Managing invoice payments can be a challenging aspect for many businesses. It’s not uncommon for customers within an organization to go through a complex and somewhat unreliable accounting procedure, resulting in delayed payments. To streamline this, weekly payment follow-ups are crucial for ensuring accurate reconciliation of bank statements. This approach eliminates the need to send emails or letters to customers who have already made their payments. Odoo ERP software provides a solution by enabling users to send appropriate reminders and identify overdue payments. In Odoo 16 Accounting, companies can precisely configure payment terms.

In Odoo 16, you can use payment follow-ups to remind customers of their outstanding payments. The Accounting application in Odoo 16 allows you to manage Follow-up Reports, Payments, levels, and more. Let’s explore how to set up Payment Follow-up levels, reports, and more in Odoo 16.

Creating a Payment Follow-up Level in Odoo 16 Accounting

Accounting => Configuration => Follow-up Levels

Click the “NEW” icon in the Follow-up Levels to create a new one.

Give a description

In the Remind field, define the number of days past due that should prompt the first reminder to be sent. Set this day count according to your preferences or company policy.

You can send different types of messages to customers based on your preferences and needs.

=> Send Email: Once you enable the “Send Email” option, you can send a message to the customer’s email address.

=> Send a Letter: By activating the “Send a Letter” option, you can forward a physical letter to the customer’s address.

=> Send SMS Message: Under the Notification tab, you have the option to send an SMS text message to the phone number of customers. To make use of this functionality, enable the “Send SMS Message” option. This provides a quick and direct way to reach customers via mobile messaging.

You can select a mail template for the follow-up level within the “Content Template” field. In the “OPTIONS” section, you can activate the “Automatic” option to eliminate the need for manual actions and the printing of a physical letter. Additionally, if you wish to include PDFs of open invoices with the created follow-up notice, you can enable the “Attach Invoices” option. These options provide a streamlined and automated approach to your follow-up procedures.

Under the Activity tab, you can create an activity by enabling the “Schedule Activity” option.

Once you’ve activated the “Schedule Activity”, a “Responsible” option will become available and you can select the person who will be responsible for scheduling and managing the activity. You can choose the responsible person from three categories: Account Manager, Follow-up Responsible, and Sales Person. This selection allows you to assign the activity to the appropriate individual based on their role and responsibilities. You can specify the category of the activity by choosing from the available options in the “Activity Type”. Furthermore, it’s advisable to provide a brief description or summary of the activity.

Now you can effectively schedule and assign activities to the relevant personnel within your organization.

To access a Follow-up Report:

Accounting => Customers => Follow-up Reports

You will be presented with a list of all overdue invoices in the follow-up reports.

Choose a specific follow-up report from the list to access more detailed information and make further changes as needed.

When the due date is displayed in red, it indicates that the payment due date has already passed, and the invoice is now overdue. Conversely, when due dates are shown in black, it signifies that open invoices are not yet overdue. If you wish to exclude certain invoices from your email communications during the follow-up process, you can activate the “Exclude from follow-ups” option.

By clicking on the “Follow UP” icon, you can easily initiate the follow-up process for your report payments.

Process Automatic Follow-ups

Users can send reminder emails in batches directly from the Follow-up Reports. To do this, select the reports that you need to process and then click on the “Action” icon. This allows for efficient management and batch sending of reminders to customers.

In Odoo 16, the Accounting module empowers users to effortlessly generate follow-up payments and conduct seamless analysis of the associated reports.

By leveraging our ERP system, you can make the process of follow-ups more efficient and effective, ensuring timely payments and improved cash flow management. Embrace the future of accounting with Odoo 16 and witness the difference that automated follow-ups can make for your organization.