New Invoicing - Select default for 'Approve' Button e.g not 'Approve & Email
Can there be a system setting which controls the default option on Invoices for the Approve button.
It is currently Approve & Email and we would like to have the default as just Approve.
If it was a system setting companies could chose best option for them.
Hi everyone, thank you for your feedback on this here. Through testing we found that majority of our customers would Approve and email an invoice at once, which is why this was developed as the default in new invoicing. That said we appreciate others would like a different action as their primary option.
While we don't have direct plans for adding the ability to set a default for this action, we're listening to your feedback and looking into how we can improve efficiency and speed things up for you when using new invoicing through the use of keyboard shortcuts. We'll share more news when we've confirmed what this shortcut looks like and are closer to providing this to you all.
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Jim Morris commented
What happens if you find a mistake after you have approved, that you need to correct, but now the email has already been sent? Now you get to look like a moron in having to contact the customers, tell them to ignore the invoice and then correct and send another... all because Xero decided, via questionable arbitration, that it was a good idea to do 2 functions with the click of one button.
Sorry, but this is a dumb decision.
Default should be Approve.
Better yet, let us select our own defaults and not be dictated to by a majority of a minority of selected beta tester users.
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Olga O'Keefe commented
We do prefer the ‘Approve’ button as a default.
I experimented with ‘Approve & Email’. When you click it, it gives you an option to cancel it. The invoice is approved, but not emailed. It is not ideal, as it requires two clicks instead of one. But who knows when Xero can fix this issue? Meanwhile, we can use these two clicks to approve invoices without using the dropdown menu.
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Kathy Skinner commented
No doubt the majority is what Xero thinks it is. Maybe suitable for ones who invoice on the go and don't have to worry about other issues and can send straight away.
This should never have been set as the default, once again Xero decide how we use things. If they can change it to this then they should be able to easily set up how it was originally or allow the user to set their own default. I don't even approve and send invoices straight away and I imagine this is going to cause a lot of issues for one of my clients when its forced on them, as they are in the Travel Industry so need to double check invoices before they are even sent out as sometimes there are changes needed to the invoice after it's generated.XERO AREN'T LISTENEING TO THEIR USERS - MAYBE IT WORKS FOR THEM BUT NOT EVERYONE OPERATES THE SAME WAY SO STOP FORCING THINGS ON YOUR USERS THAT AREN'T PRACTICAL.
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Julia Berry commented
I would like to query what sort of test group the "majority" of your customers actually came from ?
Whilst this feature might be slightly more convenient for those who invoice directly in Xero there would no doubt be a significant proportion of users who integrate third party platforms and stock control systems to generate invoices and use Xero for accounting only.We cannot have customers re-sent an invoice every time we approve it !! Having to choose from a drop down to prevent this is adding yet more needless time to process through invoices.
If a default cannot be chosen by the user why not simply provide two separate buttons to be clicked, one to Approve, one to Email ? I don't think the UX would be considerably impacted by this. Please re-consider this decision.
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Claire Cotten commented
Absolutely businesses should be given the option to set their default preference for such a thing— it affects workflow so much! At the bare minimum, it should be a standard approve button with options to change action as it has been. If Xero wanted ultimately happy users, though, they’d let them be able to pick what works best for themselves with an option in the organization settings. I personally have always wanted “Approve and Add Another” as default, but I’ve never assumed every other user would want it that way. Let us pick our defaults, please
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Kym James commented
Just how many is 'majority'?
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Abby Stewart commented
I was just told by support that they will not be changing the button to "Approve". Why not make it an option for users to save their own default setting? I have not read one comment on any Xero forum where the user prefers the "Approve & Email" button.
This is going to create a lot of headaches for me and my staff.
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Abby Stewart commented
Approve and email should NOT be the default. This is going to create so many errors for my small business. Patients will get invoices that says they need to pay even though they have paid at the time. Users are consistently complaining about this and it needs to be fixed.
I submitted a support ticket and was told "Approve" would be the default due to so much backlash. There are only 2 weeks until the new invoicing is defaulted, and this has not been fixed.
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Kathy Skinner commented
I also never approve and email straight away as sometimes these get sent to another person first for review so SHOULD NOT BE THE DEFAULT. Stupid that they set that option as the default when it wasn't the option in classic.
They don't care what their users are saying judging by Kelly's comment above. They should have migrated everything from classic across then looked at adding options to that not change everything when moving over.
