Rentman is a software that helps you to manage your business and your daily operations in a centralized system. This means that you have access to many features that can seem overwhelming at first. No problem, we’ve got you covered! The Rentman Academy will guide you through the different steps you need to take to implement your account. Then, you will learn how to start using Rentman bit by bit. 

Please keep in mind that you may not have all the modules. If you don’t it is ok, you will just need to skip the guide or the instruction that is not for you. Of course, we made it as clear as possible throughout the guides of the Rentman Academy. 

If you are lost or stuck at any point in the process, do not hesitate to ask our Support team for help in the bottom right corner of your screen. They will be happy to assist you.

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Implementation from A to Z

Add your contacts

This is the very first module of the Rentman Academy. As business is made with people outside your company, it’s important to make sure all of your contacts are in one place. We will guide you through the process of implementing your contacts list. This guide will show you how to:

• Organize the list to instantly find all information you will need. 
• Add new contacts in Rentman so you can use them as customers on projects but also as locations or suppliers.
• Add specific information to your contacts so you never forget anything about them. Warnings, discounts, and payment preferences will help tell you everything you need to know about each contact.
• Keep track of your business with a customizable dashboard. 

Add your contacts

Once you have implemented your contacts, you can read the following guides in any order you want. Are there guides that aren't relevant to you at the moment? Just skip over them or feel free to read on and discover other possibilities Rentman has to offer.

Set up your inventory

If you want to manage your inventory, you first need to add all your equipment to Rentman so you can start working with your database. This guide will show you how to:

• Organize the database to instantly find all information you will need. 
• Add new pieces of equipment so you can start planning them on projects and track their availability.
• Combine items, like mics and mic stands or tables and chairs, that you often rent together so you can save considerable time while scheduling and preparing for an event.
• Work with items you do not want to rent but would rather sell. Indeed, not all items are meant to come back to your warehouse at the end of an event. Consumables and sold items are managed differently and you will learn how.
• Edit your equipment list whenever you need and want.

Set up your inventory

Add your crew members and vehicles

If you want to manage and schedule your crew, you first need to make sure your crew members and vehicles are all in the system. Then, you will be able to schedule them on projects and assign them specific functions. The planning has never been easier. This guide will show you how to:

• Organize the database to instantly find all information you will need such as: email address, phone number or user role.
• Invite your crew members to Rentman so you can start scheduling them for upcoming events.
• Add all your vehicles so you can decide which ones will be used for each event.
• Use tags to filter your crew members by skills to make the scheduling process even easier.
• Determine their access and user rights in Rentman.
• Help them manage their time efficiently by indicating when they are available or not and by using their own schedule.

Add your crew members and vehicles

Track equipment with QR codes

If you have the Warehouse module, you probably want to use QR codes to make the booking process faster and more accurate than ever. Using QR codes will also make it possible to track your equipment, wherever they are located. This guide will show you how to:

• Create a QR code for an item. 
• Use different QR codes for items and specific serial numbers.
• Indicate the location in the Warehouse to optimize the booking process.

Track equipment with QR codes

Prepare for quoting and invoicing

If you have the Finance module, this means that you will quote and invoice your customers. These processes can take ages but Rentman has your back. The invoicing process is almost fully automated once you set everything up. This is what we are going to do. This guide will show you how to:

• Indicate the correct currency on your documents
• Add your terms and conditions, essentials to be fully transparent with your customers.
• Create multiple days factors if you sometimes rent your equipment for longer period of times
• Set up your tax system 
• Make sure your customers always pay on time by setting up invoice moments and payment terms

Prepare for quoting and invoicing

Now comes the final step to have your Rentman account fully implemented. Do not skip it, this is crucial! 

Set up document and email templates

You surely want to make sure the look of all communication coming from your Rentman account fits the image of your company. This guide will show you how to:

• Determine the structure of your emails
• Determine the look of your documents and add the logo of your company. 

