Classic - Agreements

Successware allows you to create membership agreements to meet any style of agreement that your company chooses to use. Keep in mind that agreements must be activated before you can make use of the agreement to perform service or schedule maintenance!

Successware allows you to employ 2 types of agreement coverage:

• Maintenance coverage -these consist of covering scheduled maintenance visits.
• Service coverage -these include coverage of unexpected service calls.

Agreements can be set up to cover maintenance, service or both.

Maintenance agreements can have their revenue deferred so that a portion of the revenue is realized as each visit is performed, as opposed to realizing all of the revenue at the time the agreement is activated. This allows you to more realistically account for incoming revenue over the life span of the agreement. If the agreement is terminated, any deferred amount is automatically released as current revenue. If an agreement expires and all of the required visits have not been performed, the amount left in the deferred revenue account is not realized as current revenue until the remaining visits are marked complete or cancelled.

Service agreements can be set up so that reserve account is established to cover the expense of work performed under the agreement. Any deposits deposit or periodic payment is immediately realized as revenue, however a separate expense transaction places funds into a service reserve account.  This account will then be charged against as service visits are performed. If more than the value of the reserve account is required to meet the agreement, an expense excess account will be charged. If the agreement is terminated, any amount in the service reserve account, related to the agreement is removed and returned to the expense account from which it was originally charged.  If an agreement expires and there is still a balance in the reserve account, the reserve amount must manually be returned to the expense account from which it was originally charged.

Agreements can be set up to run as either perpetual or fixed length.

• Perpetual agreements - indefinite and are in effect from the starting date until the customer cancels the agreement, therefore perpetual agreements do not have an end date.
• Fixed-term agreements - are in effect from a set start date through a set end date, at which time the agreement will expire or can be renewed.

Agreements and the General Ledger

Whenever you activate an agreement, invoice an agreement, or perform a visit or service related to the agreement, there are entries that are posted to the General Ledger.

There are five default General Ledger accounts that are associated with agreements.

• Agreement Revenue - contains recognized agreement revenue.
• Agreement Deferred Revenue -contains revenue that is to be recognized in the future (when a maintenance visit is performed). This is a liability account.
• Agreement Reserve -liability that is set aside to cover future service calls that are charged against the agreement.
• Agreement Expense -expense entries that are made in association with agreement reserve.
• Agreement Expense Excess -expense entries that are made in excess of the original reserve amount.

Creating an Agreement

Just as you needed to make some business decisions as to how you were going to do your tasks when you set up your PriceBook, you must make some similar business decisions when you create your agreements. When determining how your company will sell agreements you will have to make four main decisions:

• Will your agreements cover maintenance, service or both?
• Will you make use of defer revenue or service reserve?
• Will your agreements have a fixed term or will they be perpetual (no end date)?
• Will your agreements be billed periodically, at the time of service, or will pre-payment be required.

In this section we will go through the steps for creating three types of agreements.  These three agreements will cover each of the options mentioned above.

Creating a New Agreement from an Invoice

Quite often, an agreement will be sold while performing service at a customer’s location. For this reason, Successware has made it easy for you to create the agreement while in the customer’s invoice.

Follow these steps to create an agreement.

1. Complete the call as you normally would.
2. Open the invoice.
3. Enter the invoice date.
4. Click the Agreements
5. Choose New Agreement from the drop-down menu. This will open the Agreement form ready to enter a new agreement.

6. Fill in the agreement information.
7. Click Save.

The agreement will now display as a line item on the invoice.

Creating a Maintenance Agreement with Periodic Billing Using Deferred Revenue

1. Open the new agreement

NOTE: To create a new agreement whenever you are viewing a screen with a customer selected, press F7 to call up the AGREEMENT screen and then click New Agreement.

2. Click on the Type drop-down table and choose the desired AgreementType
   

You will be prompted to decide whether to use the agreement template for this type or not. Click No. This example will not use the template.

NOTE: Templates allow you to create a template with most of the fields already populated. For consistency sake and reduction of errors, it is highly recommended that you base your agreements on a template. For further information see the Agreement Template section.

3. Choose the coverage type from the Covers drop-down menu.

4. Choose the term of the agreement from the Term drop-down menu.

NOTE: Perpetual term agreements cannot be pre-paid.

5. Choose a department from the Dept drop-down menu..
6. Enter the number of maintenance visits that will be performed each year in the Visits/Year

7. Enter the coverage duration in the Years Successware will calculate the total number of visits in the #Visits field.
8. Enter the Sale and Start date of the agreement. Successware will calculate the End date.

NOTE: If the agreement will have a scheduled maintenance visit in the same month as the start date (i.e. March start date and a March visit), you will use the day of the month to tell the system whether the visit is for this year or next year.

• Dates of 1 – 16 will schedule the visit for this year.
• Dates of 17 – end of month will schedule the visit for next year.

9. If there is a discount on other work that is associated with the agreement, enter the discount type and the percentage.
10. Choose the sales person and preferred technician from the Sales and Tech drop-down tables.
11. Choose a payment method using the Pmt Method drop-down menu. The type of payment you choose will determine the related fields that display.

Note: A payment method is only necessary for agreements that involve periodic billings. The payment method chosen will display as periodic invoices are created.

12. Place a checkmark in the Defer Rev? You will later specify a portion of the deposit that will be entered in the deferred revenue General Ledger account. The full amount of future periodic billings will be placed in the deferred revenue account as well. Revenue will be realized as visits are completed.
13. In the Billing Method? drop-down menu, select Periodic billing.

14. Choose Add Tax if you want add tax to the bill amount. Tax will not be included in the bill amount, but rather added to it.
15. Choose the frequency of billing from the Frequency drop-down menu. If you choose Monthly, all months will be checked. If you choose any other frequency you must check the months you want to bill your customers. Successware will calculate the total number of payments. Perpetual agreements will have no "number of payments".

17. Choose the date you would like billings to start by from the Start Date drop-down menu. This will define the date of the first billing due and therefore the first periodic invoice. If you have assigned specific days for periodic invoices, pick the date from the drop down.
18. Enter the total cost of the agreement as shown in the following example, as well as any amount received as a deposit and the portion of that deposit you want to designate as deferred revenue. If this were a perpetual agreement you would not enter a total cost, but only the deposit amount (if any), the amount of that deposit to defer and the bill amount.

