Channel Configuration

Channel Configuration

By default, channels functionality on your live system is activated. If you wish to test channel integrations in your demo system, please contact support@khaoscloud.com asking for your channels to be activated in your demo system.
The settings within this article can only be modified in Edit mode, please remember to click the Edit button before making changes. For details on managing your channels please see the guide here, Managing Your Channel.

Linking Your Channels

Channels should first be 'connected' before any additional setup is carried out. Below are the links for the different channel setup guides: 
Please Note: If you are using 3rd Party API functionality, your web developer will provide you with the details required to link your channel.

Channel Configuration (Main / Setup Tab)

All of the settings here are located on the Main / Setup tab of the channel configuration screen. These settings include all general settings for channels in addition to options which are only applicable to certain channels as indicated.

General Settings

GENERAL

  1. Name  This is the name of the channel as it will appear in KCC. It does not need to match up to any official channel name so long as you can identify it.
  2. Start Date -  This is the date that the system will look back to when you're first starting to import old sales orders, by default it is one week ago. Note that orders will not be imported if they were placed more than 3 months ago, or before the 'Start Date' held against the channel. 
  3. Type – This is the type of channel which was selected when creating the new channel, it is displayed here purely for confirmation purposes.
  4. Order Ref. FormatThis mandatory field requires you to define a custom order number format for orders from the channel. For example, entering KCC in front of the {0}, KCC{0}, will result in KCC importing orders with an “Associated Reference” of KC followed by the channel order number KCC4657984-135465.
It’s important to note that this option MUST not be changed once orders have started importing, as orders may be re-imported as the system will see them as new orders due to a different reference.
  1. Channel Enabled – Determines whether the channel is enabled or disabled. We recommend that it remains enabled once you have authenticated the channel.
  2. Don’t Import Orders - This important option is enabled by default when creating a new channel and is used to allow some user control over which orders are initially imported. When the channel is enabled and authenticated, Khaos Control Cloud will look back a week or so to find all visible sales orders on the channel during this time period. It’s likely that you may have already processed some, if not all, of the initial orders that are seen by KCC.
    1. Enabled - This option stops sales orders being imported to KCC until you’ve had a chance to review the Imported Orders tab within your channel and decide which ones you should mark as ‘Ignore/don’t import’ .
    2. Disabled - This option sets KCC to import orders from the channel. Any orders on the Imported Orders which not marked to be ignored will be imported into KCC for you to process.

Warning
It is essential that you do not import orders until your stock level have been set up on the system.

  1. Don’t Upload Order status
    1. Enabled - Order status and shipping information will not get sent back up to the channel and will need to be updated on the channel directly.
    2. Disabled - Order status and shipping information will get sent back to the channel once sales orders have been issued in KCC.

  1. Don’t Upload Stock Status
    1. Enabled - Stock levels will not be updated on the channel. 
    2. Disabled - Stock levels will be uploaded to the channel (in accordance with settings under the Main | Stock tab of the channel.

IMPORT OPTIONS

  1. IOSS Number - This is the IOSS number to used by the channel. If you ship goods as a result of orders from any marketplace (such as Amazon, eBay, Wayfair) then you must process those orders as IOSS orders using IOSS number provided to you by the Marketplace.
  2. IOSS External Marketplace This controls if the orders should be considered from an external marketplace for IOSS tax reasons. It should be enabled for Amazon and eBay, but for other channels may vary.
    1. Enabled - Any orders which have VAT included will have that VAT posted to the External Sales Tax nominal within the system accounts.
    2. Disabled - All orders will have VAT posted to the Tax On Sales nominal within the system accounts.
  3. Use Generic Customer
    1. Enabled - Customers from imported orders will not be linked up to any existing customer records or created as new customers in KCC. Instead, a generic customer will be created each month, for example, Amaz-0321 for Amazon channel orders in March 2021, and all sales orders imported from the channel will have the individual customers assigned as a contact and delivery address.
    2. Disabled - Individual customers downloaded on sales orders from the channel will either be matched up against existing customers within KCC or created as a new customer if they cannot be matched to an existing customer.
Please Note: For Amazon FbA and EposNow channels this setting must be enabled.
  1. Enforce Channel Tax (BigCommerce,  WooCommerce  and 3rd Party Channels) - when an order is imported into Khaos Control, where the customer is in a non-UK country with a tax rate specific to that country, the resulting order in the system will have a Tax rate of ‘XT/External’ with the amount matching those charged externally.
  2. Use Tracking Keycode (Amazon, Shopify, WooCommerce & 3rd Party APIs Only)
    1. Enabled - Imported orders containing a keycode or promotion code will have this treated as a keycode for reporting purposes.
    2. Disabled - Imported orders containing a keycode or promotion code, will have this treated as a discount, but it can't be reported on.
  1. Allow Inflate Prices (Not available for Amazon and eBay channels) - If an order is generated for a country where Tax is not applicable, this option allows the price to be NET+TAX, without KCC splitting out the tax separately.
    1. Enabled - The system will treat the value of incoming orders where no tax is applicable as NET+TAX.
    2. Disabled - The system will treat the value of incoming orders where no tax is applicable as NET values only.

