For efficient equipment tracking and rental management, EZRentOut comes with a predefined set of fields. However, we understand that every business is unique and you may need some custom fields as per your specific needs.
For this, we provide Custom Fields, which can be used to track any data point with an item or order added to our equipment rental software.
How Do Different Industries Utilize Custom Fields?
Here are a few examples of how our customers in various industries make use of this feature:
Industry(s) |
Custom Field(s) |
| Media and Production | Recording the focal length of a camera lens, keeping a tap on whether a flashlight is buzzed. |
| Equipment and Construction | Tracking Job Numbers, the condition of the equipment checked out, recording any damages on return, setting up maintenance alerts. |
| Event and Party Planners | Size of the stage, custom theme or standard design, recording whether it should be sent for quick fixes after return. |
| Education | Specs of laboratory equipment, Installed OS on university computers, Installed programs. |
When using custom fields for orders, you can track data points like shipment number, special handling instructions, and delivery fee for Order # 777 rented out to Emily Rose. Learn More
For Purchase Orders, a Custom Field can be defined as to what kind of binding (e.g. saddle stitch) you would like for the next stock of company handouts or what paper size (e.g. A4 or A6) should be used.
What Can Be Tracked with Custom Fields in EZRentOut?
- Items
- Orders
- Purchase Orders
- Users
- Customers
- Vendors
- Work Orders
- Bundles
- Businesses
Below we’ll discuss custom fields for items and orders. Custom fields for users, customers and vendors will be explained in a subsequent blog.
Types of Custom Fields
There are a few different types of Custom Fields in EZRentOut. The options available will change depending on which module you’re on:
- Checkbox: Choose between a number of pre-set values, making it easier to speed up processing times when dealing with high-volume items.
- Date Field (Alert): Specify date alerts to receive reminders on the specified date. This Custom Field can also be set to a recurring alert.
- Dropdown: Compress an extensive list of options and also set a default value.
- Multiple Choice: Quickly choose through a shorter list of options with all of them displayed.
- Number Field: Specify the quantity for a Custom Field and set a default value for it as well.
- Paragraph Text: Enable Users to add detailed comments and any other important details that may be out of the usual.
- Single Line Text: For attributes that can have several different values that cannot be listed or categorized.
A Note on Boolean Custom Fields:
Boolean values are included in all custom field types except Items. They are great for providing quick insights about your workflows. Is a customer eligible for a raffle? Do you have a discount code with a vendor? You can ask users ‘Yes/No’ questions and quickly process their answers.
You can, for example, use these insights to figure out whether an Order requires deliveries, or if Order items were verified before being rented out. You can even run an Order Report and collate the custom field’s Yes/No responses for a better understanding of rental trends or bottlenecks.
It is important to note that the custom field has to be mandatory for the boolean value type. This is because users must choose either a Yes or No value; not filling in either checkbox provides data that ultimately isn’t meaningful.
Custom Fields For Items
You can add custom fields from More → Custom Fields → Items → Add Custom Field. A custom field can be many field types, e.g. radio buttons, dropdowns, multiple choice, text fields, date fields, etc.
Warning: Custom field for Items can be edited/deleted, however, you cannot change its type once it contains pre-existing data i.e. recorded or associated to an order.
Associating Groups to Custom Fields for Items
When you’re adding a custom field, you can choose to associate it with groups of items:
- All the groups i.e. all the items
- All the groups that you’ll create in future
- Only a few specific group (use shift+click or ctrl+click to select a bunch in a single go)
Learn More: Assigning Groups to Custom Fields
Custom Fields for Orders
You can add custom fields from More → Custom Fields → Order → Add Custom Field. Unlike custom field for items, a custom field for orders can be of 5 different types only i.e. single line text field, number field, paragraph field, date fields or a boolean type.
The date fields are meant to specify the date of various events such as order dates, billing dates, etc. They cannot be associated with groups. However, you can make this field mandatory for all orders under Preferences. Learn More
Warning: Custom field for Orders can be edited/deleted, however, you cannot change its type once a custom field is created.
The ‘Display on Webstore’ option under Preferences can be used to show custom fields on the webstore. This means it will be visible and accessible to all your customers on the cart page under ‘Additional Information’. Useful in scenarios where the customers want to leave special instructions for the delivery guy.
Note: Custom fields are only visible to admins and staff users unless Display on Webstore is selected.
Custom Fields for Customers
To create a Custom Fields for Customers, go to More → Custom Fields → Customers → Add Custom Field. While the process for creating this field is similar to the one discussed above, there is just one additional setting that needs to be discussed here:
If the ‘Display on order’ setting is selected, you will be able to see and edit the Customer Custom Field from the Order Details page.