NOTE: In this example, of the $100 deposit, $25 will be realized immediately as revenue. The other $75 will be placed in deferred revenue. As each periodic bill is paid the entire $10 will be deferred. As each bi-annual visit is performed, $67.50 of agreement revenue will be realized. (The total value of each visit is $70, however, $25 (already realized)/10 (Total # visits) =$2.50 of each visit is already realized as revenue. $70-$2.50 = $67.50 revenue as each visit is performed.)

19. Right-click in the Equipment List window and select Edit Eq List, or press Enter. This will generate a list of equipment that has been entered for the current location.

20. Checkmark any equipment that will be covered by the agreement.

NOTE: If there is no equipment, or a piece of equipment is missing, press F6 to open the Equipment window and create a new piece of equipment.

21. After you have chosen the equipment to be covered by the agreement, click OK.
22. Choose a Visit Type. A Visit Type identifies the kind of work that you will perform when maintenance visit is performed. If there are multiple visits in the year, but they are the same Visit Type, only one visit needs to be added and multiple months will be marked. If there are different Visit types performed during the year, a separate line must be added for each visit type.
23. Tab to the months that will contain visits and place an “X” in them.

24. Press Enter again to save the line. To add another visit type press Alt+Insert to add a new line.
25. Tab to the Visit Notes field and enter any relevant information.
26. If there is a task code associated with the Visit Type, it will display in the Task Code If you wish to create a custom task for this agreement, click on the drop-down arrow to create a custom task.

27. Click Save to save the agreement.

Remember: The agreement must be activated before any transactions can be posted against it. See Activating Agreements for further information.

 

General Ledger Activity for Agreements with Deferred Revenue

When an agreement with deferred revenue posts (on activation), a number of General Ledger entries are made.

In the example above, $25 is credited to agreement revenue, $75 is credited to deferred agreement revenue. As each visit is performed and the invoice for it posted, the per-visit amount (in this example $67.50) will be debited from deferred agreement revenue and credited to agreement revenue.

Creating a Prepaid Maintenance Agreement without Deferred Revenue

1. Open the new agreement.

NOTE: To create a new agreement whenever you are viewing a screen with a customer selected, press F7 to call up the Agreement screen and then click New Agreement.

2. Click on the Type drop-down table and choose the desired AgreementType.

You will be prompted to decide whether to use the agreement template for this type or not. Click No. This example will not use a template. For further information see the Agreement Template section.

3. Choose the coverage type from the Covers drop-down menu.

4. Choose the term of the agreement from the Term drop-down menu.

NOTE: Perpetual term agreements cannot be pre-paid.

5. Choose a department from the Dept drop-down menu.
6. Enter a number of maintenance visits that will be performed each year in the Visits/Year
7. Enter the coverage duration in the Years Successware will calculate the total number of visits in the #Visits field.                                                                                                             

8. Enter the Sale and Start date of the agreement. Successware will calculate the End

NOTE: If the agreement will have a scheduled maintenance visit in the same month as the start date (i.e. March start date and a March visit), you will use the day of the month to tell the system whether the visit is for this year or next year.

• Dates of 1 – 16 will schedule the visit for this year.
• Dates of 17 – end of month will schedule the visit for next year.

9. If there is a discount on other work that is associated with the agreement, enter the discount type and percentage in the Disc and %
10. Choose the sales person and preferred technician from the Sales and Tech drop-down tables.
11. Select Prepaid from the Billing Method? drop-down menu.

12. Enter the total cost of the agreement, as shown in the example below.

NOTE: In this example, since this is a prepaid agreement, the entire total of the agreement is listed as a deposit. This example does not use deferred revenue, so the entire total will be realized as agreement revenue when the agreement is activated.

13. Right-click in the Equipment List window and select Edit Eq List. This will generate a list of equipment that has been entered for the current location.
14. Checkmark any equipment that will be covered by the agreement.

NOTE: If there is no equipment or a piece of equipment is missing, press F6 to open the Equipment window and create a new piece of equipment. (See the Invoicing section of the manual- Creating Equipment.)

15. In the Visits portion of the window, press Enter to select the months during which visits should occur.
16. Choose a Visit Type.
17. Tab to the months that will contain visits and place an “X” in them.

18. Press Enter again to save the line. To add another visit type press Alt+Insert to add a new line.
19. Tab to the Visit Notes and enter any relevant information.
20. If there is a task code associated with the Visit Type, it will display in the Task Code If you wish to create a custom task for this agreement, click on the drop-down arrow to create a custom task.

21. Click Save to save the agreement.

Remember: The agreement must be activated before any transactions can be posted against it. See Activating Agreements for further information.

General Ledger Activity for Agreements without Deferred Revenue

Since the preceding agreement was prepaid and used no deferral of revenue, the entire total of the agreement is realized as agreement revenue.

The Agreement Revenue Account is credited $450.

Creating a Perpetual Service Agreement with Service Reserve

1. Open the new agreement

NOTE: To create a new agreement whenever you are viewing a screen with a customer selected, press F7 to call up the AGREEMENT screen and then click New Agreement.

2. Click on the Type drop-down table and choose the desired Agreement Type

You will be prompted to decide whether to use the agreement template for this type or not. This example will not use the template. For further information see the Agreement Template section.

3. Choose the coverage type from the Covers drop-down menu.
4. Choose the term of the agreement from the Term drop-down menu.

NOTE: Perpetual term agreements cannot be pre-paid.

5. Choose a department from the Dept drop-down menu.
6. Since this is a perpetual agreement and it involves no scheduled maintenance visits, the Visits/Year, Years and #Visits fields will be grayed out.
7. Enter the Sale and Start date of the agreement. There will be no End

NOTE: If the agreement will have a scheduled maintenance visit in the same month as the start date (i.e. March start date and a March visit), you will use the day of the month to tell the system whether the visit is for this year or next year.

• Dates of 1 – 16 will schedule the visit for this year.
• Dates of 17 – end of month will schedule the visit for next year.

