Pre-orders can be automatically created through an e-commerce integration or manually created in the Register and then later fulfilled. This feature is designed for dispensaries offering any of the following:

  • Roaming budtender or drive-through fulfillment models
  • Phone and email orders
  • Future time window orders

Dutchie POS's pre-order feature supports the fulfillment model of order processing by streamlining the workflow and allowing you to "soft allocate" products, collect data by order source and type, identify the user that created and fulfilled each order, and designate a fulfillment printer for each register.

Things to consider

  • The fulfillment model only works with catalog-level pricing.
  • If using the fulfillment model, users may need to be able to manually search for products in the Register. If the product search bar is disabled for your location, contact Dutchie Support to have it enabled.

Table of contents

Recommended settings

Order workflow

To get started, check your order workflow settings:

  1. In the Backoffice, go to Registers > Configure > Order workflow.
  2. Select the types of orders your location offers (Walk in, Curbside, Pickup, Delivery).
  3. As needed, add or update the order sources under From which sources are orders manually placed.
  4. Under What type of workflow does this location offer, turn on the Fulfillment toggle.
  5. Choose the most common source of your pre-orders from the Default order source drop-down.
  6. Click Save.

Fulfillment tickets

Next, we recommend setting your registers to print fulfillment tickets automatically:

  1. In the Backoffice, go to Settings > Devices > Registers.
  2. Select a register.
  3. Set Autoprint fulfillment ticket to Yes.
  4. Click Save.

At the register:

  1. Click the menu button and choose Settings.
  2. Select Fulfillment Tickets.
  3. Turn on the toggle for Auto Print Fulfillment Ticket.
  4. Choose a Fulfillment Ticket Printer for this register from the dropdown.
    • With the Dutchie Register terminal hardware, you have the option to Use Local Fulfillment Printer instead of a PrintNode network printer for fulfillment tickets.
    • Because of its simpler and often more reliable connection, we recommend using a local fulfillment printer unless your store layout or workflow makes using a PrintNode network printer more practical.
    • If you use the Dutchie POS web application on hardware other than the Dutchie Register terminal, you can only use PrintNode printers for fulfillment tickets.

If you turn on automatic fulfillment ticket printing at the register, it turns off again as soon as you sign out or switch registers. If you turn it on in the Backoffice, it stays on until you turn it off.

Roll up pre-orders

In the Backoffice under Settings > Location in the Point of Sale section, we recommend enabling the Roll Up Pre-Orders setting, which automatically combines multiple orders from the same customer into one cart. Not only can this improve workflow efficiency, it may also help you catch attempts by customers to exceed purchase limits by placing separate orders.

Non-matching item warnings

We also recommend contacting Dutchie Support to turn on a setting that displays warnings when adding "foreign" (non-matching) items to a preorder to alert users if they accidentally add the wrong item when fulfilling a pre-order cart. This will not prevent users from adding more/other items to the cart if needed.

Manual pre-orders

For orders received from your integrated online menu, skip to the Fulfill a pre-order section below.

Follow these steps if your online menu is not integrated with Dutchie POS, or if you accept and manually create pre-orders for email, phone, or walk-in orders.

For existing customers

  1. From the Customers menu or the Guest list, search the customer's name and press Enter on your keyboard.
  2. Select the customer's profile from the search results.
  3. Click Create Order.
    reg_customers_create order.png

For new customers

  1. From the Guest List, click Create Guest.
    reg_guest list_create guest button.png
  2. Fill in the customer's information, then click Create. A new customer profile is shown.
  3. Click Create order.
    reg_customer profile_create order.png

For anonymous customers

Click the Cart icon in the left menu bar or Anonymous Guest on the Guest list.

reg_menu_cart button.pngreg_guest list_anonymous guest button.png

Manually start a pre-order

This section only applies if you're taking a customer's order in-store, via email, over the phone, etc. Orders that come from an e-commerce integration automatically appear in the guest list with the products already added to the cart and ready to be fulfilled.

  1. Choose Fulfillment.
    pos_start_an_order_fulfillment.png
  2. Enter the Order details. You can manage the available options in the Backoffice under Registers > Configure > Order workflow. 
    • Source - Online, Phone, Email, etc.
    • Order type - In-store pickup, Delivery, Walk-in, etc.
    • Date/time (optional)
    • The Budtender creating this order (for reporting purposes)
  3. Click Create order.
    order_details_create_order.png
  4. Click Add items, then search and select the products the customer wants to order. The selected items are "soft allocated" (immediately deducted from the total quantity on hand) to ensure up-to-the-minute accuracy of integrated menus. If the transaction is canceled or items are removed from the transaction, the items are returned to your inventory.
  5. When you’re finished adding items, click Submit fulfillment order. This places the order back into the Guest List and prints the fulfillment ticket from the designated printer (if applicable).

Dutchie POS has optional features to disable budtenders' ability to search for products and manually add them to the cart or require a manager PIN before manually adding items. This is intended as a safeguard to require budtenders to always scan items. However, if either of these features is enabled for your location, note that they do not apply when starting a pre-order because this would defeat the purpose of the pre-order/fulfillment workflow, but budtenders will still be required to scan in the next step when fulfilling the order and assigning specific packages.

Fulfill a pre-order

  1. Start fulfilling a pre-order by either retrieving an automatically printed fulfillment ticket from the designated printer and then selecting the matching pre-order from the Guest List, or by choosing a pre-order from the Guest List and selecting the Print button and then Print pick ticket.
    print_pick_ticket.png
  2. Fulfill each unassigned item by scanning the barcodes or clicking Assign packages to manually select packages. Your location may be configured to require scanning or require a manager PIN before manually searching and selecting packages.
    assign_package.png
    When manually assigning items:
     
    • For unit-based items, allocate units from one or more packages and click Assign.
      assign_packages_modal.png
    • For bulk flower, click the calculator button to enter the exact Weight/price and a Weight override (optional), then click Save. 
      assign_packages_bulk.pngcalculate_weight.png
    • Make sure that the selected package ID matches the physical item.
    • The package ID appears below the product name as you fulfill each item.
      assigned_item.png
    • The register will only allow users to assign inventory from POS/Sales Floor rooms. However, the total quantity on hand may also include inventory from Ecommerce rooms that are not configured as POS/Sales floor rooms.
  3. Once you’ve fulfilled each item, you can select Print all labels, add Discounts, apply loyalty points, or add more items and assign packages. When you're ready, select:
    • Release to place the order back in the Guest List in the same status.
    • Save to place the order back in the Guest List and choose a new status.
    • Notify to place the order back in the Guest List and notify the customer that their order is ready. The order will move to whatever status column you've assigned for Notify button (for pre-orders) on the Guestlist statuses page in the Backoffice.
    • Checkout to collect payment and complete the order.

Pre-payments and cancellations

  • For pre-paid orders in Canada, you will see “Pre Payment (Canada)” as the defaulted payment type."
  • Because most orders are paid at the time of pickup or delivery, canceling a pre-order usually does not require issuing a refund. 
    • If a customer selected Pay by Bank as their payment method on Dutchie Ecommerce or a Pay by Bank payment was attempted in-store and the order was later canceled, the customer may see a pending ACH charge on their account temporarily. This pending charge will disappear within a few business days, and the payment will not be posted to their account.Pay by Bank payments only post to a customer's account for completed transactions.
    • If a canceled order was pre-paid through a third-party payment provider, work with your payment provider to manually refund a canceled pre-paid order.

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