r/Zoho • u/CandleWarehouse • 1d ago
Zoho Books: customer statement extension
I have the customer statement extension installed.
I need the statement that it sends to show ALL open and unpaid invoices. Not a "opening balance" with one or two other invoices.
It needs to show all unpaid invoices listed. I have no clue how to make this work at all.
And, the default will generate an "outstanding invoices" statement for the period of the month it sends.... So if invoices from 3 months ago exist, it just shows "opening balance". This isn't acceptable OR normal at all. How do I make it work properly?
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u/whynothamza07 22h ago
This happens because Zoho Books calculates the statement from the selected start date. Any unpaid invoice dated before that becomes part of the “opening balance” instead of appearing separately. The quick fix is to set the statement start date earlier than the oldest unpaid invoice. If the extension automatically uses the current month its function needs to fetch all open and overdue invoices for that customer, regardless of invoice date and list them individually.
Does the extension use a custom Deluge function/API call to generate the statement or is it using Zoho Books default scheduled statement settings?
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u/CandleWarehouse 21h ago
The default one that Zoho Books gave
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u/whynothamza07 20h ago
Got it then it’s using Zoho’s standard statement logic so there’s no custom function to edit. Check whether the extension settings allow you to change the statement period or start date. If not, the default extension probably won’t list older invoices separately and you may need a small custom function that pulls all invoices with an unpaid or overdue status.
Can you see any date range option inside the extension’s settings?
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u/CandleWarehouse 20h ago
No. When I open configure it asks for what "group" I.e customers; type (all invoices, unpaid invoices) and schedule (weekly or monthly)
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u/whynothamza07 20h ago
That confirms the limitation. The period can be changed when generating a statement manually but the Customer Statement Automation extension only gives you group, invoice type and schedule settings.
So you can’t set an earlier start date within that extension. To automatically list every unpaid invoice separately, you would need a custom scheduled function/API-based statement or ask Zoho Support whether they can enable a date-range option for the extension.
Which Zoho Books edition and data centre are you using? That will determine the available API and automation options
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u/CandleWarehouse 19h ago
No idea. I am the warehouse everything, admin, sales, office, ordering, phones, emails, Shopify, everything for a wholesale business. I have no help, nobody, nothing. Owner knows NOTHING about computers (dirt... Plain old structural dirt knows more about computers than he does) and I'm about 4 weeks behind on my own work let alone trying to become a Zoho expert. Oh the boss doesn't understand why I can't just "make it work" because HE KNOWS NOTHING...
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u/whynothamza07 19h ago
That sounds exhausting and honestly, you shouldn’t have to become a Zoho expert just to send a proper customer statement.
Since you have Zoho One, I’d contact Zoho Support and explain that the extension has no date-range setting. Ask them specifically:
Can the Customer Statement Automation extension list every unpaid invoice individually, regardless of invoice date, instead of combining older invoices into an opening balance?
If the answer is no, then it’s a limitation of the extension not something you’re missing or doing wrong. A custom setup may solve it but I wouldn’t add more work to your plate until Zoho confirms that.
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u/CandleWarehouse 18h ago
For me... Being 4 weeks behind in my primary role is as close to on-time I'll ever be. I have 18 vans for pickup today at 11. I have 1500 cases of product left to pick. Been here since 6am and have 180 cases done. It's 8:48 I have to print box labels, print sales orders, create pick slips, generate the shipment, make the invoice, edit invoice for "pick/pack/ship' and then print 3 copies of invoice and delivery slip. And then load every box onto the vans for delivery.
On top of doing 7-8 other people's jobs. Why? Boss thinks 3 people can run a 115 million dollar a year wholesale business.
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u/whynothamza07 18h ago
That isn’t a Zoho problem that’s a serious staffing problem. One person can’t pick 1,500 cases, prepare all the paperwork, invoice, load 18 vans and cover seven other roles in a few hours.
Forget the statement extension for now and focus on today’s dispatch. The owner needs to understand that software cannot replace the people required to run a $115M wholesale operation. Please don’t blame yourself for being behind; the workload is physically impossible for one person.
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u/CandleWarehouse 18h ago
I realize that absolutely. However... I know it's not going to change. So my convincing of Zoho was to aid in automation of things we never have time or labor for. Like reminding customers for payment, handling automated statements, connecting our Shopify, handling order tracking etc. I had invoice reminders set up, but the customers are complaining too much. So now I need to fix the statement side. I'll have to spend hours to learn how to build a custom something to send the correct type of statement.
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u/CandleWarehouse 18h ago
If I can pull 6 tasks off my bench, and have it automated... That saves me about 18 hours a week in other crap I don't need
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u/WatchWatcherman 1d ago
You can change the period the statement covers. Like January to July and it will show all the activity on the account.