8. If there is a discount on other work that is associated with the agreement, enter the discount type and percentage in the Disc and %
9. Select the sales person and preferred technician from the Sales and Tech drop-down tables.
10. Check the Use Reserve? You will later specify a portion of the deposit that will be entered in the agreement reserve General Ledger account. The full service portion of future payments will be placed in the agreement reserve account as well. The reserve account will be used to cover the expense of service calls associated with the agreement.

11. In the Billing Method? Drop-down menu, select Periodic Billing.

12. Choose Add Tax if you want add tax to the bill amount. Tax will not be included in the bill amount, but rather added to it.
13. Choose the frequency of billing from the Frequency drop-down menu. If you choose Monthly, all months will be checked. If you choose any other frequency you must check the months you want to bill your customers. Perpetual agreements will have no "number of payments".

14. Choose the date you would like billings to start by from the Start Date drop-down menu. This will define the date of the first billing due and therefore the first periodic invoice. If you have assigned specific days for periodic invoices, pick the date from the drop down.
15. Since this is a perpetual agreement, there is no set total. If you are taking a deposit from the customer, enter the amount in the deposit field. Additionally if you want to make an initial Service Reserve entry, enter the amount in the Reserve column
16. Under the Bill Amount, enter the amount that will be billed in each periodic billing

17. Right-click in the Equipment List window and select Edit Eq List. This will generate a list of equipment that has been entered for the current location.

18. Checkmark any equipment that will be covered by the agreement.

NOTE: If there is no equipment or a piece of equipment is missing, press F6 to open the Equipment window and create a new piece of equipment. (See the Invoicing section of the manual- Creating Equipment.)

19. Click Save to save the agreement.

Remember: The agreement must be activated before any transactions can be posted against it. See Activating Agreements for further information.

General Ledger Activity for Agreements with a Service Reserve

Service reserve, unlike deferred revenue, is immediately recognized as revenue. The amount that is entered into the reserve account is balanced against an entry from the agreement reserve expense account.

In this example, the $10 deposit is credited to agreement revenue. The agreement reserve account is credited $10 (the portion of the service deposited that we assigned to reserve) and the agreement reserve expense account is debited $10.

The Agreements Form

Field	Valid Entry/Description
Agreement #	Two options: 1.  Accept system generated ID. 2.  Enter a unique ID.  Must be alpha-numeric.
Type	Select from drop-down list of user defined types. Use the type to group “like” agreements.  It is highly recommended that you create a template for each type to expedite data entry and reduce the likelihood of data entry errors.
Covers	Select from drop-down list. Maintenance—to indicate that you will perform scheduled maintenance visits (or scheduled service calls). Service—to indicate that service work is applied to the agreement rather than billed to the customer. Maint/Service—to indicate that you will both perform scheduled maintenance visits AND apply service work to the agreement.
Term	Select from drop-down list. Fixed—to indicate that the agreement has an expiration date. Perpetual—to indicate that the agreement is an on-going agreement that does not have an expiration date.
Dept	Type in the department number you wish to post revenue to. Or Select from drop-down list of user defined departments.
Visits/Year	Enter the number of maintenance visits you will perform per year.
Years (Fixed Term Only)	Enter the number of years of the agreement.
# Visits (Fixed Term Only)	System generated based on Visits/Year and number in the Years field.
Sale (date)	Enter the date the agreement was sold.
Start (date)	Enter the starting date of the agreement (use / for current date). If the agreement will have a scheduled maintenance visit in the same month as the start date (i.e. March start date and a March visit), you will use the day of the month to tell the system whether the visit is this year or next year. Dates of 1 – 16 will schedule the visit for this year. Dates of 17 – end of month will schedule the visit for next year.
End (Date)	Successware will automatically calculate the end date based upon the start date and the term of the agreement. This field will be disabled on a perpetual agreement.
Disc	This field is used to indicate the type of discount you offer the customer on other work because they have this type of agreement with you.  This will NOT automatically discount anything. 1.  Leave field blank 2.  Select from drop-down list of user-defined discount types and percentages.
%	Will default based on Discount Type selected.  You can override this percentage if necessary.
Sales (person)	Use this field to indicate who will be credited with the sale of the agreement.  You can either 1.  Leave field blank. 2.  Select from drop-down list.
Tech	Use this field if you want to assign a particular technician to the agreement.  You can either: 1.  Leave the field blank. 2.  Select from drop-down list of your technicians.
Pmt Method	It is not necessary to complete these fields if the agreement is pre-paid.  Only use this field to indicate how the customer will pay you for future payments. Select from the drop-down list to select the payment method the customer will use (i.e. for periodically billed agreements). The fields that follow will depend upon the payment type you have chosen.
Defer Rev?	Select if you want to post revenue to a deferred revenue account for the maintenance portion of the deposit or billings.  If you use deferred revenue, the system will move revenue from deferred to current revenue when maintenance visits are performed.
Use Reserve?	Select if you want to post the service portion of the deposit or billings to a reserve account.
Billing Method?	Select from drop-down list. Charge per visit - to indicate that you will invoice or collect for the visit when it is performed. Periodic billing - to indicate that you will invoice the agreement on a regular schedule (i.e. monthly, quarterly, etc.) independent of the visit schedule. Prepaid - to indicate that you have collected (or invoiced for) the entire agreement amount up front. No charge - for agreements for which you are not charging the customer.  Many companies give a free one-year agreement with new installations.
Add Tax?	Select if the deposit is taxable, or if you wish to add tax to future billings for the agreement.
Frequency (Periodic billings only)	Select from drop-down list.  Select whether you wish to bill the agreement Monthly, Quarterly, Semiannually, Annually, or an Other frequency (i.e. 3 times a year).
J,F,M,A,M,J,J,A,S,O,N,D (Periodic billings only)	Mark the appropriate months to bill based on the frequency.
Start Date (Periodic billings only)	Enter the date you wish to create the first periodic invoice.  If you collect the first month’s payment as a deposit, enter the next month as the start date.  If you collect the first year’s payment as a deposit, enter the next year as the start date.
# Payments	System calculates based on number of years x frequency (applies to fixed term agreements only).
Total: Maint (Fixed term agreements only)	Enter the total price for the maintenance portion of the agreement.
Total: Service (Fixed term agreements only)	Enter the total price for the service portion of the agreement.
Total (Fixed term agreements only)	System will calculate Total: Maint + Total: Service.
Deposit: Maint	Enter the amount of deposit (if any) collected for the maintenance portion.  If you selected Prepaid as “How is agreement billed” the system will complete this field with the Total: Maint amount entered.
Deposit: Service	Enter the amount of deposit (if any) collected for the service portion. If you selected Prepaid as “How is agreement billed” the system will complete this field with the Total Service amount entered.
Deposit: Total	System will calculate Deposit: Maint + Deposit: Service.
Balance on Cont	System will calculate the amount that has not been collected or invoiced based on the total deposit.
Deferred/Reserve: Maint	The amount of the maintenance deposit you wish to post to deferred revenue.
Deferred/Reserve:Service	The amount of the service portion of the deposit you wish to post to the reserve account.
Collect/Visit: Maint	The system will calculate the amount to collect (invoice) per visit based on the following formula: (total maintenance – deposit) / number of visits.
Collect/Visit: Serv	The system will calculate the amount to collect (invoice) per visit based on the following formula: (total service – deposit) / number of visits.
Collect/Visit: Total	Total Maintenance to collect + total service to collect.
Maint Value /Visit	System calculates (maint deferred / number of Visits) + collect/Visit.
Equipment List	Press Enter to select the pieces of the customer’s equipment that is covered by the agreement. If the equipment does not exist, press F6 to add the equipment.
Visits	Used to enter months when visits will be scheduled to occur.
Visit Notes	Enter any notes about the visits that will be performed.
Task Code	If you have set up a specific task in the PriceBook that will be included on the invoice when a particular visit type is chosen, the task code will display. You can click on the drop-down menu to create a custom task for this agreement.

