Every project in Elite Core begins with a customer.
The customer record connects important information such as contacts, addresses, payment terms, internal assignments, projects, Sales Orders, invoices, files and communication history.
Before creating a new customer, always search Elite Core to confirm that the customer does not already exist. Creating duplicate customer records can separate important information and make it difficult for employees to find the customer’s complete history.
This guide explains how to search for an existing customer and create a new customer when necessary.
Before you begin
Gather as much of the following information as possible:
- Official company or organization name
- Primary contact name
- Contact email address
- Contact telephone number
- Billing address
- Shipping address
- Company website
- Assigned client or sales representative
- Payment terms, when known
- Tax information, when applicable
- Any important customer notes
You may not need every field to create the initial customer record. However, adding complete and accurate information helps prevent delays later when estimates, Sales Orders, Purchase Orders, shipping documents and invoices are created.
Step 1: Open the Customers area
From the Elite Core navigation, open the Sales area and select Customers.
Depending on your role and permissions, you may see an option such as Customers, Customer List, Create Customer, New Customer or Add Customer.
Open the customer list before creating a new record.
Step 2: Search for the customer
Use the customer search before selecting the option to create a new customer.
Search using one or more of the following:
- Full company name
- Partial company name
- Contact name
- Email address
- Telephone number
- Common abbreviation
Try more than one variation when necessary.
For example, a customer known as ABC Construction Ltd. may already be listed as ABC Construction, ABC Construction Limited, ABC or ABC Group.
Do not assume that the customer is new simply because the exact name does not appear in the first search.
Step 3: Review possible matches
If Elite Core returns a possible matching customer, open the customer record and review the available details.
Check:
- Company name
- Primary contact
- Contact email addresses
- Telephone numbers
- Billing address
- Shipping addresses
- Assigned representatives
- Existing projects
- Customer notes
- Previous orders or invoices
Use the existing customer record when it belongs to the same company or organization.
A new contact, department or shipping address does not normally require a new customer record. Add the new information to the existing customer instead.
Step 4: Start a new customer record
If no matching customer exists, select New Customer, Create Customer or the equivalent option shown in Elite Core.
A new customer form will open.
Enter the customer’s official or commonly used business name. Use clear and consistent capitalization.
Good customer-name examples
- Sturgeon Kendo
- DCD Engineering Ltd.
- City of Edmonton
- ABC Safety Services
- Northview School Division
Avoid vague or inconsistent names
- New Customer
- Test
- ABC Client
- Edmonton Company
- John’s Customer
The customer name should be recognizable to other employees who may work with the account later.
Step 5: Enter the customer’s main information
Complete the main customer fields shown on the form. These may include:
- Customer name
- Legal business name
- Website
- Main telephone number
- General email address
- Industry or customer type
- Customer status
- Internal account notes
Enter only information that is known or confirmed. Do not guess at legal names, tax information or payment terms.
Step 6: Add the primary contact
Enter the main contact responsible for communication with Elite.
The primary contact information may include:
- First name
- Last name
- Email address
- Telephone number
- Mobile number
- Job title
- Department
Review the spelling carefully before saving.
The primary contact may later receive estimates, presentations, Sales Orders, proof requests, payment requests, invoices and project updates. An incorrect email address can prevent important documents from reaching the customer.
Step 7: Add the billing address
Enter the customer’s billing address.
The billing address is the address associated with the customer’s invoices and financial records.
Include:
- Company or recipient name
- Street address
- Unit or suite number
- City
- Province or state
- Postal or ZIP code
- Country
Confirm whether the billing address is the customer’s head office, accounting office or another approved location.
Do not automatically use the shipping address as the billing address unless the customer has confirmed that they are the same.
Step 8: Add the shipping address
Enter the customer’s primary shipping destination.
The shipping address is where completed products are normally delivered.
Include:
- Company or recipient name
- Attention line, when required
- Street address
- Unit, department or loading-dock information
- City
- Province or state
- Postal or ZIP code
- Country
- Delivery instructions, when available
Customers may have more than one shipping destination, such as a head office, warehouse, branch location, event venue, employee address or third-party fulfillment centre.
Additional shipping destinations can be added to the customer record or selected later for a specific project.
Step 9: Review customer terms
Review the payment terms assigned to the customer.
Payment terms may determine:
- Whether a deposit is required
- The percentage of the required deposit
- When the balance becomes due
- Whether an order can proceed before payment
- Whether finance approval is required
- Whether the customer is on credit hold
Examples may include Prepaid, Credit card, C.O.D., Net 15, Net 30, Deposit required and Credit hold.
Do not select payment terms based on assumption. Use the approved customer terms provided by finance or the customer’s existing agreement.
Some term changes may require review or approval before they take effect.
Step 10: Review tax information
Confirm the customer’s tax treatment when that information is available.
This may include:
- Standard taxable customer
- Tax-exempt customer
- Provincial tax requirements
- Tax-exemption documentation
- Special billing instructions
Do not mark a customer as tax exempt without the required documentation and internal approval. Incorrect tax settings can affect estimates, Sales Orders and invoices.
Step 11: Assign the appropriate internal users
Review the internal users assigned to the customer.
Depending on your Elite Core configuration, assignments may include:
- Client representative
- Sales representative
- Account manager
- Operations representative
- Finance representative
- Team
- Customer reviewer
Assignments help determine who owns the customer relationship, receives notifications, manages follow-up and reviews changes or requests.
Select the correct employee or team rather than leaving the customer assigned to an unrelated user.
Step 12: Add important customer notes
Add any information that employees should know when working with the customer.