It is horrible to use and I dread having to use it when classic is no longer available.
So many requests have been put forward over the years and they ignore those and just do what they want because maybe there haven't been enough votes for a suggestion, or they turn off the ability to vote. Gone down hill and continuing to go downhill from what I see yet put their prices up but offer big discounts to new users and never mind long term users. Seems we're paying to cover the difference. -
Paul Wilson commented
I agree with many of the comments below - I never email invoices and having a default of just "approve" used to be possible and having to go to the drop down list every time is really irritating! Surely a value could be added to the invoice settings panel to allow users to select what is the default action of this button?
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Elise Edwards commented
Yes Yes Yes, I need this option. Most invoices I add to xero do not need to be emailed. So I would normally just approve or approve and print. Please bring this back or add a feature that will allow us to change the setting.
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Laine Ratsep commented
Please reconsider making this an option a user can set for a default that suits their workflow. While I'm sure Xero's own accounts staff wanted this for their monthly invoicing process, many many other businesses have a workflow for which 'Approve and Email' is potentially harmful to their brand. Digging in your heels on this one is harmful to *your* brand.
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Joe Roughton commented
Absolutely doing my head in also. Why assume what we want? Give us the option!
Quickbooks has had this function for quite some time. Quickbooks these days is seeming more and more attractive, not least because talking to anyone at Xero is like hitting your head against a wall.
This whole new invoicing has been a shambles, adding in features that, as far as I can tell, no one was asking for, and in doing so ruining what was a perfectly good invoicing screen.
Xero, in case you haven't picked up, i'm an increasingly unhappy customer.
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Toni Angelevski commented
This is doing my head in too.
Some times I prepare invoices overnight but do not want to send them out until after lunch the next day. Example, I may work at night and finish doing invoices at say 11pm. I do not want my client to wake up and the first email of their day is an invoice from my firm. I would rather send it through after lunch that day.
Very stressful.
Additionally, given you were able to run both invoices systems, why the mandatory forcing of users onto the new system. Why not let us continue to be able to use the old system...?
Incredibly frustrated.
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Claire Cotten commented
I wish there was an ability to set the company default button. Right now, with this button change, there are going to be problems in one of my organizations with invoicing. Xero should listen to its clients when they say this is an incredibly frustrating situation
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Gael Beddoes commented
I agree with Nigel Harper and adding it all to the settings menu than having a really clunky invoicing screen and layout. User profile or invoice setting being an obvious place. So many users don't issue invoices through xero.
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Nigel Harper commented
As Posted other other threads: the answer is as follows:
Default Settings should be stored in the User Login Profile along side the Permissions assigned to the user for each company. These "Defaults" should include what the user wants as the default action for ANY Dropdown Button. EG. New Invoicing: Adding Billable Expenses - Add items SEPARATELY rather than as ONE. This used to be 2x buttons now it's a Dropdown Button with the wrong default 99% of the time. The same goes for New Invoicing Approval Button - Approval & Next or Submit for Approval & Next instead of Approve & Email. AND Next should be picked from the sort order in the Drafts Listing - Thus Chronoligical Order would be possible! (Or any order for that matter!)
By separating all these into different threads - the weight of sentiment is lost. Furthermore, once User Defaults are included in the User Login Profile - everyone gets to work they need to and are not forced to do anything that makes their job anymore difficult. The solution to this problem - done properly solves 10's or even 100's of problems. And the system is easily extendable if you ever try to make "improvements" again.
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Lita Sheppard commented
Please keep it at simply "Approve" and let the user decide what they then want to do with it. I cannot see that the majority of customers would want this. As a bookkeeper with many clients, I know few who would. In my practice I invoice customers monthly and complete and approve all my invoices before checking and doing a bulk email. I do not want to accidentally send an invoice and this is likely to happen under the New Invoicing. If left as is, there will be another extra step to change it to simply Approve
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Accounts Powerace EB commented
This is an absolute must!!! Some of my clients print off their invoices to go out with the goods and they invoices are not sent until after the process is completed in case the invoices need to be adjusted.
Other clients use different programs to send invoices and just adds alot of confusion and extra time to have to select to simply approve.
Other client prefer to select all the unsent invoices at once, after they have finished invoicing, allows time to double check before invoices are sent to clients.
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Scott Osburne commented
it just seem that Xero is not really listening to clients. I don't know who was tested, but it wasn't me.