QuickBooks - Using the Other Names List

QuickBooks uses many different lists to track records, but the Other Names list is often neglected.

In working with other company's QuickBooks records, I have noticed that many users record all sources of income as Customers and all payees of expenses as Vendors. Although that method may seem to be sufficient, QuickBooks has a feature that is often underutilized - the Other Names List.

First, let's consider Vendors. QuickBooks was designed so that when a company receives a Bill from a Vendor, the bill can be recorded against the vendor and QuickBooks will track unpaid Bills as Accounts Payable. When the Bill is paid, then the balance in Accounts Payable is reduced. This is especially helpful for businesses that want to track their outstanding liabilities.

But there are often many expenses that a business may incur that it will never receive a Bill for. For instance, an employee on a business trip may use a company credit card to purchase gasoline for a rental vehicle, pay tolls and parking, eat meals in various restaurants, and stay overnight in a hotel. A sole proprietor who uses a debit card to pay for many of his purchases is in a similar situation. All of these expenses are paid at the time of purchase, so no Bill is ever rendered by the vendor. However, the business may want to track the names of the vendors from which such purchases were made, and having the name recorded for the transaction certainly makes reconciliations much easier.

Second, consider Customers. When QuickBooks is used to generate an Invoice, the amount of the Invoice increases Accounts Receivable, and when the Invoice is paid by the Customer, the balance in Accounts Receivable is reduced. Using this feature enables a business to track income it has earned but for which it has not yet been paid.

But sometimes a business may receive income, and it has not provided a Customer with an Invoice. For instance, a pet grooming business may require that all services be paid for at the time they are rendered, but it may still want to track its customer's names. Rebates on credit card purchases could be another type of income that is not from a specific Customer.

In both of these cases the best feature to use is the Other Names List. You can record just the name, or you can add additional information such as an address, phone number, email address, and notes. When you begin to type a name in the Name field of any transaction window, all types of names will be displayed, and the auto-fill feature can pluck a name off the Other Names List as easily as it could from any other list. To obtain a report of all transactions recorded under an Other Name, open the Other Names List from the Lists menu, click on the name, and press Ctl-Q. In the date field select All or set a date range.

Suppose at some point a supplier agrees to extend credit and you will begin receiving bills from the vendor, or you may extend credit to a customer and start invoicing him. You can easily change the Other Name to a Vendor or a Customer by double-clicking on the name in the Other Names List and click on the Change Type button. Just remember that if you change an Other Name to a Customer, Vendor, or Employee, you cannot undo the change.

So save the Customer and Vendor lists for Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable. If you use the Other Names List, you will streamline your QuickBooks records.