This article will explain how you can set up and use the new cover letter option now available in Resident.
A cover letter allows you to add another letter/document to invoices which are being sent by email to leaseholders. You can also print it if required, together with statement and invoices.
In the first part of this article, we show you an example of how to add a cover letter to a Service Charge demand. In the second part, we demonstrate how to utilise the customisable paragraph option. You can follow the same steps for Ground Rent or General Invoices. Of course, you can have multiple letter templates in the system, which you can enable or disable whenever you need.
1. Setting up a bespoke cover letter
The first step is to create your letter which needs to be written in Word and then saved as a Word document (*.docx). Once you have written the main body of your letter, you need to add the correct field codes in the right locations within the letter where you want the data that will be pulled from Resident to appear. A list of all the codes that are available can be found at the bottom of this article. Each one is self-explanatory, for example, to pull a unit name from the system you would use:
<# <Content Select="./Invoice/UnitName" /> #>
If you want the text to be in bold red, you would need to format the code accordingly - for example:
<# <Content Select="./Invoice/UnitName" /> #>
There is an example cover letter template attached to this article, so you can get an idea of how it should look.
When your document is ready, simply save it to your drive and you are ready to start setting it up in Resident.
All document templates are created and kept in Document Templates (to get there is Settings/Templates/Document Templates)
There is no default template for a cover letter, so to start you have to create a brand new one.
Select:
Then complete all the details of your new template. Please see example below:
You can select also header and footer but you have to create them separately prior to creating a template. Please refer to article Header and Footer set up for more information.
Once you have completed the form, drop your Word document into the white box at the bottom of the form, or click in it to upload. The file will appear in the box (as per above). Then, simply press Create and your template is ready for you to use. If you ever need to modify it you can access it by going to Settings/Templates/Document Templates.
To use this cover letter in an invoice group simply create the group and click on the 'Attachments' tab. Here you will be able to tick the cover letter attachment and this will be sent/downloaded with the demands.
2. Using the invoice specific, customisable paragraph
After you have set up your cover letter you can easily insert an extra paragraph, without needing to change your template. This paragraph can be budget, invoice group or even individual invoice specific. To do this, insert this code where you want the extra text to appear in your template:
<# <Content Select="./Invoice/CoverLetterContent" /> #>
Please note:
You can also add exactly the same code to your invoice/demand template if you want this text to appear on your invoices/demands.
After making this adjustment to your template you just need to type the required additional text on existing budget, invoice group or invoices here:
Please see the examples below to find where this option is on each entity.
- Budget
In the tab Demand Dates - All invoices generated for that period will have the same extra paragraph on a cover letter.
- Invoice Group - Details tab
Please note:
Please bear in mind that if you update the 'Cover letter' field on Invoice Group it will overwrite it for all invoices in that group.
- Invoice - Details tab
