This guide provides a detailed explanation of the "Integration Config" page within Vital, and understanding its connection and data flow with Lightspeed. Understanding these settings is crucial for every Franchise Partner to ensure accurate pricing, correct sales attribution, streamlined payment processing, and consistent data across your core operational systems. Properly configured integration optimises your workflow and maintains data integrity.
Overview
The seamless integration between Vital (your job management and field service system) and Lightspeed (your Point of Sale and inventory management system) is fundamental to the Evolution Platform. The "Integration Config" page in Vital acts as the central control panel for defining how these two critical systems communicate and exchange data, particularly concerning products, pricing, sales, and payments.
Key Concepts:
- Data Flow
- Actions performed in Vital (e.g., creating invoicing and receiving payments) are designed to flow into Lightspeed for inventory deduction, sales recording, and financial reconciliation.
- Centralised Control
- While data flows between systems, key settings influencing this flow are managed from this single configuration page in Vital.
- "One Poolwerx Way"
- Adhering to the correct configuration ensures that sales, inventory, and payment data are recorded consistently, preventing discrepancies and aiding accurate reporting.
Prerequisites:
- Access to the Vital platform with Franchise Partner role.
- Familiarity with the basic functionalities of both Vital and Lightspeed.
- (Optional but Recommended) A basic understanding of your Lightspeed product and price book structure.
To access and understand the "Integration Config" page in Vital:
- Log in to Vital.
- Expand the Setup menu
- Navigate to Integration and select LightSpeed
You will see a page with various settings and a table. Let's break down each key section:
| Setting | Function | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Default Payment Type | This setting determines how payments received through the Vital Windcave pay links (sent via invoices to clients) are recorded in Lightspeed. "One Poolwerx Way" Setup configuration is Field Payment | Any payment received via these links will be posted to the selected payment type in Lightspeed. This Lightspeed payment type is pre-linked to the Undeposited Funds - Vital account in Xero, ensuring correct cash flow tracking. |
| Allow LightSpeed to update product prices for the active jobs and quotes | When enabled Vital will retrieve product prices directly from Lightspeed. "One Poolwerx Way" Setup configuration is Always enabled. | This means you do not need to manually maintain product prices within Vital jobs or invoices each time. Pricing for products added to jobs in Vital will automatically reflect their corresponding prices in Lightspeed, ensuring consistency. Edge Case: Products which were edited to have a custom (IE not list price) will not be updated. Only jobs where the price matches the original list price will be updated |
| Show technician name/details | When enabled, the job details, including the technician's name, will be posted to the "Notes" section of the corresponding invoice in Lightspeed. "One Poolwerx Way" Setup configuration is Always enabled. | This provides easy identification in Lightspeed of what the invoices are for and which technician performed the service, aiding reconciliation and tracking. |
| Enable price book syncing | This is an optional setting. When enabled, it allows you to utilise multiple price books managed within Lightspeed for clients with special or tiered pricing. | Provides flexibility to offer different pricing structures to specific client groups directly managed from Lightspeed. If not enabled, all pricing will default to Lightspeed's standard pricing for products. |
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Pooltrackr User | This column lists the active users within your Vital (Pooltrackr) system. |
| Get Price Book from Outlet | This column allows you to select which Lightspeed price book each specific Poolwerx user should utilise when creating invoices. |
| Post Sales to Register | This column defines which Lightspeed outlet and register sales generated by each specific Vital user will be posted to. Ensure each user is mapped to the correct Lightspeed outlet (Service Outlet) to ensure accurate sales reporting and inventory deduction from the correct physical location. |
| Post Sales to User | This column allows you to select the corresponding user in Lightspeed to whom the sales generated by the Vital user will be attributed. This ensures sales figures in Lightspeed are correctly linked to the individual who completed the job in Vital. |
Key Considerations & Best Practices
- Periodically review these integration settings, especially after any changes to your Lightspeed setup (e.g., new outlets, new price books, new users) or if you notice discrepancies in your sales or inventory reporting.
- Ensure consistent naming conventions for users across Vital and Lightspeed where possible to minimise confusion and improve data matching.
- Ensure all staff members understand how these settings impact their daily tasks, particularly those involved in invoicing, payments, and product management.
- Adhere strictly to the "one Poolwerx Way" by ensuring that sales and payments are attributed to the correct outlets and users as per company policy. Incorrect mapping can lead to inaccurate financial reporting and stock discrepancies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why are my product prices in Vital not matching Lightspeed?
A: First, check that the Product Prices from Lightspeed toggle is enabled on this page. Second, ensure that the products exist in Lightspeed and have active pricing. If Enable Price Book Syncing is active, verify that the user's assigned price book is correct.
Q: My invoices are appearing under the wrong outlet in Lightspeed. What should I do?
A: Check the Outlet mapping for the specific Pooltrackr user in the User Mapping table who created the invoice. Also, remember that deposit and batch invoices default to the first user's mapped outlet in the table.
Q: Why are my technician's job notes not showing up in Lightspeed invoices?
A: Ensure the Show Technician Name and Details toggle is enabled on this Integration Config page.
Q: Can I charge a client's credit card directly from Lightspeed for a Vital invoice?
A: No, credit cards on file are stored and used exclusively in Vital. Payments for Vital invoices using a stored credit card must be processed within Vital.