If you’re running into issues with syncing Xero to FieldPulse, there are 4 main areas to look at to resolve these issues. They should be looked at and addressed in the following order:
Customer
Line items
Invoices
General Xero troubleshooting
In our system, customer records sync first, followed by line items, then invoices. So if there is an issue with formatting in any of the first steps, the steps following it will not work. That’s why it’s important to troubleshoot them in order, starting with the customer record.
Step 1: Troubleshooting the customer record
Related customers: Related customers in FieldPulse should sync over as ‘Groups’ in Xero. In order to sync smoothly, the formatting should work for both FieldPulse and Xero. This means related customers should match customers in groups in Xero
Multiple contacts for one customer: In Xero you can have up to 6 contacts in one customer record. You can add multiple customers in FieldPulse as well by editing an existing customer, or adding a new one with multiple contacts. Please note that you will only have the option to add multiple contacts to customer records in FieldPulse if your Xero sync is enabled, so make sure the sync is enabled before trying to add multiple contacts in FieldPulse.
Duplicated customers in FieldPulse: If you have duplicated customers in FieldPulse, this can cause sync issues. Remove/archive duplicate customers. Duplicate records in Xero also won’t sync to FieldPulse. If a customer does not sync from Xero to FieldPulse, do not create that customer in FieldPulse- it will not sync back to Xero because it has the same name.
Related customers: these sync over as ‘Groups’ in Xero. Related customers should match customers in 'groups' in Xero to sync smoothly.
Customer profiles missing email addresses: if your contact list in Xero is missing email addresses this will cause an issue. You can fix this by correcting them one-by-one, or exporting your customer list and add 'fake' emails in the blank fields like test1@gmail.com
Step 2: Troubleshooting line items
The following are elements of your line items that could cause sync issues with Xero.
SKU: This is the most important troubleshooting step and the most likely to be the source of sync issues. Xero requires a SKU for each line item, containing numbers or letters (no symbols). If your invoice items in FieldPulse are missing a SKU, they won’t sync over, and this will cause issues with invoices syncing over that contain those items. You can check the SKU’s of your invoice items in FieldPulse on this page: https://webapp.fieldpulse.com/administration/company/invoice/item-template/list-v2 and ensure that each line item has a SKU and that none of them contain symbols.
Individual line item tax rates: In Xero, each line item has its own tax rate, whereas FieldPulse just has one tax rate to cover all line items. So check your line items in Xero for varying tax rates - if any of your invoice items in Xero have tax rates that don’t match the tax rate you have set up in FieldPulse, they won’t sync, and invoice with those items won’t sync either. So make sure you adjust the tax rates on line items in Xero to match your tax rate in FieldPulse to ensure a smooth sync. Remember, GST must always be checked for each line item.
Line item name: Ensure there are no decimals or symbols in the line item name and that it's unique. Make sure the name of your line item doesn't match the name of any of your 'Products and Services' categories in Xero.
Price: This must be a positive value. Negative line items like -$10 won't sync. Use the discount feature in FieldPulse instead. The price must also not be $0. $0 line items will cause the sync to fail. Change the price to $1 instead to resolve this.
Line item description: There’s a character minimum and maximum (box is red if you don’t have enough text, green when you have enough). You must include a unique line item description that meets the character minimum. Make sure you don't use symbols or characters other than normal text and punctuation.
Other important troubleshooting steps for line items:
For invoices to sync, line item(s) must be synced to Xero as well as the customer record
In Xero, under Business > Products & Services, in each line item, click edit and ensure ‘Purchase items’ is unselected and only select ‘I sell items’.
Ensure Sales account and GST account is correct and Xero matches FieldPulse.
In Xero, each line item has its own tax rate, whereas FieldPulse just has one tax rate to cover all line items. So check your line items in Xero for varying tax rates - if any of your invoice items in Xero have tax rates that don’t match the tax rate you have set up in FieldPulse, they won’t sync, and invoice with those items won’t sync either. Each line item must have tax applied.
Step 3: Troubleshooting invoices
Invoice status: Invoices don’t sync over to Xero until they are in ‘Invoiced’ status; after you click ‘Finalize’. Invoice in ‘Invoice draft’ status won’t sync to Xero.
Date format mismatch: Xero requires a date on the invoice you’ll have to update this date field so the invoice does sync
$0 Invoice: Invoices cannot be for $0 they must be at least $1 in order to sync.
Step 4: General Xero Troubleshooting
Third party integrations: Make sure that your Xero has no 3rd party integrations - this will cause duplicates or no syncing.
Connected Apps: Ensure any previous software synced with Xero is disconnected in Xero's Settings > Connected apps.
Sales and GST account in Xero: Another area to look at is the formatting of the default Sales account and GST account in Xero. If the sales account/ GST account has 2 dashes it causes a ‘break’ eg ‘201-302 -Sales’ and won’t sync. Remove the 2nd dash e.g ‘201-302 Sales’.
That's it! Hopefully by following these guidelines you've been able to resolve your Xero sync issues. If you weren't able to solve your Xero sync issue using this guide, send us a chat or email us at support@fieldpulse.com