Reviewing the Additional Customization Options | Invoice Form

If you can't create invoices that look exactly the way you want using the options available, your next step is to click the Additional Customization button. QuickBooks displays the Additional Customization dialog box, as shown in Figure 1. This dialog box gives you more control over both the information that appears on your invoices and how invoices print. You can't use the Additional Customization button if you're working with one of the default invoice templates — only if you're working with a copy. Accordingly, QuickBooks may prompt you to make a copy of an invoice template when you click the Additional Customization button.

Figure 1: The Header tab of the Additional Customization dialog box

Specifying Header Information

The Header tab of the Additional Customization dialog box (see Figure 1) lets you specify what information goes on the top portion of the Create Invoices window and in the top area of an actual printed invoice form. This information is called the header and provides the invoice number, the invoice date, and the billing and shipping information. You can also choose how information is labeled by filling in or editing the contents of the text boxes. For example, the Default Title check boxes let you specify whether the form title should appear on the screen version of the invoice (this would be inside the Create Invoices window) and on the printed version of the invoice. The Default Title text box lets you specify what the form title should be. In a similar fashion, the Date check boxes let you specify whether the date should appear on the screen and print versions of the invoice and what label should be used to describe the invoice date. Figure 1, as you can see, uses the clever descriptive text Date for this invoice date information.

Tip

If you don't need a particular piece of information on an invoice, leave the Screen and Print check boxes for that bit of data deselected. This tells QuickBooks that it should not include that piece of header information on the window or print version of the invoice form.

Specifying Columns Information

The columns portion of an invoice describes in detail the items for which an invoice bills. For example, product invoice columns describe the specific products, including price and quantity; they also describe the items being invoiced. A service invoice's columns describe the specific services being billed. As you may guess from looking closely at Figure 2, the Columns tab of the Additional Customization dialog box looks like the Header tab. You use the Screen and Print check boxes to indicate whether a particular piece of column-level information should appear as a column on the Create Invoices window or on the actual created invoice. Similarly, you use the Title text boxes to provide the descriptive labels that QuickBooks uses on the Create Invoices window and on the printed invoice form.

Figure 2: The Columns tab of the Additional Customization dialog box

The only unusual option shown on the Columns tab is the Order text boxes (see Figure 2). The Order boxes let you indicate in what order (from left to right) the column should appear. If the item number or code should appear in the first column on the left, for example, you enter the value 1 in the Item Order box.

Specifying Prog Columns Information

The prog columns portion of an invoice provides information relevant to situations where you're using progress billings. You can click the Prog Cols tab to add and remove information such as the ordered amount, the previously invoiced amount, and any backordered amounts.

Tip

The Header, Columns, and Prog Cols tabs let you make changes to your invoice forms, but don't get too tense about making perfect changes the first time. You can easily see exactly how your changes look by using the Preview box (if your eyesight is better than mine) or by clicking OK and then carefully reviewing the new version of the Create Invoices window. If you realize that you've made an error — perhaps you've used the wrong bit of descriptive text or you've incorrectly ordered the columns — you can customize your invoice again and thereby fix your earlier mistakes.

Specifying Footer Information

The Footer tab of the Additional Customization dialog box lets you specify what information appears on the Create Invoices window beneath the columns area and on the actual printed invoice beneath the columns area. As Figure 3 indicates, the footer information includes a customer message, the invoice total, payments and credit information, a balance due field, and, optionally, a longer text box. You work with the Footer tab in the same manner as you work with other tabs. If you want some bit of information to appear, select the Screen check box and the Print check box. To change the bit of text that QuickBooks uses, edit the contents of the Title text box.

Figure 3: The Footer tab of the Additional Customization dialog box

Specifying Print Information

The Print tab of the Additional Customization dialog box, shown in Figure 4, lets you exercise a bit of control over how QuickBooks prints invoices that use the template you've customized. For example, the radio buttons at the top of the tab let you specify that when printing this particular invoice template, QuickBooks should use the regular old invoice printer settings or, alternatively, that it should use other, special print settings. The Print settings also let you tell QuickBooks how it should number the pages of a multiple-page invoice.

Figure 4: The Print tab of the Additional Customization dialog box

Tip

You can return all the customized invoice settings to their default condition by clicking the Default button. When you do this, however, you remove any changes or customizations that you've made.