Overview

Media Financials is MSL's Accounts Receivable module specifically designed for use by Publishers. Sitting between the SOP and your main Accounts package, Media Financials can be tightly integrated in real-time to MSL's Forum SOP and CCC sales systems or can stand alone.

Media Financials has been devised as a sophisticated but easy to use Sales Ledger and Credit Control package with extensive reporting capabilities and treats Accounts and Credit Control as an integral part of the sales process. When integrated with MSL's CCC package, the rights managed data becomes available to everyone who has need to know the financial status of a customer which integrates and informs the sales team and means that the data is no longer the specialist preserve of a few staff in the back office.

Better customer account handling

A full, real time, 2-way flow of information with Forum give accounts better account control. Prepaid customers can be created at the front desk or by salespeople; account customers are then vetted by credit controllers in Media Financials. Invoice Address cannot be changed by front desk on account customers. Media Financials Can block/Release ads on financial grounds.

In real terms this gives the Credit controllers more control over the sales team. Integrated into the CRM for better salesperson account management - when Avusa start to use CRM or the new CCC both Sales and Accounts have access to the same system.

Invoicing

Invoice formats are designed to client specifications as are the invoicing rules. Media Financials supports manual invoicing and manual upload of invoices from other parts of the business (for example reprints, circulation, magazine handled outside of Forum even temporarily, Web, any other revenue streams). Ability to reprint an invoice on demand; either on paper or on PDF for instant emailing. There is a full audit trail from Forum to General Ledger through invoicing.

Cash Handling

Media Financials streamlines cash collection by a stream lined handling of high volumes offering auto allocation of pre-payments, manual full or partial allocation of payments.
Cash collection is possible by optional Credit card interface with optional Direct Debit interface.

Credit Controllers daily workflow management

Client accounts are assigned to a Credit Controller and Media Financials automatically maintains a "to do list". As soon as an invoice reaches its due date the account enters the to do list reminding the credit controller to look after this account. This improves the working practices as holidays and sickness do not rely on individuals. A Credit Controller can leave notes on an account and also get an at-a-glance a view on the relationship history. Reminder (dunning) letters are integrated with the possibility to automatically block an account on reaching a certain reminder threshold.

Support and infrastructure

Media Systems is able to quickly turn around any customer specific change requirements due to changes in workflow between finance and advertising departments offering an end to end solution.

Features

Management of Accounts

• Approval waiting queue for full-account customers
• Automatic handling of prepaid accounts (with individual accounts or via a bucket account)
• Tight management of direct debits accounts
• Blocking/releasing of accounts

Invoicing

• Automatic upload of transactions from forum SOP, transactions automatically grouped in batches using your business rules (publication, or client types or Business centers or ...
• Invoices generated using your business rules (Agencies, Direct Customers, invoicing per publication, upon Ad publication completion, per month, or Special Projects with out-of-band manual invoicing rules...
• Manual credit notes entry with automatic recall of the original invoice for full or partial credit. Credit reasons per line for reporting.

Cash Collection

• Automatic prepayment uploads from Forum SOP
• Automatic allocation of pre-payments with round-off threshold
• Automatic VAT handling on prepayments from Forum SOP
• Credit card interface with automatic cash allocation
• Manual payment entry with full or partial allocation, with round off handling for small payment differences

Journals

• Possibility to move transactions between accounts using manually entered Journal-type transactions

Posting of Transactions:

• All transactions entered in Media financials are batched for later posting, providing control over junior clerks and full control of period handling at period-end.
• Period handling obeys to your GL accounting rules.

Documents Output

• All documents (Invoices, Credit notes, Statements, Reminder letters etc) can be printed directly, to PDF for easy e-mailing or to data file to easily outsource the printing and mailing function.
• Invoices can be printed individually (Copy Invoice) or by batch
• All prints can or not include logos, company information etc...to print on blank paper (or PDF) or pre-printed stationary
• Logos and company information can be selected according to your business rules
• Reminders letters (dunning letters) with up to 4 levels can optionally change the account status when reaching a certain level.
• Easy copy/paste feature of address and transaction details to facilitate ad-hoc letter writing using your favourite word processor

To do List

• Prompts the credit controller to look at an account when an invoice is overdue or will be due shortly
• Prompts the credit controller to look at an account when terms and conditions revision time is due

General Ledger Interface

• MF2 interface can be tailored to fit GL Workflow: interface exist in full detail, by batch, By interface run for Sales and Cash collection, including the Vat handling on prepayments

Benefits

• Designed by publishers for publishers
  • Uses publishing terminology efficient and effective design
  • One single database and control ability to run as thin client
• Easy to use - open items system
• Streamlined handling of high volumes - auto allocation of pre-payments
• Full real time 2-way flow of information with Forum SOP
• Time & error saving
• Easy to customize