What is a Sales Order?

The Short Version

A sales order (SO) is a record you create in CrafterBy when a customer buys your products. It captures: what they bought, at what price, and when. When you mark the order as Shipped, your finished goods stock is decremented automatically. Payment records on the order feed into your revenue reporting.

A Practical Example

A boutique contacts you and places a wholesale order for 20 Woodland Soy Candles at EUR 18.00 each. You create a Sales Order in CrafterBy:

• Customer: The Woodland Store
• Line item: Woodland Soy Candle x 20, EUR 18.00 each
• Order total: EUR 360.00
• Status: Confirmed

When you pack and dispatch the order, you change the status to Shipped. CrafterBy deducts 20 units from your Woodland Soy Candle stock. When the boutique pays, you record the payment of EUR 360.00 on the order.

What Sales Orders Track

• What was sold — specific products and quantities
• To whom — linked to a customer contact
• At what price — selling price per line item, order total
• When — order date and expected shipping date
• Fulfilment status — Draft, Confirmed, Shipped, Delivered, Cancelled
• Payment — amounts received, payment dates, outstanding balance

Why Use Sales Orders

• Your stock of finished goods stays accurate — no manual adjustments needed when you ship
• Revenue figures are based on actual recorded payments, not just order creation dates
• You can see which products sell most, to which customers, and at what price
• Outstanding balances are visible at a glance — you know who owes you money
• Your customer's order history is one click away from their contact profile

Sales Orders vs. Invoices

A sales order in CrafterBy is your internal record. It is not the invoice you send to your customer — you may generate that separately in accounting software or a PDF invoice tool. The SO records the transaction from your perspective: what went out, when, and whether you have been paid.