Additional Agreement Information

The Additional Agreement Information form displays summary data for Maintenance and Service portions of an Agreement. This information includes visit and deferred revenue information for Maintenance Agreements and service and reserve charges for Service Agreements.

The grids in each section display a history of transactions against the portions of the Agreement.

The General Ledger transaction associated with each item in the grid can be accessed by right clicking and selecting G/L Review.

Access the Additional Agreement Information form by right-clicking and selecting Additional Info from the Agreement form.

Adjusting Agreement Reserve

You adjust agreement reserve in the Agreement Adjustment form. You may choose to increase the reserve amount of an agreement or to release the amount still help in reserve on the expiration of an agreement.

Access the Agreement form by pressing F7 from any screen in which you have the agreement customer selected.  

To Adjust Agreement Reserve

1. Right-click on the Agreement form and select Adjust Reserve.  The Agreement Adjustment form appears.                       
2. Select Increase Reserve or Decrease Reserve.
3. Enter the date on which you want to post the reserve adjustment to the General Ledger.
4. Enter the amount of the adjustment in the Reserve Amount (To reverse the entire balance on expiration of the agreement, be sure that the amount of the adjustment is equal to the Balance listed at the top of the form.)
5. The Expense Account, Sub Account, and Dept fields are disabled (they will default from the Agreement).
6. Use the Comment field to enter any notes.
7. Select Post to post the reserve to the general ledger.

Agreement Profitability

The Agreement Profitability form displays summary data for Maintenance portion, Service portion and overall Profitability of the current agreement.  

Access the Agreement Profitability form by right-clicking and selecting Profitability from the Agreement form.                                   

Agreement Status

You can check on the status of an agreement from its origination to its completion using the Agreement Status form.  Status information includes whether the Agreement is active, is a renewal, all visits have been fulfilled Additionally the Agreement Status form identifies information regarding billing completed and remaining.

This form is accessed from the Agreements form by right-clicking on an agreement in the Agreements List or right clicking on the currently displayed Agreement and selecting Agreement Status

The information presented (with exception of commissions) is view-only and cannot be edited in this form.                                 

Visit Load

The Visit Load form shows the current month and the following 12 months of scheduled visits.   The form serves as an assistant in properly distributing agreement visits throughout the year.

To access the Visit Load form, click in the Visits panel of the Agreements form and press Ctrl+V (or right-click and select View Visit Load).                                                               

The form shows the count (or total number of visits) and the total number of hours of visits (based upon the Visit Type setup) scheduled for each month.

By default, the chart lists the visits scheduled for the Visit Type you have selected.  To include all types of visits, remove the checkmark from the Include <visit type>Visits Only option at the top of the form.

If the Visit Load form is accessed while creating a Maintenance agreement, the Visit Load form can be used to choose the month or months during which the selected visit type will occur

Select the desired months, and select OK.

Open Visits Form

The Open Visits form provides you with information about the visits associated with the currently selected Agreement.  

From this form, you can Create a Call or Cancel a Visit (these options are enabled only after the Agreement invoice has been created and posted).

To access the Visits form, right-click in the Visits panel of the Agreement form, and select Open Visits.

To Create a Call:

Right-click on the visit and select Create Call. This opens the Job Form for the current customer, with most fields completed based on the Visit Type selected.  Accept the information, or make changes as necessary. You may also schedule the call at this time.

To Cancel a Visit:

Right-click on the visit you wish to cancel and select Cancel Visit (or press Ctrl+N).  

Successware processes the cancellation, and places an X in the Can column and “Canceled” in the Canceled Note column.

Visits Value Form

The Visit Value displays information related to the value of individual visits that will be performed in relation to a Maintenance agreement.

Each type of visit that you have indicated you will perform under the Agreement will be listed in the form. For each, the total amount to collect, if any will be listed.

To open the Visit Value form, right click in the Visit List and select Visit/Values

When Agreements are created, all visits are given an equal value based upon the total of the Agreement and the number of visits. BEFORE the agreement has been activated, the Visit Value form can be used to modify the value of individual visits or to add additional visits.

• To modify the visit value, right click on a listed visit and select Edit Item.
• To add an additional visit, right click and select New Item.
• To return to the values listed in the Agreement form, right click and select Revert to Agreement Values

Editing Agreement Payments

Editing an Agreements Payment Method without Recurring Payments

Once an Agreement with periodic billings is in effect, you may need to change the payment method due to an expired credit card or request from the user.  If recurring payments are not used with this customer account, follow the steps below.

1. Open the Agreement.
2. Right click in the background of the Agreement and select Edit Payment Method. The current payment information will be displayed.
3. Make any necessary changes to the payment information.
4. Click Save.