  1. Allow Blank Consignment Ref
    1. Enabled - The system will not enforce shipping references to the channel. 
    2. Disabled - This option will enforce shipping references (if you rely on them being uploaded back to the channel when orders are shipped).

  1. Stock Description - Determines whether the stock item descriptions used for imported orders will come from the Channel, or from KCC. This can be useful if, for example, your products have descriptions in a different language and you would like the orders in KCC to show in English, you can select Use description from Khaos Control instead of the channel. This setting also determines what description appears on the paperwork produced by the system.
  2. Order Date - Determines whether to use the order date already recorded against the order on the channel, or to define a new one based on the date on which the order is imported into KCC. This will often be the same date, with the possible exception of the initial order imports and possibly any orders which fall just before midnight.
  3. Channel Currency - Determines the currency of the orders imported from the channel. If the channel operates in multiple currencies this should be set to none.

Use URN Matching (3rd Party APIs only)

If your channel uses unique URNs for its customer records this option, when enabled, will set KCC to use the same URN as the channel for the customer record.
Please Note: If an order is imported using a different address or contact details for a URN that already exists then this will be added to the existing record.

POS/FbA Orders Stage (Amazon and POS applicable channels only).

This dropdown menu allows the user to specify where POS orders received from the channel will appear within the processing stages of [Sales Invoice Manager]. Typically this will be the Issue stage  as the order processing has already be carried out by Amazon.


Channel Order Types

Each channel requires you to define values for the different order types that are received by the channel, such as delivery options and payment methods (certain channels only). The (Global) group, sometimes referred to as default options, has the following values specified when the channel is created:
  1. Site
  2. Classification
  3. Courier
  4. Sales Source
Both Site and Classification will be auto populated with your Main Site and the Company Classification as specified in the General tab of [System Values]. 
You can add further default values under the (Global) option, such as a default Bank Account, Keycode or Brand for the channel.
Please Note: The value from (Global) options will be used for all order types where no specific setting has been specified.

Stock Profiles and Matching (Main / Stock Tab)

The options on this tab are the same for all channels however they must be set up for each channel on your system.

Stock Options

Stock To Upload

  1. Upload all items
    1. This option will attempt to upload available stock levels for all stock items on the channel based on the default profile setup (see Profiles below).
  2. Upload specified items only
    1. This option will only upload stock levels for items specifically defined in the lower stock grid. 

Define How Stock Items Will Match When Importing Orders

This grid defines how the system will reference stock items present on sales orders being imported from the channel, i.e. if using Amazon SKUs on the channel then the KCC field relating to this this must be specified here. It is possible to have multiple rows in the grid however we recommend the most likely match remains at the top of the list. The options that can be used are:
  1. SKU - This is the KCC stock code for the product and is the default value used in this grid.
  2. Barcode Code - This refers the Stock Barcode Types found in [System Data | Stock Barcode Types] and, if required, must be specified in the stock item record with the appropriate number or code also being specified.
  3. Other Ref - This is a field that can be set against stock items as required.
To add a new row to the grid, click +New and in the popup specify what type of field you wish to add to the grid and click OK. Use the Move Up and Move Down buttons to place the most likely match at the top of the grid.

