Collection Letters (Forms)
Collection letters are forms that can be sent to customers as a reminder that an account is past due.
Sage 50 provides the following predefined collection letter formats:
- Overdue <30 Days - Soft: Prints collection letters with soft tone for customers with accounts that are less than 30 days overdue.
- Overdue 31-60 Days - Medium: Prints collection letters with medium tone for customers with accounts that are 31-60 days overdue.
- Overdue 61-90 Days - Firm: Prints collection letters with firm tone for customers with accounts that are 61-90 days overdue.
- Overdue >90 Days: Prints collection letters for customers with accounts that are more than 90 days overdue.
- Overdue >90 Days - Coll Agency: Prints collection letters for customers with accounts that are more than 90 days overdue, and warns the customer that their account will soon be turned over to a collection agency.
- Select Forms from the Reports & Forms menu. Then select Customer Labels and Letters.
- The Select a Report or Form window will open with the Forms list shown.
Select the collection letter form you want to print from the Forms list.
Note: Some collection letters in the forms list have this icon or this icon next to them. Those letters are created from Write Letters and these instuctions do not apply to those types of letters. The letters that these instructions apply to will have either this icon or this icon next to them in the forms list. How do I use Write Letters?
- Click the Preview and Print button located below the sample image of the form.
- The Preview and Print Collection Letters filter screen will open.
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Make your filter selections and click the Print/Email button to print the form.
Note: Click the Refresh List button after opening the filter screen to see the information in the selection grid. Also, be sure to click the Refresh List button after making any filter selections to see the updated information in the grid. When you click Print/Email, forms will print based on the current filter selection criteria regardless of what you may have previously selected in the grid.
Using the Preview and Print Collection Letters Filter Screen
When you choose to print or preview a form, the preview and print filter screen appears. You do not have to make any changes to this screen. You can select the Print/Email or Print Preview button to print, email, or preview the form based on the default filter settings. However, if you want to change the filter selections, you may do so using the different tabs on the filter screen.
On the Print/Email tab, you can select the criteria you want to use to print (or email) the form and use the filter options to refine the results in the selection grid.
Refresh List: Click to refresh the selection grid. You must click this button after opening the filter screen or making any changes to the filter selections to see the correct information in the grid.
Selection Grid: This grid shows all of the customers that meet the filter selection criteria. Select the customers that you want to print letters for from the grid. All of the customers are selected by default. You can manually select and deselect the customers in the grid. You can also use the All and None links above the grid to select all of the customers or deselect all of the customers in the grid. You can change the sorting of the customers in the grid by clicking on the heading of the column that you want to use to sort the customers.
Date these letters: Select the date for the letters. This is the date that will print on the letters and the date that is used when determining which customers have invoices that are overdue.
Use this form: Select the form you want to print.
Customize this form: Select this link if you want to customize the selected form. The form will open in the Forms Design window.
Filter customers by: This allows you to further specify the letters that you want to print.
Customer ID: If you want to print letters for a particular customer or range of customers, enter the customer IDs here. If you want to filter for one customer, enter that customer's ID in both ID boxes. Leave this filter selection blank if you do not want to filter by customer ID.
Type: If you want to print letters for a particular customer type or a range of customer types, select Range and then enter the customer types in the From and To boxes. If you want to filter for one type of customer, enter that type in both the From and To boxes. Customer types are specified for each customer on the Maintain Customers window. Select All if you do not want to filter by customer type.
Default Sales Rep: If you want to print letters for customers with a particular default sales rep or a range of sales reps, enter the sales rep IDs here. If you want to filter for one particular sales rep, enter that sales rep ID in both Default Sales Rep ID boxes. Leave this filter selection blank if you do not want to filter by default sales reps. Default sales reps are specified for each customer on the Maintain Customers window.
Oldest Outstanding Invoice: Select the range that the customer's oldest outstanding invoice should fall in when determining which customers should receive collection letters. For example, if you only want to send collection letters to customers whose oldest outstanding invoice is between 31 and 60 days overdue, select 31-60 days in this drop list. The date you entered in the Date these letters filter is used to determine the number of days customers' oldest outstanding invoices are overdue.
Delivery Method: This filter option allows you to select letters to print based on the customer's form delivery method. You can choose print only, email only, or both print and email. Delivery methods are specified for each customer on the Sales Info tab of the Maintain Customers window.
Select the Print Setup tab to assign the default printer for this form and set the page margins. The file name for the form is also shown on this tab. There is an Align button that you can click if you need to adjust the alignment of the form. Tell me more about print setup.
Select the Email Options tab to set options that determine what to do when printing forms for customers set up to receive email. Tell me more about email options.