Mail In Ticket Purchases and Entry

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SteveColes

Steve
Corporate Member
McRabbet said:
The Manual/Mail-in process does not have any submit button and does it need both a field for Number of tickets and Money tendered since each ticket is $5 (If the Money field is not a $5 multiple, couldn't the process round the number of tickets down to fully paid ones -- e.g., enter $24 and only 4 tickets are generated).

It appears that some explanation is needed for those who haven't really thought about it. The issues here are not just ticket number generation but in some ways accounting.

When the tickets are purchased via a credit card, the actual resulting book keeping transaction that will eventually go into QB is by its nature .a non-"split" and balanced transaction. Well, that's not exactly true, there is the CC per transaction service charge. But of course that info is automatically calculated by the payment processor.

In the case of a mail in check or cash, that is not the case. We, the corporation, recieved x dollars and we MUST, I repeat MUST account for all of the money tendered.

So let's use the above example, the order form says 4 tickets and but the check is for $24. What to do with the extra $4 or missing $1. The treasurer will have to KNOW there is an issue and pressured in to making a decision.

Some of the choices could be:
issue 4 tickets and create a donation transactiion
issue 4 tickets and a credit memo and/or refund.
Cancel the transaction, destroy, void or return the check.
issue 5 tickets and issue a debit memo and an invoice or debit memo.

And if you can't think of at least 10 more options you aren't really trying (Major exaggeration:gar-La;)

Now, if we were writing a true accounting program and not just a number generation program, the program would present the person a list of options in Accounting or QB speak. An option would be entered and the the system would enter a split transaction into our raffle Ticket Database showing $20 for account xxxxxx and for $4 yyyyyy. Then of course, we would also have written or acquired a program that would then read our our DB and send the appropriate transactions in QB transaction interface form.

BUT we are not writing accounting programs, they are difficult, tedious and time consuming. We should spend our very limited technical time on other things. We have only 4 Admins, one is missing in action, one is not available for some time period, one is not a programmer. That leaves me and Ethan and we have to very careful what we commit to, or has happened at least once before, the system went down and the admins had to depend on Real Web Host to fix and they couldn't and admins were burned out doing a lot of this crap.

SO this program is as simple as I can make it, we let Barbara or whoever, make the decision as to how handle it and keep her records as how to account for the $4. She signifies she is aware of the issue by simply putting in the correct number tickets and $ dollar amount and then the program goes on and does what it can.

Now the issue of no submit button ????? There is a button on the first page that says something like "Proceed to next step" it will keeping taking you back to that screen with a very LARGE and self explaining error message until tickets * $5 = amount tendered. When the check is good, the second screen comes up and buyer contact info comes up. The person entering should attempt to fill in as much as possible both from the form and the check. Barbara can decide, if there is not enough info to continue. We can probably find most people with very little. There is a programmed checked for this; it is easier for a human to decide than a program. At least if we want to keep the program simple. When the info is entered, there is a button Save Transaction
 
M

McRabbet

I appreciate all of the issues you outlined -- basic fact is that we must account for the dollars submitted and it doesn't need to be programmed in. My recommendation echoes yours and I believe it should be handled by the Tresaurer alone. In the $24 case, I'd recommend we issue 4 tickets and show $4 credit on the books. If the buyer contacts us that he/she was shorted, they can add $1 for their fifth ticket or make it a donation.
 

b4man

New User
Barbara
I am unclear about the ticket number generating. Will the program do it?
As far as a sale goes that doesn't equal 5.00 increments, I should be able to contact the person with the info received in the form. The only time an issue is likely would be in a cash transaction and that isn't likely at all.
 

SteveColes

Steve
Corporate Member
I am unclear about the ticket number generating. Will the program do it?
As far as a sale goes that doesn't equal 5.00 increments, I should be able to contact the person with the info received in the form. The only time an issue is likely would be in a cash transaction and that isn't likely at all.
Barbara, the program generate the numbers and emails the to the buyer, they are also put in the database and you would see them in the sales report.
 
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