Profiles

At least one profile must be created and set as a default profile however, this will be created automatically if you save the channel having not done this. Multiple profiles can be set up and you are are able to assign different profiles to different stock items, however, only one may be marked as default.

Site

Whatever site is specified here is where your stock levels are being referenced from when sending stock levels to the channel, for any stock items in this profile. A profile can only report from a single site.

Stock Match Type

This dropdown menu allows you to specify the stock identifier to be used by KCC when uploading stock levels to the channel. For Amazon FbM channels this MUST be a field that refers to your Amazon SKUs.

% Of Level

The % quantity of the available stock to upload to the channel. You can leave this at 100%. However, with multiple channels this does increase the likelihood of overselling. If the % Of Level produces a value less than 1 then a value of 0 will be reported to the channel.
Notes and Caveats:
  1. If you have chosen to Upload all items in the Stock Options box, the default profiles % Qty to Upload will apply to all stock items. For example, if your default profile has the % Of Level set to 50, only 50% of your available stock quantity for all stock items will be uploaded to your channel.
For eBay channels only
When a listing reaches a stock level of Zero eBay will end the listing unless the Out of Stock option is enabled within your eBay account settings.
  1. Go to Site preferences in My eBay.
  2. In the Sell Your Item form and listings section, tick Yes for the Use the out-of-stock option.
  3. Select Apply.
Caveat: This procedure is correct as of 05 Feb 2021 and any subsequent changes within eBay may not be reflected. In this instance, help should be sought from eBay.
Info: If you have Build or Move With stock item relationships on your system and wish to report how many of the relationship you can 'make' from your available, stock you will need a profile with the Rel. Potential option enabled.

Maximum & Minimum Qty to Upload

These options set KCC to send a stock level no higher or lower than the maximum and minimum levels specified here. If the stock level, after taking into account the % Qty to Upload option, is between these values, that is what will be sent to the channel.

Cut Off Level

If the stock level is below this value (after the % Qty of Level calculation) then a quantity of 0 will be sent to the channel. This allows an artificial 'out of stock' level to be set.

Rel Potential

This option only affects relationship stock item parents and sets KCC to send the quantity that can be made from the available child item stock levels. If you have both 'Build' and 'Move With' items being listed on the channel you will likely need to create and set up profiles with the Rel. Potential set as required using the below information as a guide.
  1. Enabled
    1. For any 'Move With' or 'Build' items that you wish to upload this is how many packs you can make based on the availability of their child items, then you will need this enabled.
  2. Disabled
    1. For 'Build' parents where you only wish to report the current number of compete items you have, you will you require this to be disabled. Any 'Move With' parents that are part of a profile with this setting disabled will have a stock level of 0 reported to the channel.

Stock

This grid works by allowing specific stock items to be uploaded and the stock levels for these items is controlled by the profile set against them in this grid. If no specific profile is defined, the system will allocate the default profile to all stock listed upon saving the channel, but this can be changed for individual items. If you have specified a Maximum or Minimum Qty to Upload in the boxes here that is different than what is specified in the profile being used by the item, then the value here will be used.
Please Note: When preparing your stock items for Amazon, the way the system matches when uploading stock item levels is as follows:
If you have only one code against a stock item and it is the stock barcode, you can just define the stock code as the matching criteria.
If you have multiple codes against one stock item, you need to define a barcode, for example Amazon SKU, for each one. Therefore, in the stock item you will need to add the different codes for the item by adding the Amazon SKU barcode multiple times.
Amazon DOES NOT use ASIN's to match stock items.

Categories (Main / Categories) 

This screen is part of the Listings functionality of the system and is not avaliable.

Category Management

Categories

  1. Synchronise categories - When enabled, this setting will populate the stock items in the category grid as well as the box below which will display the categories on your channel. You can then move stock between categories using the +New and Del buttons on the grid. These will be synchronised with your channel.
  2. Keep Stock Item Information Synchronised - With this setting enabled, any changes made to stock items either on your channel or within KCC, will also be reflected on the other system. It should be noted that your level 2 stock type recorded against your stock items in KCC, may be overridden by the category on the channel, and visa versa. If you are using nominal codes relating to specific Level 2 Stock Types, it would be advisable to consider not using this feature.