A transporter needs an LR number on a delivery. A printer needs plate charges on a quotation line. A recruitment firm needs a notice period on a candidate. Nobody else needs any of these — and adding all three to every form is how a good form becomes a wall of boxes that are blank on nine records in ten.
In short
- Where
- Settings → Fields & rules
- Three tabs
- Fields · Dependent rules · Lists
- Covers
- Every module, including vendors — one place, not several
- Takes
- Six minutes for a field and the rule that governs it
The problem with just adding the field
A field costs nothing to add and something to read. Ten optional fields on a customer form means everybody who opens it scans ten things to find the two that matter to them today. The form gets slower to use every time somebody has a good idea.
A dependent rule fixes that: the field exists, and it is only on screen when it applies. Ask for the LR number when the service is transport, and not otherwise.
Step by step
Settings → Fields & rules
Pick the module from the dropdown. Every module is here, vendors included — there is deliberately no second screen anywhere for editing a module’s fields, because two places to set one thing is two places for them to disagree.
Add the field
Label, type, and how wide it sits. Choose the type honestly: a date as a date, not as text. A select field either carries its own options or points at a shared list — see the last step.
Write the rule
On the Dependent rules tab. A rule watches the form as it is filled in and acts the moment its condition becomes true: show, hide, require, make read-only, preset a value, or limit what a dropdown offers.
Try it on a real record
Open one and change the field the condition watches. The rule fires as you type rather than on save, which is the difference between a form that guides and a form that scolds.
Use the Lists tab for anything shared
Vendor category, rate basis, designation, payment method — these are lists the business owns, not fields. Edit one on the Lists tab and every field built on it changes, across every module.
The bit that trips people up. A shared list is shared. Editing “Vendor category” changes it on every field pointing at it, which is the point — and is why there is one screen to edit it from rather than two that can drift apart. If you want values that belong to one field only, give that field its own options instead.
Two things worth doing while you are there
Order the fields the way the conversation goes. The form should read in the order somebody actually asks the questions, not in the order the fields were added.
Hide what not everybody should see. A field can be hidden or made read-only for chosen roles. Cost price on an item, margin on a deal, a vendor’s rate card — visible to the people who set them, absent for everyone else.
Common questions
Will a custom field appear in reports and filters?
Yes, if you leave it filterable and sortable. It behaves like a shipped field — filter on it, group a board by it, pivot on it, put it in a list column.
What is the difference between a field’s own options and a shared list?
Options belong to one field. A shared list belongs to the business and can be pointed at by many fields across modules, so editing it once changes them all.
Can I hide a field from some people but not others?
Yes — a field can be hidden or made read-only for chosen roles.
What happens to data in a field I remove?
A value already saved keeps its label rather than being deleted. Removing a value from a list switches it off for new records instead of erasing it from old ones.
Next
See it with your own data
Start free, import a spreadsheet of your customers, and raise a real GST invoice in the first ten minutes. No card, no sales call.