You can also further select the ‘Save History’ option to save the history of the Customer Custom Field on the Customer Details page, similar to how it is saved for Items. To view the history, click on the highlighted icon shown below:
Custom Fields for Purchase Orders
You can add Custom Fields from More → Custom Fields → Purchase Order → Add Custom Field. Custom fields for Purchase Orders can be of 6 types, i.e. single line text field, number field, paragraph field, date field, boolean, or a dropdown type.
Similarly, you can add Custom Fields for Users, Vendors, Work Orders, and Bundles.
Different Preferences for Different Custom Fields: Items Only
1. Mandatory Custom Fields for New Items
When you enable the option for a custom field to be ‘Mandatory on Create/Edit’, you’ll get an additional field while creating or editing an item.
For example, you want to record the color of every item whenever a new item is added to the system or being edited by a staff user. This way you can make it a compulsion for the users to fill in this field. See images below:
Note: This custom field will only appear on item details pages that belong to the group associated with it.
2. Customizing Rent Out/Return Order and Other Events
You can add custom fields of your choice on Rent Out/Return Order forms. The ‘Display on Rent Out Order’ and ‘Return Order’ options are available under Preferences when you’re adding/editing a custom field.
Here are some ways in which you can configure these settings:
- Selecting ‘Display at Rent Out’ will show this custom field on the Rent Out form. The user can enter a new value for this field.
- Selecting ‘Mandatory on Check-in/Checkout’ will show this custom field on the Rent Out Order form. The user then cannot rent out an item linked to this custom field without entering a new value for this field. Note: This field will not be pre-populated with the last value or default value defined by you when creating the custom field. Below image shows how the mandatory (*) and ‘display but optional to fill’ custom fields appear on rent out order forms:
- If you select ‘Only record with Rent Out Order event…’, the value entered by the user when renting out items will NOT be updated with the item. It’ll only get recorded in rent out events log. These logs appear under an Item’s Details Page → History button → Check-in/out History, and More → Reports → Checkout events. Learn more about Item Reports.
- Similarly, you can configure how the custom field(s) will ‘Display on Return Order’.
- You can also make it mandatory for the users to add a value on return order form.
Note: All above preferences can be used for any type of custom field for items only.
Learn More: Tracking Equipment Rental Meter using Custom Fields
3. Set up Date Alerts
You can also enable date alerts using ‘date field’ type custom fields. For example, you may want to get an alert when a laptop battery expires.
For scenarios where some equipment requires regular servicing, you can set up recurring date alerts e.g. a Forklift Truck requiring inspection every 2 months.
When creating a date alert custom field, you can either set to receive a notification on a specified date or setup recurring date alerts e.g. every year for 3 times. An alert in advance can also be enabled for this type of custom field. Learn More about setting up date alerts.
Read More: Setting up Recurring Services and Maintenance Events in EZRentOut
4. Editable by Staff User Versus Restricting Visibility to Administrators
On enabling ‘editable by staff user’, all users in your company will be able to view and edit this custom field.
On the other hand, ‘restricting visibility to administrators’ will only allow the admins in your company to view this custom field or edit it. One of these two options can be enabled at a time.
5. Save History
Keep a history trail of how a custom field value is changing over time for a particular item. Make sure that the ‘Save History’ option is checked under preferences for the custom field(s) for which you’d want to have a history record.
Say you have a custom field called OS for your Macbooks. You can track when was the OS updated to Yosemite from Mavericks, and who made that change.
The clock icon highlighted above will open a history overlay that will include the summary of who and when the custom field was updated.
If you want to export the history trail to a CSV, please go to Reports → Custom Reports → Custom Fields Report. Choose relevant columns and apply filters to your report and export in CSV, PDF, and XLS files.
6. Display on Add Stock
Though the custom fields can be recorded and displayed on all types of items and rent outs/returns. However, you can also choose to display a custom field on add stock forms. Enable it under the preferences for custom field you’d want to display.
7. More Preferences
- Any custom field can be printed on a Print Label. For the field to appear on the label designer as an element, you have to select the “Make available for print label” option when creating or editing the custom field.
- You can also have a custom field shown when someone scans the QR Code for an asset. Enable Company Settings → Show on Public QR Code Page → Custom Fields.
- Make sure to have the relevant preferences selected.
8. Linking Custom Fields to modules
You can also link custom fields to the following modules: Items (Assets, Asset Stock, Inventory), Locations, Customers, Businesses, Bundles, Purchase Orders, Work Orders, Vendors, and Users. For example, you can assign a default location or item owner to an asset to help users reference to data in the system.
To add a ‘Link to Module’ custom field, go to More → Custom fields → Add Custom Field and choose the type ‘Dropdown’.
