab, select the additional KPI you want shown in the portlet.
- Check Compare with Previous if you want to compare the results of this comparison to the comparison defined in the row above this one on the KPIs subtab.
- Select one of the following comparison types:
- Variance Percent: 100*(B-A)/A
- Variance Absolute: B-A
- Ratio Percent: 100*B/A
- Ratio Absolute: B/A
- Sum: A + B
- Check Invert Comparison if you want to invert the operation used to calculate the comparison type.
- Enter a column label for the KPI. This label is the column header in the KPI Scorecard portlet.
- Repeat steps 2-7 to add additional KPIs to the portlet.
- On the Date Range subtab, select a date range for the KPIs you selected and repeat steps 2-7 above.
- Repeat steps above to add additional date ranges to the portlet. Note: A column will be listed in the KPI Scorecards portlet for each date range or comparison range defined.
- Click Save.
Once your setup is complete, you can add the KPI Scorecards portlet to your dashboard.
To add a KPI scorecard to your dashboard:
- Go to Home > Settings > Customize this Page.
- On the Customize page, click the Standard Content subtab.
- Check the box in the Show column next to KPI Scorecard.
- Click Save.
Once the KPI Scorecard portlet is added to your dashboard, click Set Up in the portlet to access three additional preferences:
- KPI Scorecard - Choose the KPI scorecard you want shown in your portlet.
- Restrict To - Select My Team or Only Mine to filter the results shown on your scorecard. Select All to include all data.
- Orientation - Choose to show KPI or dates in the left most column of the scorecard.
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Coupons/Discounts Promotions in NetSuite
Give your customers a Holiday Season gift by using the Coupon and Discount Promotions!
With Version 11.0 you can create Coupons and/or Discounts that are only valid on certain items, or alternatively valid on all items except for a few specified items. For example, you can have a 10% off coupon on cables and a 20% off coupon on keyboards. To set up a discount go to Lists > Accounting > Items > New > Discount. From there create the name and desired discount amount.
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To create a New Promotion Code go to List > Marketing > Promotion Codes > New. On the Promotion Code page you can enter the name, code, message, items to be discounted, start/end dates, and any other information you choose. Click save and now you can assign this promotion code to lead, prospect, partner, and customer records.
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Gift Certificates
Get Ready For The Holidays and take advantage of this NetSuite Feature!!! Did you know with the new Gift Certificates feature in Version 11.0, you can create items that allow customers to purchase store credit to send as a gift? The recipient can use the gift certificate code when placing an order through the Web store or with a sales representative. Gift certificates can be applied toward the total amount of an order and are not limited by item. If the total amount of the gift certificate is not applied with the first purchase, the amount remaining is displayed with order confirmation, and the certificate code can be used again. Recipients of gift certificates receive an email with a link to your store and a code to apply the gift certificate amount when they place an order. The gift certificate code is entered in the Gift Certificate field on transactions and in the Web store.
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To create gift certificate items, you must enable the Gift Certificates feature at Setup > Company > Enable Features > Sales Transactions. You can then create gift certificate items at List > Accounting > Items > New > Gift Certificate. Gift certificates are treated as a liability until they have been redeemed or until they expire. To recognize expired gift certificates as revenue, go to Transactions > Other > Recognize Gift Certificate Income.
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Long Running Reports
If you have a long running report that you don't want to wait around for, you can now initiate it, and come back later to review the results. Further, you can be alerted via email once the results are available.
When you start the report, the following dialog will appear:
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Reports Tab Click "Customize this Page"
Once the report completes, you will be emailed a link to the results.
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Date Shortcut - a time saver tip
Here's another great Time Saving shortcut! In any date field you can simply click inside the box and hit "T" for today's date to appear and "Y" for yesterday's date to appear.
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Report Scheduling
You can now set up any report to e-mail automatically! Simply set up a schedule stating how often you would like each report to run and who it should be sent to. Have the report sent every day, week, month, year, or set of weekdays. View and edit your set of Report Schedules at any time. Other enhancements include the ability to run long-running reports while you work on other tasks. View the report when you're ready.
- Create your report.
- Click "Schedule" in the bottom right hand corner.
- Fill out form.
- Click on the "Recurrence" tab and choose appropriate selections.
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Relationships as Individuals or Companies
With NetSuite, you can indicate whether a relationship record represents an individual or a company.
When you create a customer, partner, vendor or other name record, choose whether this record is for a company or an individual in the Type field. Your selection determines which information is recorded on this page.
Records for individuals:
- Do not have Contacts sub-tabs
- Include title, first and last name fields
- Have an optional Company Name field
- Have other fields specific to individuals such as Job Title
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Records for companies:
- Have a mandatory Company Name field
- Have a Contacts sub-tab
- Have other fields appropriate for companies such as Web Address
You can choose whether customer records are created as individuals or companies by default at Setup > Company > General Preferences in the Default Customer Type field. This preference is set to Company by default.
You can choose the type of record created when customers submit online customer forms. On the Set Up Workflow sub-tab of the online form record, check the Create Customers as Companies field. Then, if customers enter information in the Company Name field, a company type record is created. If nothing is entered in the Company Name field, an individual type record is created.
If you want individual type records to also show as contacts, check the Show Individuals as Contacts box at Setup > Company > General Preferences.
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Demand-based Inventory Replenishment
Since version 11, NetSuite provides intelligent control over inventory replenishment, helping ensure that you have enough quantity on hand to fill anticipated orders, but keep excess stock to a minimum.
Average lead time, historical or seasonal-based sales demand, and number of days’ supply to stock are used to dynamically set reorder point and preferred stock level for each item, on an ongoing basis. You can always override or disable these calculations for individual items, to handle atypical circumstances.
You set up the rules, NetSuite runs the numbers and the end result is a dynamic ordering queue, where you can order all your inventory items with one click and get what you need, when you need it.
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Associating Promotion Codes to Items
The functionality to associate promotion codes directly to an item or group of items has been released in NetSuite Version 11. This makes it possible to create promotion codes that will deduct a flat rate or percentage off only the items specified. There is also an option to 'Exclude Items' for scenarios where a promotion code will be associated to all items except the specifed items.
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Minimum Order Amounts
You can set a minimum order amount for orders placed through a NetSuite e-commerce website. If customers attempt to place an order below the set amount a message will be displayed on the final review and submit order screen of the checkout process.
- Navigate to Setup -> Website -> Setup Website
- Click the Checkout tab
- Enter the amount in the field labeled 'Minimum Order Amount'
- Save
Using NetSuite Custom Code for Intelligent Online Forms
Publishing NetSuite online forms is a powerful and simple way to capture information from your customers, vendors, employees, or any other entities. These forms provide a secure and efficient way for you to automate the process of gathering data and can be used for a host of initiatives including Online Surveys, Reviews, RSVP Forms, or Questionnaires to name a few. In some cases, additional functionality may be required to ensure that the data being submitted is accurate or meaningful. NetSuite custom code allows you to add your own business logic to the forms, thus making them more 'intelligent'.
The example below shows that if a user selects a particular field option they get an alert and the submit button is disabled, not allowing them to submit the form until a valid value is provided. In other words, the custom code is performing field level validation to ensure that the data submitted is accurate and will be useful once captured into your NetSuite account. Custom code allows you to perform calculations, set field values, enable or disable fields and many other functions.
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Before: User selects dropdown field option
After: Pop-up alert is displayed and submit button is disabled