Useful customer notes may include:
- Preferred communication method
- Required Purchase Order numbers
- Special billing instructions
- Delivery restrictions
- Brand guidelines
- Artwork requirements
- Approval contacts
- Preferred suppliers or products
- Account restrictions
- Seasonal ordering patterns
Keep customer-level notes focused on information that applies broadly to the account. Project-specific instructions should be added to the individual project rather than the general customer record.
Customer requires a Purchase Order number on all invoices. Deliveries must arrive between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. at the rear receiving entrance. Marketing Manager approval is required for all logo changes.
Step 13: Review the customer before saving
Before saving, review the customer record for:
- Correct company name
- Duplicate customer records
- Correct contact spelling
- Correct email address
- Complete billing address
- Complete shipping address
- Correct payment terms
- Correct tax treatment
- Correct internal assignments
- Useful customer notes
Correct errors before creating the record whenever possible.
Step 14: Save the customer
Select Save, Create Customer or the equivalent action.
After the customer is created, Elite Core should open the customer record or return you to the customer list.
Confirm that:
- The customer appears in search
- The company name is correct
- The contact information is visible
- The addresses were saved
- The assigned users are correct
- The terms are correct
The customer is now ready to be connected to a project.
What happens after the customer is created
After the customer record has been saved, you can begin adding the information and activity connected to the account.
Depending on your permissions, you may be able to create a project, add more contacts, add shipping destinations, upload files, add notes, review previous projects, review estimates and Sales Orders, review invoices, assign internal users, review payment terms and add customer-specific instructions.
The customer record becomes the central account history for the organization.
Adding additional contacts
Many customers have more than one contact. A buyer may approve product selections, a marketing manager may approve artwork, an accounting contact may receive invoices, and a warehouse contact may receive shipments.
Add each contact to the same customer record.
Do not create a separate customer record for every contact or department unless they are truly separate organizations that require independent billing and account history.
When adding contacts, identify their role clearly so employees know which person should receive each type of communication.
Adding additional shipping addresses
A customer may have several shipping destinations.
Add additional addresses when products may be delivered to different branches, offices, warehouses, schools, job sites, events or employee locations.
Give each shipping destination a recognizable name when the interface allows it, such as Edmonton Head Office, Calgary Warehouse, St. Albert Branch, Annual Conference Venue or Accounting Department.
Review the selected Ship To address on every project. The customer’s default address may not be correct for every order.
Avoiding duplicate customers
Duplicate customer records are one of the most common data-quality problems in a customer-management system.
Duplicates can cause projects to appear under different records, split contacts and addresses, create inconsistent terms, place invoices under the wrong record, hide account history and create reporting errors.
Before creating a new customer:
- Search the full company name.
- Search a partial name.
- Search the contact’s email address.
- Search common abbreviations.
- Review similar results.
When a duplicate is discovered, stop adding information to both records. Ask an administrator to confirm which record should remain active.
Common problems
The customer already exists
Do not create another customer. Open the existing customer record and add the new contact, address or project to it.
The customer name has changed
Review whether the organization is still the same legal and billing entity. If it is the same organization with a new operating name, update the existing record according to company procedure. If it is a separate legal entity, a new customer record may be required.
The customer has multiple departments
Use one customer record when the departments belong to the same organization and share the same account history. Add separate contacts and shipping addresses as required.
A separate customer may be appropriate when departments require completely independent billing, terms or account ownership. Confirm this internally before creating another record.
The contact does not appear
Add the contact to the existing customer record. Do not create a duplicate customer simply because a new contact is involved.
The shipping address is different for this project
Add or select the correct shipping destination. A different project address does not normally require a new customer record.
The billing address is unknown
Do not invent or assume the billing address. Ask the customer or the appropriate internal representative to confirm it before invoicing.
The payment terms are unknown
Do not guess. Use the existing approved terms or follow the finance review process.
The customer is on credit hold
Do not proceed based solely on a verbal request. Follow the company’s finance and credit-hold process before creating documents or advancing the project.
The customer may be tax exempt
Do not remove tax without documentation and approval. Provide the relevant documentation to finance or the responsible administrator.
The wrong representative is assigned
Update the assignment if you have permission. Otherwise, ask an administrator or operations manager to correct it.
You cannot create a customer
Your Elite Core role may not include customer-creation permission. Ask an administrator to review your instance access and assigned permissions.
You created a duplicate customer by mistake
Do not continue using both records. Record which customer appears to contain the correct information and ask an administrator to review the duplicate.
Avoid deleting customer records without checking whether they are connected to projects, documents, notes, contacts or invoices.
Best practices
Search before creating
Always search using multiple terms before creating a new customer.
Use recognizable customer names
Use the customer’s established business name rather than an informal description.
Confirm email addresses
Customer-facing documents depend on accurate contact information.
Keep addresses complete
Include unit numbers, postal codes, countries and delivery instructions.
Do not guess at terms
Payment terms affect deposits, approvals and invoicing.
Keep customer notes useful
Record lasting account instructions at the customer level and project-specific details on the project.
Review assignments
Make sure the correct employees and teams are responsible for the customer.
Keep one complete account history
Use contacts, addresses and projects under the existing customer instead of creating unnecessary duplicate records.
Customer setup checklist
- The customer did not already exist
- The company name is correct
- The primary contact is added
- The contact email address is correct
- The billing address is complete
- The primary shipping address is complete
- Payment terms were reviewed
- Tax information was reviewed
- Internal assignments are correct
- Important customer notes were added
- The saved record appears in customer search
