Per our latest software release and our focus on the new features, this article we will look at the payment processing option now live within SI v13. This feature enables SI users to set up an online method of payment for all client submissions through the D-Tools Customer Portal.
This feature is a first, major step forward for our long time users and something of an expected inclusion for new users who have grown up on our SI software. We already have a couple of videos, webinars, and our usual documentation for this feature. In this article , we’ll focus on a couple of ways to maximize and leverage this feature’s benefits and how to get your team on the road to getting payments sooner in the quote acceptance process.
For those of you already onboard with our Software Assurance program and have upgraded to v13, please enjoy the following details. For those of you ready to upgrade your prior version of SI, please reach out to our Customer Success team here.
First things first, you will need to review your SI set-up and configuration in the Control Panel to ensure that your team has enabled the ProPay mechanism. To view this, you’ll have to have the appropriate user permissions and then proceed to the Company Information icon and “double-click” to launch the section.
From there, you will see this:
Click on the “Customer Portal” tab and look at the bottom left corner of that screen for this:
As long as there are an account number and corresponding email address, you’re all set. Otherwise, you’ll need to create a ProPay account or link to an existing one. Again, if you need assistance with the set-up in SI, please see this link: ProPay within SI.
Now we can talk about leveraging this feature set to let your clients know that they can in fact submit a payment to you via the Customer Portal. While you can certainly mention this to them and type it in an email, nothing reinforces the mechanism better than adding a line or two of text near the payment terms section of your client-facing reports or even just below where the client will sign-off.
First, let’s take a look at how you could do this “natively” within SI. The creation of a “Payment Terms” option with ProPay in the naming convention could be a start. (Payment terms are found in the SI Control Panel.)
This would allow the updated text values to appear throughout the Payment Terms entries by default in your SI Contract and Quote Reports:
Another option you could consider is the use of the description text box in your Locations and Systems editor within your SI Project. (That is of course if you’re not already using these spaces for other descriptive narratives and that you’re running your reports “By Location” or “By System”.) Your report output could look something like this:
Keep in mind, if you’re using the “Scope of Work” attachment via “rtf” in your SI Project for more than just scope, you could include this language there. Meaning, that if your attached document includes language related to payments, sales terms, exclusions, etc. along with your scope narrative, then this might be a perfect spot to drop in some language regarding your client’s ability to submit a payment via the Customer Portal.
Now, if you’re using the default reports within SI, you can modify the naming convention of the text field where “Scope of Work” resides by exporting the report file out of the report preview to “rich text”,
then convert the file to a regular word doc,
and simply change the text in the text box.
All you need do then is export the new Word doc as a “PDF” and then merge it with your other documents from SI in Adobe or any number of free, online PDF document merger sites.
If you are using a “Custom Report” (or would like to) and need to include this language elsewhere in your documentation submittals, you could use a method like this:
-Launch the Standard Report Designer
– Within the Report Designer, click on the icon in the top row of executables labeled “new”.
-Select the report you would like to modify for the ProPay language and select next.
-Then you can rename the report for this modification and click “finish”.
Now, it’s just a matter of determining where you would like to insert the appropriate text regarding your Propay interface.
-First let’s add a text box to the design grid from the options to the top left.
-Then we can type in or “copy/paste” the text and size the box accordingly.
Your report output could then look something like this.
Another option could be to place a note about this payment option in the footer of your report, so it appears on all the pages as a friendly reminder for your client:
Regardless of the ultimate location of your ProPay text insertion, once you’ve made the determination, you simply publish the report out of the designer.
and test it in an SI Project.
Now you’ve got the ProPay feature enabled, added the appropriate text references in your report(s), so all you need to do now is begin the submission process to your clients via the SI Customer Portal and your opportunity for the collection of initial deposit payments will be “live”.
Hopefully this new feature of SI will enable your team to collect payment sooner (rather than later) while also allowing your client the ease and peace of mind of transmitting payment to your team “digitally”!
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In closing…
For more information on these and other features of SI, please see this link: D-Tools SI.
You can also get more detailed information about v13 via our upcoming webinars or by enrolling in SI training with our PSG team.
And don’t forget, that’s why we’re here to ensure your success with our product. Be sure to check back here next month for more on the latest in System Integrator.