Set up document and email templates

Congratulations, your account is fully implemented now! It is time to start using Rentman and make sure you discover all the features and flows you need for your business. 

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You're now ready to use Rentman

Create a project

Rentman is a project-based system. When you schedule and prepare an event, you will need to create a project and all elements from here. Be careful, you may not have access to everything, depending on the modules you chose in your Rentman account. No worries, you can just skip the section and go straight to the ones you need. This guide will show you how to:

• Create a project and start filling in the general information, such as the customer, the location and some important details with the notes
• Plan the equipment you will need
• Plan your crew and transport, indicating what kind of functions you will need for that project
• Create a quote with all the information from the project. You will then be able to send this quote to your customer

Create a project

Once your first project is scheduled and you feel more confident using Rentman, it is time to take you one step further. If you do not have all modules into your Rentman account, feel free to only read the guides about the modules you have. Or discover what are the other possibilities Rentman has to offer. 

Plan equipment and solve shortages

If you have the Inventory module, you sure want to keep track of your equipment items. You want to know how they are used, where they are, why they are not available and how to deal with tricky situations when you realise you face a shortage. It makes sense and this is what we are going to do. This guide will show you how to:

• Set up and use serial numbers to have a precise idea how and where your valuable items are used.  
• Understand the availability tracking of all sort of items so you are never surprised just before an event
• Resolve your shortages before an event to make sure everything you need will be ready for D day. 
• Work with sales items as not all items are rental. You may want or need to sell your items and Rentman is also here to manage these situations. 
• Easily document everything by using the documents and document templates within Rentman.

Plan equipment and solve shortages

Plan crew and vehicles on projects

If you have the Crew planner module, you surely want to manage the schedule of your team members, invite them or plan them on different functions and/or different projects. Making sure no planning overlaps with another or keep track of who is available and when can quickly be a headache. We are fully aware of it and Rentman allows you to tackle crew planning with easy and efficiency. This guide will show you how to:

• Keep track of the availability of your crew members. Know, even before asking them if they will be available for an event or not. 
• Invite your crew members for jobs on which you need them.
• Plan your crew on several projects at the same time to optimize your time and theirs.
• Plan your vehicles as well. 

Plan crew and vehicles on projects

Book equipment in and out

If you have the Warehouse module, you will be booking your equipment in and out the warehouse to make sure you keep track of what is where. The Warehouse module will give you such a fast overview of everything you need to know! This guide will show you how to:

• Book your equipment in and out the warehouse when they will be used on events
• Use different QR codes for items and specific serial numbers while booking your equipment
• Understand the different status so you know where the projects are at without having to dig into the project
• Create packing slips to document everything

Book equipment in and out

Invoice your customers

If you have the Finance module, this means that you will quote and invoice your customers. However, invoicing is more complex than just creating an invoice. We have your back with these steps too. This guide will show you how to:

• Understand all the financial settings of your projects to make the best use of them
• Add conditions to your quotations so your clients know what they are going to agree to
• Create an invoice, showing data from the project
• Send reminders when the customer did not pay the invoice on time
• Create partial invoices

Invoice your customers

Now comes the final step to complete Level 1. After that, you will know all the most important flows within Rentman. Do not skip it, this is crucial! 

Quickly generate documents

The document templates are templates allowing you to easily create documents, any kind of documents (quote, invoice, packing slip, etc). This way, once you create the template, you will just have to click on “Generate” and a new document will be created with all the information you need on it.  This guide will show you how to:

• Master the structure of document templates
• Learn what are the different possibilities that are offered to you
• Personalize the content of your templates
• Adapt the style and colours to match your branding
• Add a digital signing button
• Create an email template to send the documents even faster in a very professional manner

Quickly generate documents

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Congratulations, if you are at this point, you have completed Level 1 of the Rentman Academy! You can now use Rentman on a daily basis, making sure you make the good and efficient decisions. Your workflow will be faster and more automated than ever.