Customer Management in QuickBooks Online Explained

From creating customer profiles to tracking transactions and generating reports, QuickBooks Online provides a centralized platform to record and manage customer relationships. Whether you’re a small business owner or an accounting professional, understanding the customer management capabilities in QuickBooks Online will help you streamline operations, improve customer satisfaction, and drive business growth.

In this article, we’ll tackle customer management in QuickBooks Online, key features and benefits, and the setup process.

Key Features of Customer Management in QuickBooks Online

Customer Profiles: In QuickBooks Online, you can create detailed customer profiles with essential information, including contact details, billing and shipping addresses, payment terms, and preferred communication methods. There are two ways to set up a new customer: by clicking on +New on your dashboard and selecting Add customers and from the Customer center.

To add a new customer from the customer center, click on Customers on the left side menu bar, and then select the Customers dropdown. The customer center displays a list of all your customers in QuickBooks Online. Click on the green New customer button to set up a new customer. 

Customer Center in QuickBooks Online

To add a new customer, you must complete the required fields, such as name, contact details, and address. However, note that you only need to at least add a name to be able to save the customer; you can edit their profile anytime later.

Customer entry form in QuickBooks Online

Transaction Tracking: Easily track customer transactions, including sales receipts, invoices, payments, and estimates. This allows you to maintain a comprehensive history of customer interactions and financial transactions in one centralized location.

You can view transactions associated with each customer by clicking on their profile. You’ll see all the transactions related to that customer from the Transaction list, as shown below.

Transaction list tab under a Customer Profile in QuickBooks

Communication History: Record and access communication history with customers, including emails, notes, and attachments. This ensures that all relevant interactions are documented and readily available for future reference.

Customer Reports: Generate reports such as sales by customer, customer balance, or aging reports to gain insights into customer payment trends, outstanding balances, and overall sales performance.

To create a customer-related report, click on Reports on the left menu bar and then locate or type the report you wish to run (i.e., Sales by Customer Summary). 

Sample sales by customer summary in QuickBooks

To learn more about how to add and manage customers in QuickBooks Online, watch the video below.

Benefits of Setting up Customers in QuickBooks Online

• Streamlined Invoicing and Payments: QuickBooks Online simplifies the invoicing process, allowing you to create professional invoices with ease. When a customer profile is properly set up, it makes the invoice creatine easier by automatically populating the fields, such as the contact details and email address.
• Improved Organization: Centralizing customer information in one platform reduces manual effort and provides easy access to critical details when needed. This enhances overall organizational efficiency and saves time in searching for customer-related information.
• Enhanced Customer Relationships: With comprehensive customer profiles and communication history at your fingertips, you can deliver personalized and tailored experiences to each customer.
• Efficient Financial Tracking: Tracking customer transactions and sales enables accurate financial reporting. You can analyze customer-specific financial metrics, identify high-value clients, and make data-driven decisions to drive revenue growth.
• Data-Driven Insights: Customer reports generated in QuickBooks Online provide valuable insights into customer behavior, payment patterns, and overall sales performance. These insights help you identify opportunities, optimize marketing strategies, and drive business growth.

By leveraging the key customer management features of QuickBooks, such as customer profiles, transaction tracking, communication history, and customer reports, businesses can effectively manage and track customer interactions in one centralized platform.