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C
CCDMpact
November 15, 2024
Question

Advertising Costs paid via credit memo on a remittance

  • November 15, 2024
  • 2 replies
  • 0 views

Hello...we are a dropship company that has begun advertising on our customers' dotcom sites...as a vendor for our customers and as a marketplace seller on sites (WM, Target+, Amazon...).

These advertising costs are paid via credit note deducted from the remittance.

We are having trouble putting the Advertising cost in SG&A expense since it is paid via a credit memo against remittance for invoices due.

Right now...we create credit memos for the cost of the advertising and reconcile these against the invoices being paid on a remittance, but this means the advertising cost shows up as a reduction of sale income and not in SG&A where I believe it should.

The only thing I can think of to handle this is to continue doing what is describe above and add the step of creating a JE to move the advertising cost (the credit memo amount) from a revenue reduction account to an SG&A account.

Is that an acceptable solution?  Or, if not, is there another solution for this situation? 

Thank you for any help/guidance you can give!

2 replies

C
Carneil_C
November 15, 2024

Yes, @CCDMpact. We can do a Journal Entry (JE) to handle advertising costs paid via credit memo on a remittance. I'd be glad to help you with how to do it.

 

To move the advertising cost into the expense account, I'll provide steps to record a JE in QBO. Here's how:

 

  1. Click + New and select Journal entry.
  2. On the first line, select an account from the Account field. It depends if you need to debit or credit the account. Enter the amount in the correct column.
  3. On the following line, select the other account you're moving money to or from. It depends if you entered a debit or credit on the first line. Enter the same amount in the opposite column.
  4. Review the amounts - you should have the same amount in the Credit column on one line and the Debit column on the other. It means the accounts are in balance.
  5. Enter information in the memo to know why you made the journal entry.
  6. Hit Save and new or Save and close.

 

This process requires assistance to ensure the journals will be posted accurately to your accounts. With this, you can seek guidance from your accountant to guide you further.

 

To learn more about this process, you can read this reference: Create journal entries in QuickBooks Online.

 

If you encounter any issues while reconciling, you can check out this article to fix them: Fix issues at the end of reconciliation in QuickBooks Online.

 

Don't hesitate to visit us again if you have any further questions while working with your amounts when managing your company or other QBO-related task. We're always here to provide clarification and offer our help. 

Rainflurry
Rainflurry
November 16, 2024

@CCDMpact 

 

Do you have the SG&A expense selected as the income account on the product/service you're using on the credit memo?  If not, select it and the reduction in the remittance will be booked to the SG&A expense and not as a reduction in revenue.   

C
CCDMpactAuthor
November 18, 2024

Hello...that suggestion looks like it worked, i.e. on the Product/Service Information setup for "Discount - Advertising Spend", I changed the Income Account to the SG&A account "Advertising & Marketing" and selected "Also update this account in historical transactions".  Now in the Chart of Accounts for 4958 Advertising Spend it does not have any entries and the SG&A account now shows all the credit memos.

If I will no longer use the 4958 account is it okay to make it inactive? Looks like it is not possible to delete the account, correct?

Thank you for the help!

K
KimberlyS
November 18, 2024

Yes, CCDMpact. You can make an account inactive if you're no longer using it. Let's go through the steps together.

 

Indeed, the option to permanently delete an account in QuickBooks Online is unavailable. You can only make them inactive, which allows you to access past transaction data for reporting purposes.

 

Here's how:

 

  1. Select the Gear icon, then Chart of accounts.
  2. Locate the account from the list.
  3. Click Make inactive from the Action dropdown.

 

 

Additionally, some accounts require extra steps before making them inactive. For more information, refer to this article: Make an account inactive on your chart of accounts in QuickBooks Online.

 

After completing the process above, they will still appear on your reports. Visit this link if you want to remove them: Remove deleted accounts from reports in QuickBooks Online.

 

Moreover, here are some resources to help you generate various data for a clearer understanding of the different aspects of your business:

 

 

We'll be pleased to deliver relevant information and resources whenever you need assistance dealing with your chart of accounts in QuickBooks Online. Just click the Reply button below to notify me on this thread.

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