Order register format: the columns a small business needs
The thirteen columns of an order register, what to write in each and why it matters, with three rules that keep it updated from order to payment.
An order comes on a call while you are driving, and another as a voice note at night. On Friday someone asks, "Did the Gupta order go?" and three people give three answers. An order register ends this, if it has the right columns and one clear rule about who writes in it.
Order register format: one row per order
| Column | What to write | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Order no. | Your own running number: 1051, 1052 | One name for the order in every call and chat |
| Order date | The day the order was taken | Shows how long it has been open |
| Party | Firm name and city, spelt as in Tally | The bill will match later |
| Taken by | The person, and how it came: call, WhatsApp, visit | You know whom to ask |
| Item and quantity | Item, size, quantity and unit | The line that gets misheard |
| Rate | The agreed rate, or "as per list" | Stops disputes at billing |
| Promised date | The date you told the party | Every delay is measured from this |
| Stage | Confirmed, in production, ready, part sent, dispatched | Shows where the order is stuck |
| Next step by | One name | An order without a name waits |
| Dispatch details | Date, transporter, LR or vehicle number, number of packages | Answers "where is my material?" |
| Invoice | Invoice number and amount from Tally or Busy | Ties the order to the money |
| Payment due | Invoice date plus the credit period | Starts the payment follow-up |
| Remarks | Short supply, change in order, hold | The history in one line |
A trader who sells from ready stock can drop "in production" and use confirmed, packed, part sent, dispatched. A manufacturer may add a stage or two. Keep the stages few. If people cannot remember the list, they will not update it.
Three rules that make it work
- One register only. Not one book with sales and another in dispatch. One shared sheet, or one physical register on one desk.
- Write the order before you put the phone down. Then send the number to the party: "Order no. 1052 noted: PVC pipe 1 inch, 400 pcs, dispatch by 12 October." The party now checks your entry for you.
- The person who does the step changes the stage. Dispatch marks "dispatched" and adds the LR number. Accounts fills in the invoice. Nobody updates on behalf of someone else at the end of the week.
Orders with many items, and part dispatch
Keep one row per order in the main register. If an order has many items, list them on a second sheet under the same order number. For a part dispatch, set the stage to "part sent" and write the balance quantity in remarks. Mark the order dispatched only when the balance has gone or the party cancels it.
Read it twice a day
- Morning: filter for promised date today and tomorrow, stage not dispatched. That is the dispatch plan.
- Evening: look at every order that is past its promised date and still open. Call those parties before they call you.
In Excel or Google Sheets, a conditional format that turns late rows red does this checking for you.
Paper or Excel?
A paper register is fine when one person takes all orders at one desk. Move to a shared Google Sheet when two or more people take orders, or when the owner wants to look from the phone. The columns stay the same.
Sheet or system?
A shared sheet is enough while one or two people update it and the open orders can be read through every morning. It starts to fail when staff must update from the godown or the road, when stages are left unchanged, and when nobody notices a late order until the customer calls. At that point we set up an Order & Payment Tracker on your own orders, with the columns you already use.
If your orders arrive mainly as chats and voice notes, read dealer orders on WhatsApp next.
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