Editing an Agreements Payment Method with Recurring Payments

If you need to update the payment method used for an agreement with recurring payments, there are a few more steps in the process.

1. Open the Agreement.
   
   
   
2. Right click in the background and select "Next periodic invoice".
   
   
   
3. Write down the invoice number.
4. Close the invoice to go back to the agreement.
5. Turn off recurring by clicking the "Recurring Info" button and selecting "Cancel Recurring Payment."
   
   
   
6. Right click on the agreement and then edit the payment method. Do NOT turn recurring back on just yet.
7. Go to the Invoice Manager.
   
   
   
8. Search for the invoice number you wrote down.
9. Delete the line item on it and void the invoice.
10. Go back to the agreement.
11. Right click and select Agreement Status.
12. Right click on the Agreement Status window and select Modify Next Billing Date.
    
    
    
13. Change the billing date BACK to the next billing. If you created next month's billings when going through these steps, change it back to that day.
14. Hit the Enter key to save.
15. Go back to the agreement and turn on recurring payments.
16. Double check the bill start date when turning on recurring payments.

Activating an Agreement

In order for you to record agreement visits or charge against a service agreement, the agreement must be activated. Posting an invoice for the agreement activates agreements in Successware.

When you create an agreement from the Invoice form, the agreement is automatically added as a line item on the invoice. When the invoice is posted, the agreement is activated.

If you did not create the agreement from an invoice, but rather by pressing New Agreement in the Agreement form, when you have completed entering the information for the agreement, right-click and select Create new/renewal invoice.  A new invoice is created with a billing line with a code of AGRNEW. Post the invoice to activate the agreement.

NOTE: Once an agreement has been activated and there has been activity on the agreement there are elements of it that cannot be modified.

These are:

• Prices
• Visit schedule and number of visits
• Whether it uses deferred revenue or service reserve
• Start and end date

If any of these elements of the agreement need to be changed, the agreement must be terminated and a new agreement created.

If the agreement has not had any activity and the activating invoice can still be adjusted, adjust the invoice and editing changes can be made to the agreement. However, do not forget to repost the invoice in order to reactivate the agreement.

The right-click (program) menu will allow you to edit other fields, such as the payment method, the equipment list, visit notes, commission amounts, etc.

Agreement Commissions

If you pay your salespeople/technicians a commission for selling new agreements, or upon renewal or anniversaries of agreements, you can enter that information as well.

1. To enter commission amounts, right-click anywhere in the gray area of the agreement form and select Agreement Status.

2. Enter the amounts you wish to pay as commission for the agreement in the appropriate fields.

• New - enter a commission amount earned when the agreement is first sold.
• Renew - enter a commission earned if the agreement is renewed.
• Anniversary - enter a commission earned on each anniversary date of the agreement.

NOTE: If the agreement has already been activated, the commission fields will not be available for edit. To edit the fields, right-click in the Agreement Status window and select Edit commissions.

3. Press Save.

Run the Agreement Anniversary report to list the commissions due each month.  You can group the report by salesperson to get a sub-total for each employee.

Agreement Templates

If your company is using specific agreement types, the use of templates can aid in the speed and accuracy when making new agreements. When you create a new agreement and choose the agreement type, you will always be asked if you want to create the agreement based upon the existing template. All of the essential information, such as duration, department, billing frequency, and payment amounts can be predetermined and saved as a template. When the template is later chosen, the fields are populated automatically.

Using an Existing Template to Create an Agreement

1. Open the new agreement as you normally would.
2. Click the agreement Type drop-down and choose the desired Agreement Type. You will be asked if you want to set up the agreement using the standard (type) template.

3. Click Yes. The predefined fields will populate.
4. Fill in the rest of the agreement fields.
5. Click Save and activate the agreement.

Creating an Agreement Template

1. Open a new agreement.
2. Choose the agreement Type for which you want to create a template.
3. Click No when asked if you want to use the standard template.
4. Fill in all of the elements of the agreement that will remain the same from customer to customer. This would most likely include coverage, department, discount, visits per year, billing method and frequency, and the bill amount.
5. Click Save As Template.

6. You will be asked if you want to save the template for the type of agreement that you chose.  Click Yes.

The template is saved. The next time that you create an agreement of this type, click Yes when you are prompted to use the template. The values you just defined will be filled in automatically.

Entering Pre-existing Agreements

You will need to “convert” agreements that were in effect before you activated Successware. Converting agreements will allow you to enter the agreement information without affecting the General Ledger. This will also allow you to mark any visits and periodic billings as completed without affecting the General Ledger.

There is certain information that you will need to have available in order to enter existing agreements in Successware.

• The customer’s location and billing information.
• The following original agreement information:
• Agreement type,
• Agreements coverage (maintenance, service, or both);
• Agreement terms—does the agreement expire after a fixed number of years, or is it perpetual?;
• How the agreement is billed,
• What equipment is covered,
• Visit types, and
• Visit schedule.
• The agreement’s status
• What billings have been completed.
• What visits have been completed.

Adding an Existing Agreement

1. Find, or add, the customer for the agreement.
2. Press F7 to open the Agreement form, and click New Agreement.
3. Enter the agreement as it was originally sold. (This includes the original sale and start dates)  Be sure to include the full agreement amount (rather than the balance) and the original number of visits.
4. After entering and saving all information, right-click and select Make into converted agreement.
5. Confirm that you want to create a converted agreement by clicking Yes.

6. If visits have been completed for the agreement, move to the “visits” section and right-click.  Select Open visits.

• Highlight any completed visits and right-click.
• Select Make visit complete/uncomplete.

7. Close the Visits form to return to the agreement.

NOTE: If you close the Visits form, but have not marked all of your completed visits, you must save the agreement then right-click in the visits section again in order for open visits to be available.

8. If the agreement is a periodically billed agreement, and billings have been completed, right-click and select Agreement Status.

9. Enter the number of billings that have been completed, the last billing date, and invoice number.
10. Click Close to return to the Agreement
11. Double-check all fields.  Make sure that the balances are correct and click Save.
12. Once all information is correct, right-click and select Commit converted agreement.

13. Confirm that you want to commit the agreement by clicking Yes.

NOTE: Committing the agreement activates it, therefore the agreement can only be edited by “uncommitting it”.  You can only uncommit a converted agreement before any new activity is recorded.