Select the ‘Link to Module’ checkbox and choose a module to link to from the options available:
You can either enter specific values in the options or select items by applying filter-based criteria. In this example, you can specify particular users by entering their names in the Options field:
Or you can apply multiple filters:
After entering the filter options, click on ‘Add Filter’ and the filter will be applied, and relevant results will be displayed below. Then you can go back to change the filter options again if you want to add another filter. Here’s an example where two filters have been applied:
Once you’re done, scroll down and click ‘Add’.
Now when you go to a particular Item Details page, you will be able to edit it and select a value for the ‘Linked Locations’ custom field. Simply type in the location you want out of the filtered results.
Note: You can also go back to edit the custom field as you wish.
Once you hit the ‘Update Asset’ button, the chosen Linked Location custom field will show up as a clickable link on the Asset Details page:
If you click on the linked location, i.e. ‘LA Office’, it will take you to the Location Details page, where you can view all linkages from the ‘Custom Field Linkages’ tab.
Note:
- Link to Module custom fields cannot be set as mandatory due to data corruption issues.
- If the criteria or values in the custom field are changed, emails are sent with CSV files of all fields that were updated.
Deleting Custom Fields
You have the option to edit/delete any custom field under More → Custom Fields.
Warning: Deleting a custom field or editing the associated groups also deletes all the associated and recorded values. This action cannot be undone. However, a CSV copy of the deleted data is sent to the account owner.
Custom Fields View on Item, Order & Purchase Order Details Pages
– All associated custom fields will start appearing on the relevant Item details page. For example, ‘Processor’ custom field will appear on the Lens details page. See image below:
– Custom Fields on Order Details Page (see image below):
On an action taken on an order e.g. rent out or return items, all the custom fields associated with the added items in that order will show up in the rent out/return order forms (as shown above in the rent order form).
– Custom Fields on Purchase Order Details Page (see image below):
Customizing Asset, Asset Stock, and Inventory Details
You can edit a single item to update the custom field values. Or you can select a bunch of items on Asset Listing (Items → Assets) and from Actions → Edit, edit custom fields for all of them in a single go.
Same goes for inventory and asset stock listings. Say, you have a stock of 10 camera lenses that are 65mm. You can mass edit all of them to update their focal length to 85mm.
Customizing Items Listing
The best part is that you can edit the Asset, Inventory, and Asset Stock listing tables to include columns that are more important to you. These columns can also include custom fields.
Learn More about Customizing Columns in Listing Pages.
You can also customize filters using custom fields from the Items Listing Page. All items – whether assets, asset stock, or inventory – can be sifted through using custom filters. To set these up, go to Items and click the ‘Custom Filters’ button highlighted below. Choose ‘Create New’ from the overlay to begin setting up a filter.
Customizing Order PrintOuts
If you’ve custom fields set up in your account, you can even add those as elements in your order printouts! Item custom fields can be added to the Order Line Items section, and Order custom fields can be added to the Details Before/After Line Items sections. Learn More on Customizing Order PrintOuts in EZRentOut.
Alerts for Custom Fields
Custom fields set as ‘date field’ under types when you create/edit a custom field receives an email alert on a specified date or recurring intervals.
Learn More: Types of Alerts for each User Level | Types of Email Alerts in EZRentOut
Importing Custom Fields
Data for all the custom fields can be imported to your EZRentOut account from an excel sheet. The custom fields are available when you’re mapping columns during the excel import. Make sure to create all the required custom fields from More → Custom Fields → Items before importing data for them.
Learn More: What to be careful of when importing items from an Excel sheet?
Reporting, APIs, and More
1. You can also get more insights that involve custom fields from More → Reports → Custom Reports → Custom Fields Report. These reports can be filtered. You can export these reports to CSV format or upload them to your Dropbox account.
Learn More: Create Data Backups on your Dropbox Account
2. You can retrieve all your custom fields data and custom fields history recorded in our system via API calls. Get API for Custom Fields here.
3. Custom Fields can be searched through as part of the general search function. Learn More about search limit for custom fields.
Read More: Using Custom Fields to add more than one Serial Numbers
Custom Fields on the Mobile App
We believe in making our equipment rental software even better than yesterday. Custom fields for orders can also be utilized using EZRentOut’s mobile application. You can view custom fields on an item’s details page and edit custom fields while making changes to an order from the mobile app. They are not viewable/editable when taking actions like rent out/return.
Download Mobile Application: iOS | Android
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We are a cloud based rental solution that offers businesses seamless rental management. It also comes with a host of other features like asset tracking, maintenance management, a customized webstore, and much more. Try us out today!
