Digital Invoice Reconciliation Screen

 

Screen Overview

The Invoice Reconciliation screen encompasses the ability to match the invoice to the buy and reconcile the invoice when discrepancies arise, and match many buy lines to 1 invoice detail.

Open the Invoice Reconciliation screen from the Invoicing Options button on the Main Menu.

There are 5 main sections on the reconciliation screen: header, Scheduled, Invoiced, pre-match analysis (right above the Matched section), and the Matched section.

Screen Layouts of the 4 Vendor Types

Depending on the Vendor Type, the screens are slightly different in the header filters and the available columns in the Scheduled, Invoiced and the Matched panes. Below are the screen shots of each vendor type:

Reconcile Publisher Invoice

Optionally, use the Show/Hide Columns option in the Edit menu to show or hide any column in the Scheduled, Invoiced and Matched panes.

Reconcile Ad Server Invoice

Optionally, use the Show/Hide Columns option in the Edit menu to show or hide any column in the Scheduled, Invoiced and Matched panes.

Reconcile Alternate Ad Server invoice

Optionally, use the Show/Hide Columns option in the Edit menu to show or hide any column in the Scheduled, Invoiced and Matched panes.

Reconcile Fee Vendor invoice

Optionally, use the Show/Hide Columns option in the Edit menu to show or hide any column in the Scheduled, Invoiced and Matched panes.

The Invoice Reconciliation screen displays Scheduled, Invoiced and Matched information and is an active interface for automatic and manual matches. The process is the same for all vendor types.

Header

The following filters are available to find the invoice for reconciliation: Agency, Office, Client, Vendor Type, Estimate, and Vendor.

To find a Publisher or Fee Vendor invoice, Vendor Type, Agency, Office, Client, Estimate, Vendor and Invoice must be selected.

To find an Ad Server or Alternate Ad Server Invoice, Vendor Type Agency, Office, Client, Vendor and Invoice must be selected. 

Additional filter options to search on dates "From” and "To” are provided and used in conjunction with the options to Search on Invoice Month or Search on Invoice Date.

Matched indicate the invoice matched status. This way a user can quickly know if all invoice details have been matched for an invoice.

When the screen is opened from a secondary screen (i.e. not from the main menu) the invoice will be limited to only the invoice number selected on the screen from which it’s launched. 

The Invoiced Grid

Once an invoice is selected from the Invoice drop down in the header，the Invoiced grid displays all entered invoice detail lines. Double click on an invoice detail line will open the Invoicing screen to allow user further editing the currently invoice.

The Scheduled Grid

The Scheduled grid will be populated with available schedules that associated with the selected Invoice. The buy lines that most likely match the selected invoice will appear on top of the Scheduled. All columns can be sorted by ascending or descending order.

Group By None, Estimate and Rate Type options are available. When Group by Estimate or Rate Type is selected, the Units, AS Units and Net Cost are aggregated. When Group By None is selected, all buy lines that matched the search criteria will appear.

Pre-match Analysis

The pre-match analysis pane is available below the Scheduled and Invoiced panes. This section is used to support match many placements to 1 invoice detail line. Highlight the scheduled buy line(s) in the Scheduled grid and then select an Invoiced detail line, the pre-matched analysis grid will aggregated the scheduled Goss Cost, Net Cost, Units and Placements to compare with the selected Invoice detail.

Variance is a calculated amount that equals to (Invoiced - Scheduled)/Scheduled.

Matched Grid

The Matched grid is available to display all matched invoice details along with Scheduled buys, 3rd Party Ad Server served data, Client Billed data and Publisher Invoiced detail side by side.

Scheduled

Scheduled section contains Units, Rate, Gross Cost and Net Cost of the scheduled buyline(s) that matched invoice line.

3rd Party Ad Server

If 3rd Party Ad Server is integrated, the 3rd Party Ad Server section will be available to show the actual served Units, Rate, Gross Cost and Net Cost. If agency is not integrated with Strata supported ad server, these columns will not be available.

Invoiced

Invoiced section is available to display the matched invoiced detail.

Amount to Pay

Amount to Pay is available to allow user enter the amount they will pay to the publisher when there is discrepancy after the invoice reconciliation. A default value will be populated base off the following rules:

When 3rd party Ad Server is used, if the Invoiced Net Cost is greater than the 3rd Party Ad Server Net Cost and the difference is less than 10% of the 3rd Party Ad Server Net Cost, Amount to Pay defaults to Invoiced Net Cost. Otherwise, Amount to Pay defaults to Ad Server Net Cost

When 3rd party Ad Server is not used, Amount to Pay default to Publisher Invoiced.

Comment

Invoice line comment is provided for the user to input comments specific to each invoice, it allows up to 2000 characters. Enter the invoice level comment by click on the comment history icon and enter comment from the Comment History screen.

How to look up schedules that matched to an invoice detail?

In the Matched grid, right click on a matched invoice line will open the Placement Look Up window that displays all scheduled placements that have been matched to the invoice line.