The Agreement Manager

The Agreement Manager is used to view agreements, perform periodic billings and maintain renewals.

To get to the Agreement Manager

1. Click on the Main Menu icon.
2. Click the Customer Service button and then click on the Agreement Manager

OR

1. Simply click the Agreement Manager icon if one is available.
   

The Search Bar

The Agreement Manager has a search bar with selection indicators that allow you to control the search type. The Agreement Manager also has a vast array of available filters that allow you to limit the agreements that are displayed to only those agreements that meet a specified criteria.  Search and filtering results will display as a list in the lower portion of the Agreements Manager.

The search bar can be broken down into four areas. These allow you to search for agreements within a defined parameter. In all cases, choose the indicator, enter the date range and press Enter.

• Agreement Date -the first four indicators, when selected, will allow you to search by Create Date, Start Date, End Date and Sale Date. As each of these indicators is selected, the date range field will change to define what date range will be searched.
  
  
  
  For example, selecting Create Date will change the date range to:
  
  
  
  Selecting Sale Date will change the date range to:
  
• Billings Due -this search allows you to find all billings that are due in the specified date range.
  
• Per INV's -This search allows you to find all periodic invoices that dated within a specified date range.
  
  
  
• Visits Due -this search allows you to search for all agreements that have a visit due within a defined monthly time frame.
  
  
  
  The Visits Due search uses a slightly different date range area. You are only able to define whole months as a date range.
  
• Renews Due & Renewals -These searches allow you to search for all agreements that are either due for renewal in a specified date range or for renewals that are in process.
  
  
  Once you have listed agreements using the search indicators, you can search with those results through the use of five fields. These fields can be used cumulatively.
  
• Visit Type -click on the drop down list and choose the visit type you wish to see (only available when the Visits Due indicator is selected).
• Agreement Type -choose the agreement type you wish to see from the drop down list.
• Years -use the up and down arrows or type in a number of years. Only agreements with that duration will appear.
• Visits Left -use the up and down arrows or type in a number of remaining visits. Only agreements with that number of remaining visits or less will appear.
• Agreement No -enter the specific agreement number to display the agreement.

Using Additional Search Fields

1. Click into the field you want to search by. When you do, the Apply, Clear and Cancel buttons will appear.
2. Enter the appropriate value.

3. Click Apply, or press Enter to execute the search.
4. Click Clear to clear the search fields, or Cancel to close the search area.

Using Filters to Narrow Your Search.

In the Agreement Manager, there are filters that are available to you that allow you to further limit the results of your search.  To use any of the available filters, simply click on the indicator with the mouse. The chosen filter indicator will illuminate. Filters can be used cumulatively.

The filters that are available will differ based upon the particular search indicator that you have chosen.

• Agreement Date Search -the following filters will be available when using the Create Date, Start Date, End Date and Sale Date indicators

Label	Filter
Group- Renewal Status
RNP	Pending renewals
RNA	Accepted renewals
RNF	Failed renewals
Group- Billing Frequency
M	Monthly billing
Q	Quarterly billing
S	Semi-annual billing
A	Annual billing
O	Other Type billing
Group- Billing Type
PV	Pay per visit
PR	Periodic billing
PP	PrePaid agreement
NC	No charge
Group- Agreement Term
T	Fixed term agreements
P	Perpetual agreements
Group- Agreement Coverage
SV	Service agreements
MT	Maintenance agreements
&	Both service and maintenance agreements
Group- Agreement Status
FUL	Agreements that have been fulfilled
ACT	Active agreements
INA	Inactive agreements
REN	Renewed agreements
EXP	Expired agreements
TRM	Terminated agreements

• Billing Due Search -the following filters are available when the Billings Due indicator is selected.

Label	Filter
Group- Billing Frequency
M	Monthly billing
Q	Quarterly billing
S	Semi-annual billing
A	Annual billing
O	Other Type billing
Group- Agreement Term
T	Fixed term agreements
P	Perpetual agreements
Group- Agreement Coverage
SV	Service agreements
MT	Maintenance agreements
&	Both Service and maintenance agreements

• Periodic Invoice Search -the following filters are available when the Per Inv’s indicator is selected.

Label	Filter
Group- Payment Status
PD	Paid invoices
UNP	Unpaid invoices
Group- Payment Method
CC	Credit card
DC	Debit card
EFT	Electronic funds transfer
OA	On account
Group- Post Status
UNP	Unposted invoices
PST	Posted invoices
Group- Billing Frequency
M	Monthly billing
Q	Quarterly billing
S	Semi-annual billing
A	Annual billing
O	Other Type billing
Group- Agreement Term
T	Fixed term agreements
P	Perpetual agreements
Group- Agreement Coverage
SV	Service agreements
MT	Maintenance agreements
&	Both service and maintenance agreements

• Visits Due Search -the following filters will be available when the Visits Due indicator is selected.

Label	Filter
Group- Visit Status
UN	Visits Due that are not scheduled
SCH	Visits Due that are scheduled
INV	Visits Due that have been invoiced
CAN	Visits Due that have been cancelled

• Renewal Searches -the following filters are available when you select either the Renews Due or the Renewals

Label	Filter
Group- Billing Type
PV	Pay per visit
PR	Periodic billing
PP	Pre paid
NC	No charge
Group- Agreement Coverage
SV	Service agreements
MT	Maintenance agreements
&	Both service and maintenance agreements
Group- Agreement Status (renews due indicator only)
FUL	Agreements that have been fulfilled

Periodic Invoicing of Agreements

Agreements that have been set up for periodic billing will need to have invoices created for each of the agreement payments. Successware allows you to create these periodic invoices from the Agreement Manager.

The 3 main steps to performing your periodic billings are:

1. Generate a list of billings that are due,
2. Create invoices for the billings, and
3. Post the invoices.

In the period invoices view of the Agreement Manager you can mark the invoices as paid and post them in a batch posting. The payment will be recorded using the payment method that was specified for the agreement when it was created.

Creating Periodic Invoices

1. In the Agreement Manager, select the Billings Due search indicator.
2. Enter the date range for which you want to find billings due, as well as any other search criteria you desire.
3. Press Enter. The Agreement Manager will display a list of all billings due for the specified time frame.

