Adding a Contact with Opening Balance and Advance Payment

When you add a new contact in Prokip, you can record an opening balance to reflect any amount the customer owes (or you owe to a supplier) from before you started using Prokip.
You can also later record advance payments after the contact is saved.

Before You Start

Before adding a contact, make sure you:

• Know whether the person is a Customer, Supplier, or Both.
• Have their basic details (name, phone, email, and address).
• Know the opening balance if there are previous transactions.
• Have your payment details ready if you plan to record an advance payment after adding the contact.

Steps to Add a Contact with an Opening Balance

Step 1: Go to Contacts

1. From your Dashboard, click Contacts on the left menu.
2. Select +Add to add contact.

Step 2: Choose Contact Type

1. Under Contact Type, select one of the following:
   • Customer – for people buying from you.
   • Supplier – for people you buy from.
   • Both – if they can be both customer and supplier.

Step 3: Fill in Contact Details

1. First Name & Last Name – Type their full name (e.g., Diana Fassie).
2. Country Code & Mobile – Choose your country code (e.g., KE – 254) and enter their phone number.
3. Email – Enter a valid email address.
4. Date of Birth – Optional, for record keeping.
5. Tax Number – Add if available (for VAT or business purposes).
6. Address Line 1, Shipping Address, City, State, Country, Zip Code – Fill in their location details for invoices and delivery.

Step 4: Add Opening Balance

If the contact already has a balance (money owed or prepaid before using Prokip):

1. In the Opening Balance field, enter the correct amount.
   • For a Customer, this is what they owe you.
   • For a Supplier, this is what you owe them.
2. You can also set a Due Date if the balance should be cleared by a specific date.
3. Leave Credit Limit blank if there’s no set limit for that contact.

Step 5: Save Contact

1. Review all details to ensure they are correct.
2. Click Save at the bottom of the form.

Adding an Advance Payment (After Contact is Created)

Once your contact is saved, you can record an advance payment linked to them.

1. Go to the Contacts Dashboard.
2. Find the contact you just created (e.g., Diana Fassie).
3. On the right-hand side, click Action → Pay to add Advance Payment.
4. Enter the following details:
   • Amount – How much was received or paid.
   • Paid on – Choose the payment date.
   • Payment Method – Select Cash, Bank Transfer, POS, etc.
   • Payment Note – Optional, describe what the advance is for (e.g., “Deposit for upcoming order”).
5. Click Save to confirm.

 

Best Practices

• Always confirm the contact type before saving; it determines where the balance appears (Customer or Supplier list).
• Use the Opening Balance only once — when setting up old balances. Use Advance Payment for new deposits or prepayments.
• Add clear notes in payment descriptions to avoid confusion later.
• Check balances under the Contact’s Ledger for accuracy.
• Avoid duplicate entries — if a contact already exists, update it instead of adding a new one.