Services
Package: BASIC
1. General
The Services module is used to record, categorize and price all services offered by the company at fixed prices – similar to a catalog. These are then available for selection in the invoicing modules (e.g., Sales Orders, Deals, Invoices).
Records from the Services module can be selected in the so-called "Product Block". For detailed information, see the section Product Block in Invoicing Modules in the manual.
A company offers consulting hours. The service is created with the Category Consulting and the Unit Hours. For the first 5 hours, a price of €85 is set; from the 6th hour, a volume price of €75 per hour applies. The service is available in multiple currencies – prices are calculated via the additional currencies popup based on stored exchange rates.
A monthly maintenance service is created as a service with the Price Type Monthly Price and the Unit Flat Rate. A percentage surcharge for monthly billing is defined via Monthly Surcharge. The service is assigned to a DATEV account and is available in the product block for invoice creation.
This section only describes special fields or functionalities of the module, as all general brainX functionalities are described elsewhere in the manual.
2. List View
The list view in the Services module has the usual functionalities of a list view. For more detailed information, see the section Structure/Layout - List View.
2.1. Actions
In the list view – depending on the module – general actions are available. An overview and description of all general actions can be found in the section Actions (List View).
There are no module-specific actions in this module.
3. Detail View
3.1. Fields
The following table describes required fields as well as fields with non-obvious functions. All other fields are self-explanatory.
Basic Data Block
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Title * | Name of the service |
| active | When deactivated, the service is no longer available for selection in the product block |
| Category |
|
| Unit |
|
| Monthly / Quarterly / Semi-Annual / Annual Surcharge | Optional percentage surcharge per billing interval; applied to the base price in the product block when the corresponding interval is selected |
| Mandatory Item | When the checkbox is activated, this item must be confirmed by the recipient during signing via Digital Signature (DocuSign/DocuSeal). Mandatory items are marked accordingly in the document. |
*Required field
Price Information Block
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Price | Selling price of the service in the base currency.
Via the additional currencies action icon, additional currency prices can be stored – see Section 3.1.1 |
| Gross Price | When activated, the entered price is treated as a gross price
Warning Once the gross price has been activated when creating a service and the record has been saved for the first time, this setting can no longer be changed. |
| Tax Class | Assigned VAT level – see Global Settings – Currencies & Taxes |
| Price Type * |
|
*Required field
Quantity, list price and selling prices of items in the product block can be entered with up to 6 decimal places. Trailing zeros are truncated in the display. This is particularly helpful when billing small units (e.g. API tokens).
3.1.1. Additional Currencies
The "additional currencies" action icon is only available in the create and edit view.
After clicking the "additional currencies" action icon, a popup of the same name opens:
Additional Currencies popup
In the "additional currencies" popup, all currencies are listed that have the status "active" in Global Settings - Currencies & Taxes.
A checkbox determines which currencies are available for the service. A radio button defines the base currency. For all activated non-base currencies, the respective price can be automatically calculated based on the stored exchange rate using the recalculate button.
After saving, the price is displayed in the currency stored in My Settings – Basic Settings.
When a currency is deactivated, the service is removed from all affected [price lists]().
DATEV Accounts Block
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| DATEV Account Domestic | Account for domestic revenues – configuration see Billing Settings – Accounts) |
| DATEV Account EU | Account for EU revenues – configuration see Billing Settings – Accounts) |
| DATEV Account Third Countries | Account for revenues in third countries – configuration see Billing Settings – Accounts) |
Volume Pricing Block
A volume price can be defined for a defined unit of a service. Any number of volume prices can be created. A new volume price is defined in edit mode using the "Add Volume Price" button.
For the first 5 hours of a service, €85 is charged. From the 6th hour, the hourly price is reduced to €75.
3.2. Actions
The following actions are available in the detail view:
3.2.1. General Actions
- PDF Export
- Recommend
- Copy
- Delete
- Change Tracking
For detailed information on the actions, see the section Actions (Detail View).
3.2.2. Module-Specific Actions
| Action | Requirement | Functionality |
|---|---|---|
| New Invoice | – | Creates a new invoice and links it to the service |
| New Sales Order | – | Creates a new sales order and links it to the service |
| Bill Timesheets | – | Opens the billing view for linked timesheets |
4. Practical Examples
1 – Consulting Service with Volume Pricing and Multiple Currencies
A company offers consulting hours that are to be priced differently depending on volume. The service is created in the Services module with the Category Consulting, the Unit Hours and the Price Type One-time.
In the Volume Pricing block, it is defined that the first 5 hours are billed at €85, and from the 6th hour a reduced hourly price of €75 applies. Since the company also serves international customers, additional currency prices are stored via the additional currencies action icon. Prices in non-base currencies are automatically determined using the recalculate button based on the stored exchange rates.
The service is then available for selection in all invoicing modules in the product block and is automatically displayed at the correct price depending on the currency of the sales order or invoice.
2 – Recurring Service Flat Rate with Monthly Surcharge
A company offers a monthly maintenance service as a flat rate. The service is created with the Unit Flat Rate and the Price Type Monthly Price. The base price is entered as a net price; the Gross Price toggle remains deactivated.
Since a small administrative surcharge applies to monthly billing, a percentage value is stored in the Monthly Surcharge field. This surcharge is automatically applied to the base price in the product block when the billing interval monthly is selected. The correct tax class and the associated DATEV Domestic Account are added, so that the service is directly prepared for DATEV export.
3 – Billing Timesheets for a Service
A service provider records hours worked for a customer via timesheets in brainX. At the end of the month, the hours incurred are to be billed directly based on the stored service.
In the detail view of the corresponding service, the billing view is opened using the module-specific action Bill Timesheets. All not yet billed timesheets linked to the service are displayed there. After selecting the entries to be billed, an invoice or sales order is created directly, in which the hours are included as line items. This eliminates the manual transfer of time tracking to invoicing.
5. Frequently Asked Questions
Can I deactivate a service afterwards without deleting it?
Yes. Using the active toggle in the basic data, a service can be deactivated. It is then no longer available for selection in the product block of invoicing modules, but remains in the system and can be reactivated at any time.
What happens if I want to change the "Gross Price" toggle after saving?
That is not possible. If the Gross Price toggle was activated when creating a service and the record was saved, this setting can no longer be changed. It is therefore recommended to carefully check the price type before saving for the first time.
How do the surcharge fields for different billing intervals work?
For the billing intervals monthly, quarterly, semi-annual and annual, separate percentage surcharges can be stored. If the corresponding interval is selected in the product block of an invoicing module, the stored surcharge is automatically applied to the base price of the service.
Can I offer a service in multiple currencies?
Yes. Via the additional currencies action icon in the create or edit view, additional currency prices can be stored. Prices can be entered manually or automatically calculated using the recalculate button based on the exchange rates stored in Global Settings. In the detail view, the price is displayed in the currency stored in your own settings.
What should be noted if a currency is subsequently deactivated?
When a currency is deactivated, the service is automatically removed from all price lists that use this currency. It is therefore recommended to check which services and price lists are affected before deactivating a currency.
What are the DATEV accounts in a service used for?
The DATEV accounts (Domestic, EU, Third Countries) control which booking account is used when exporting invoices via DATEV that contain this service as a line item. The available accounts are configured in the Invoicing Settings – Accounts.