4. Right-click and select Create periodic invoices.

5. You will be asked if you want to create periodic invoices for the displayed agreements. Click Yes.

Successware will open the Agreement Manager to the Periodic Invoice view and display the invoices that it created for the list of due billings.

6. If you have processed credit cards or electronic funds transfers per your bank’s instruction for the invoices, right-click for the following options:

• Open invoice - to open an invoice and make any necessary changes.
• Mark invoices as paid/unpaid - if most transactions are successful, mark all paid, and then unmark the ones that did not process successfully

Invoices marked as paid will have the Payment field default to the amount due.

NOTE: If you have invoices that you must mail for payment you may right-click on the invoice and choose Print this Invoice. Additionally, you can select an invoice and press Enter to edit, apply a payment and post an invoice.

7. Right-Click and choose Post all invoices to post the invoices.

Creating a Single Periodic Invoice:

1. Open the agreement you wish to process the billing for.
2. Right-click in the Agreement form and select Next Periodic Invoice. You will be asked if you want to create the next periodic invoice. Click Yes.

The system will create, and open the invoice.

3. Make any corrections and apply payments, then post the invoice.

Days for Agreement Periodic Billing

The Days for Agreement Periodic billing option in the Other Tab of Company Setup allows you to preset the day of the month you want to make available for Agreement periodic billings.

When creating an agreement that uses periodic billing, the first "billing due" will default to the next selected day you have defined.

For example, if you set the 1st and 16th as your days for periodic billing, and the day you create the agreement is the 7th of the month, the Bill Start Date field will default to the 16th. The Bill Start Date drop down will allow you to choose the 1st or 16th of the month or the 1st or 16th of some other month. You will only be able to assign a billing on the 1st or 16th of the month, no other days can be selected.

To Set the Dates for Agreement Periodic Billings

1. From the Other Tab of Company Setup, select the drop-down under Days for Agreement Periodic Billing.

2. Checkmark the day or days you want to make available for periodic billings.

Note- Please do not setup your periodic billings for the 29th, 30th or 31st of the month since not all months have those dates.

3. Press Enter to save your choices or Esc to cancel.

Scheduling Agreement Visits

In order for agreement visits to be performed and marked complete, they must be scheduled. Agreement (maintenance) visits can be scheduled three ways:

• From the Agreement form
• From the Call Center.
• From the Job Form, Visits button

When you schedule agreement visits from the Agreement form or the Call Center it is helpful to have a Visits Due by Month report so that you can contact customers and determine their availability.  You may also want to send mailings to agreement customers asking them to call and schedule their visits. To accommodate this, Successware allows you to create mailing labels.

Printing the Visits Due by Month Report

To print the Visits Due by Month report:

1. Select the Report Gallery icon from the Toolbar .
2. Select Agreements from the Group
3. On the right side of the screen, select the report Visits Due by Month then double-click, or click Run Report.
4. Click between the date fields to display the date selection form. This will open the month selector list. Double-click on a month to view visits due for that month. I you want to see visits due for a range of months, select the beginning and end month while holding down the Ctrl key, then press Enter.

5. If you wish to print the report for a specific Agreement Type, Visit Type, Location Zone or Location Zip, use the drop-down menus to make the appropriate selection(s).
6. Select the Sub Total Option you wish to use.  DO NOT accept the default selection of Summary Only.  The Summary Only option will only print counts and not give any detail.
7. Select Auto Expand Sub Totals, then Include Agreement Info.
8. Since you are using the report to schedule visits, select Show Unscheduled Only.

9. Click the printer icon to print the report, or the monitor icon to preview the report.

You will get a report similar to the following example.

Printing Labels for Visit Reminder Mailings

If you send postcards to your customers to have them call and schedule their visit, you can also do so from the Visits Due by Month report.

1. Complete steps 1 through 4 as described above for printing the Visits Due by Month report with the exception of printing the report.
2. Click the Marketing Center icon .  The system will ask if you wish to remove “Do-not-solicit” customers from the list.  Click No.

3. Successware will display the Marketing List detail form.  Click Save.
4. Click Print.  The Marketing List Report form will open.

5. Select Labels – Location.  If you want to sort the labels in any particular order (i.e. zip code), use the Sort by options to select how you want the results to sort.
6. Click the printer icon.  The system will print 1” x 2 5/8”, three across labels (such as Avery 5160).

Scheduling Agreement Visits from the Agreement Form

1. Open the agreement you want to schedule the visit for (locate the customer and press F7).
2. Right-click in the Visits panel and select Open Visits. The Visits window will open.

3. Right-click on the visit you wish to schedule and select Create call.  The system will add a job for the visit and open the Job

4. Schedule, dispatch and complete the job as you normally would.

Scheduling Agreement Visits from the Call Center

1. Open the Call Center and navigate to the date you want to schedule an agreement visit for.
2. Use the Visits Due list selection button  to display the Visits Due list panel.
3. Right-click on the visit panel’s header, Visits due for location…, and select whether you wish to display:

• Open visits (this month),
• Open visits (next month), or
• Open visits (other range)—If chosen you will be prompted to choose a range of months.

NOTE: Be sure to activate the Customer & Job information panel so that you can see the customer’s information while in the Call Center and to use any Call Center filters to view the types of calls and technicians that you wish to view.

4. Find the visit that you want to schedule in the list.
5. Drag the visit to the technician you want to assign the call to at the time you want to schedule the call.

Recording Agreement Visits

In order to properly maintain your agreements you must record visits that have been completed in conjunction with the agreement. Maintenance visits performed for an agreement are recorded in the Invoice form.  When you perform an agreement visit, complete the job, as you normally would then go to the Invoice form by pressing F10.

Recording an Agreement Visit

1. From the Invoice form, enter the date and click Visit (ALT+V). This opens the Select Visit(s)

2. Select the equipment the visit was performed on.
3. An agreement line will be added to the invoice.

NOTE:  It is important that you use the Select Visit(s) form to mark the visit performed.  Manually adding a line to the invoice will not update the agreement to indicate that the visit was completed.