Total Matched Placements below the Matched data grid will display a placement count of all the matched individual invoice records.

Total Matched Cost below the Matched data grid will display a running total of all the matched individual invoice records Net Cost amounts.

Buttons

Add/Edit Schedule button is available to allow user open the Media Plan screen reflected in the schedule information

Manual Match is available for force match.

Match button is available to allow the user to match units as they are reconciling without having to return to the Invoicing screen to Match.  The user can select one invoice from the same Invoice Month to match against one or more Schedules. (Note: This feature is not available for Fee Vendor invoices in v19.6)

Invoicing - clicking on this button to open Invoicing screen to add, edit, or delete invoice entries of current invoice entries.

Invoice History - clicking on this button to open Invoice History screen to view placement level invoice history.

Defaults - click on this button to look up or edit default invoice matching criteria.

The Process of Reconcile and Match an Invoice

Manual Match

Manual Match 1 or More Schedules to 1 Invoice Detail

1. Once an invoice is selected from the Invoice drop down in the header，the Invoiced grid displays all entered invoice detail lines. 
2. The Scheduled grid will be populated with available schedules that associated with the selected Invoice. The buy lines that most likely match the selected invoice will appear on top of the Scheduled. 
3. Select 1 or more placement lines on Scheduled table grid and click on one invoice detail line in the Invoiced grid. 
4. The pre-match analysis section will aggregate Gross Cost, Net Cost, Units, Placement count and Cost of selected Scheduled and Invoiced line(s) and the calculated Variance will indicate the % difference of the Scheduled vs Invoiced.
5. Choose Manual Match will force the selected invoice line match scheduled buyline(s) without take default matching criteria into consideration.
6. The invoice detail line and the associated matched buy line(s) will be removed from Invoiced and Scheduled grids, and moved into the Matched grid.
7. Amount to Pay is auto populated base on the rule below but can be updated manually.

If 3rd party ad server is used and Invoiced Net Cost > Ad Server Net Cost

If ((Invoiced Net Cost - Ad Server Net Cost) < 10% of Ad Server Net Cost)

Defaults to Invoiced Net Cost

Else Defaults to Ad Server Net Cost

Else, default to Publisher Invoiced.

1. Upon completion of the reconciliation process, the Matched check box will be checked to indicate the invoice has been matched.

Manual Match Multiple Invoices to 1 Schedule

Enable the Multi Invoices Match Feature

For a vendor that may issue multiple invoices for the same month, user should use Multi Invoices Match button to do the manual match. Agency can turn this feature on/off by check/uncheck the "Allow Multi Invoices Match” option on the Digital tab of the FinancialControl key, accessed through System Data Settings.

When "Allow Multi Invoices Match” option is turned on, the "Multi Invoices Match” and "Multi Match Complete” buttons will be available.

Multi Invoices Match button allows manual match multiple invoices to single schedule, it is enabled only when the agency choose to use it, and not to be confused with Manual Match button.

Multi Match Complete button is used to flag the placement is finally matched and there is no more invoice coming.

The Process of Manual Match Multiple Invoices to 1 Schedule

(Note: This feature is not available for Fee Vendor invoices in v19.6)

1. To match 1 placement to 1 invoice that contains multiple detail lines
   1. User should highlight the scheduled line and invoice lines, and then click on "Multi Invoices Match” button.
      1. The scheduled line always remains in the scheduled pane, all match invoice lines move to the Matched pane.
      2. The color of the scheduled line will turn to orange to indicate this schedule is expecting 1 or more same month invoices.
      3. In Scheduled pane, the read-only Unmatched Net Cost and Unmatched Units columns indicate unmatched cost and units of the placement. Unmatched Net Cost = Scheduled Net Cost - Total Amount to Pay of all matched invoices. Unmatched Units = Scheduled Units - Total Units of all matched invoices.
      4. The invoice remain not matched until user click the "Multi Match Complete” button to indicate all scheduled Net Cost have been matched, no more invoice coming, and then the scheduled line would disappear from the Scheduled pane.
2. To match 1 placement to multiple invoices: multi select Invoices in the Invoice drop down, and then click on the "Multi Invoices Match” button and "Multi Match Complete” buttons.
3. User can flag a schedule that will not expect any more same month invoice by select 1 or all scheduled lines and click on the "Multi Match Complete” button.
4. When the first invoice is Manual or auto matched, the Multi Invoices Match will be prevented to the consecutive same month invoice.
5. When the first invoice is matched by click on the Multi Invoices Matched button, Manual Match and auto Match will be prevented to the consecutive same month invoice. 

Auto Match

User can also auto match an invoice to the schedules by clicking on the Match button. Auto match is based on the matching criteria set by the user. The Matching Criteria can be changed by clicking the Defaults button on the screen or going to the Tools and Utilities main menu option, selecting Default Settings and clicking on the Invoicing tab. (Note: This feature is not available for Fee Vendor invoices in v19.6)