4. Apply any payment that may have been received at the time of service (if applicable) and post the invoice.

General Ledger Activity for a Recorded Agreement Visit

In the following example, a visit was performed on an agreement with deferred revenue.  The agreement deferred revenue account is debited $60 and that $60 is recognized as revenue by crediting the agreement current revenue account

Charging a Service Call to an Agreement

If you perform service for a customer that has a valid service agreement, you will charge the work performed to the agreement instead of charging the customer. You will create the invoice for the job as you normally would, listing each of the individual line items on the invoice.

1. Complete the job as you normally would.
2. Entering the billing line for the service.
3. Click Equip (ALT+E), and select the piece of equipment on which service was performed from the Select Equipment pop-up screen.
4. Select the line item that you will be charging to the service agreement.
5. Click Chrg A (ALT+A) to charge the invoice line to the agreement.  Select the agreement to be charged from the drop-down list.

Note: The entire amount of the line item selected will be charged to the agreement. If only a portion of the work is to be charged to the agreement, create a line item equal to the total to be charged to the agreement and create additional line items on the invoice for amounts that should be applied to receivables.

General Ledger Activity for a Charged Service Call

In the following example, a service call was charged to an agreement. The service agreement had $120 of available service reserve. The total amount of the invoiced item was $224.

The agreement reserve account is debited $120 (its total balance), the remaining amount is debited from the agreement reserve excess. The entire $224 is credited to the agreement reserve credit account.

Renewing Agreements

Once an agreement has expired, it can be renewed one of three (3) ways:

• The INVOICE form--use the INVOICE form to renew individual agreements that the technician renews while on-site.
• The Agreement form
• The Agreement Manager-- use the AGREEMENT MANAGER to create batches of renewals.

Renewing Agreements in the Invoice Form

Many companies have their technicians renew agreements as they complete the last visit on a current agreement or when on a service call.  In these instances the agreement can be renewed from the Invoice form.

1. While completing the invoice for the agreement visit, or service work, click Agreements, then select Renew agreement.
2. The existing agreement will be opened.
3. Select Make Renewal and confirm.
4. A renewal agreement will be created based on the old agreement.  Make any necessary changes for the renewal and click Save.
5. The system will return to the Invoice form and a line item will appear for the renewed agreement.
6. Post the invoice as you normally would.

Renewing an Agreement from the Agreement Form

1. Search for the customer record and open.
2. Press F7 to open the agreement.
3. Select Make Renewal and confirm. A renewal agreement will be created based on the old agreement.
4. Make any necessary changes for the renewal and click Save.
5. Right-click and select Create new/renewal invoice. The system will create and open an invoice for the renewal.
6. Apply any payments and post the renewal.

Renewing Agreements from the Agreement Manager

You can create batches of renewals (i.e. for all agreements that are expiring in a selected date range) in the Agreement Manager.  Many companies create renewals several months ahead of time so that they can begin sending renewal notices.

When you create renewals through the Agreement Manager you will have the option of printing renewal notices for all of your renewals that are due.

Building Renewals from the Agreement Manager

1. Use the selection fields and appropriate filters to display the desired renewals due in the Agreement Manager.

2. Once the correct list of agreements is displayed, right-click and select Build Renewals.

3. Confirm that you want to build the renewals for the displayed agreements by clicking Yes.

Editing Renewals from the Agreement Manager

The renewals will be built using the original agreement as a guide. The same duration, price, payment method and visit months will be used. To make changes to any renewal:

1. Select the agreement you want to change and press Enter.
2. Click
3. Make any necessary changes.
4. Click Save to save the renewal.
5. Click Close to return to the Agreement Manager.

Printing Renewal Notices from the Agreement Manager

You have the option of printing all renewal notices, or only printing those renewals that are selected. These can then be sent to your customers to notify them of the pending agreement expiration and offer them the option of renewing.

Using the right-click menu will allow you to generate renewal notices.

You can choose:

• Print notices for all renewal records, or
• Print or preview a notice for the currently selected record.

Activating Renewals from the Agreement Manager

You can activate each renewal as your customers respond to the renewal notices.

1. Open the Agreement Manager and search for renewals using the Renewals search indicator.
2. Move to the renewal you want to activate and right-click
3. Select Activate Renewal

4. Confirm the activation by clicking Yes.

An invoice will be created with the agreement listed as a line item.

5. Post the invoice and apply any payments, if applicable

Terminating Agreements

Agreements can be terminated before they have reached their expiration date. You may choose to terminate an agreement for lack of payment, or a customer may choose to cancel the agreement. Termination will also be performed if a customer wants to make a change to their agreement coverage. The original would be terminated and a new agreement created. No matter what the reason, the termination and cancellation of the agreement are both carried out in the Agreement form itself.

NOTE: Terminations cannot be reversed.  Posted invoices that are related to terminated agreements cannot be adjusted.

Terminating an Agreement without Recurring Payments

1. Open the agreement that you wish to terminate or cancel.
2. Right-click in the background of the agreement and select Terminate/Cancel.

The Terminate/Cancel Agreement window will open.

In the Terminate/Cancel Agreement window, check Terminate agreement?. If the customer canceled the agreement, check Canceled by Customer? as well.

3. Enter a termination date.
4. Enter any comments regarding the termination.
5. Click Post
6. Confirm the fact that you want to terminate the agreement by clicking Yes.

Successware will process the termination and notify you that the posting of the termination is complete.

Terminated agreements will display with a red line through them.

Terminating an Agreement with Recurring Payments

If your customer is using recurring payments, and the agreement needs to be terminated for any reason, follow the steps below:

1. Right click on the agreement.
2. Select Next Periodic Invoice.
   
   
   
3. You will get a message asking to create the next periodic invoice. It will most likely show next month's date. Select Yes.
4. Write down the Invoice number and do nothing else with it.
   
   
   
5. Go back to the agreement.
6. Select Recurring Info.
7. Click the Cancel Recurring Payment link.
   
   
   
8. Once you cancel the recurring payment, go to the Invoice Manager.
9. Search for the invoice by using the invoice number you wrote down.
10. Delete the line item on that invoice.
    
    
    
11. Void the invoice.
    
    
    
12. Go back to the agreement and then you can terminate the agreement.

Looking for a more interactive course on Agreements? Check out our Learning Management System (LMS)! Our courses are available to all Successware users. If you don't have a sign-in for our LMS, contact us at [e-mail] for a free account.

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