User Account Management & Access Permissions

The configuration of Customer Groups and User Roles is set by Suttle-Straus per your requirements. You can create new user accounts and set their access by assigning the User Roles, & Company Groups defined for your Brand Portal.

User management by default can only be performed by the individual assigned the Company Admin User Type. Upon request, Suttle-Straus can assign permissions to allow specific members of the Site_Admin user group to also manage user accounts.

For any changes to the Company Admin, User Roles, or Customer Groups, contact the brand portal support team.

User Account Configuration Details

User Groups specify which payment types, shipping options, categories, and products are available to their members. Roles determine access to particular features or functions in the Brand Portal. Available configurations listed here may not all be implemented on your Brand Portal as it is configured per need.

User group configuration options

Payment Types

• Credit Card - Has a 3% processing fee (if enabled, Debit Card & eCheck options are also enabled)
• Debit Card - Fee-free
• eCheck - Immediate ACH payment, fee-free
• Cost Center or Budget Code - Cost of purchases are added to your parent entities monthly invoice. The code input during checkout is displayed on the invoice, used for your internal budget expense management.
• ACH - A custom form of the ACH payment where per contracted agreement Suttle-Straus processes payments on defined dates. Utilized for programs where orders are produced and shipped at a later date.

Shipping Options

• UPS - typically offer domestic shipping methods, with some international options as needed. You can choose to exclude certain methods, such as faster and more expensive services.
• FedEx - atypical as not as economical as UPS. Domestic options, international options also available
• Customer Pick-Up - allows for picking up the ordered products at the Suttle-Straus facility
• Best-Way - Suttle-Straus selects the most economical way to ship the order. Only available if shipping is post billed to corporate monthly invoice.
• SSI Truck - Suttle-Straus delivery within Dane County, WI region. This option is available per contracted agreeement.

Taxes

Suttle-Straus can remove taxes for tax-exempt customers based on their assigned group.

 

Categories & Products

User groups can have entire categories or individual products hidden or visible, enabling administrators to control which items each group can order or download.

 

User Types

Company Admin

• Limited to a single user account, one user must be assigned as Company Admin.
• Suttle-Straus support must be contacted to change who is assigned.
• Can manage user accounts
• Can view the details of every order placed on the brand portal

Company User

• All user accounts that are not the company admin
• New users are auto assigned to this Customer Type

 

User Roles

The Roles listed are commonly used, but your Brand Portal may include different or additional Roles to fit your needs.

• Default User - most users of the brand portal
• Reporting - users that need access to view reporting. Must also be in the Site_Admin customer group.
• Approver - users that will use the Role-Based Reviews process(atypical). See Role-Based Reviews for more information.
  • Typical approvals are by product approvals, find details on the Ordered Product Reviews documentation.
• Approver & Reporting - users that need access to view reporting and utilize the Role-Based Reviews process.

 

Customer Groups

Customer groups allow controlling permissions for product visibility, category visibility, payment options, & shipping options. Groups, and permissions, can only be created & edited by Suttle-Straus. Your specific needs will determine the Customer Groups available, the two listed here are used for most Brand Portals and have common use cases. For specific information about the configurations assigned to the user groups utilized on your Brand Portal contact brand portal support.

• Site_Admin – Highest level of permissions
  • Company Admin user is required to be in this group
  • Assigned to any user that needs access to the following:
    • All products & categories
    • Reporting (in conjunction with the appropriate user role)
    • Location Manager administration
    • Submitting requests to add new or change products
• General_User – most users
  • Can only see specified locations in Location Manager
  • Cannot acess the Admin Only category

 

Managing User Accounts

Adding a New User

Upon creating the new account, the individual will receive two emails. The first informs their email was linked to the brand portal, the second will include a link to the page for setting their password.

1. After logging into an account that has permission to manage users, navigate to My Account > Company Users
2. At the bottom of the page select button Add New User. The Add New User dialog will open.
3. Complete the required fields. See the Definitions section for User Roles & Customer Groups above to determine what to select for those fields.
4. Complete any optional fields for the account as needed. Dependent on your implementation these fields can be used to pre-populate variables of your customized templates. You may consider completing these for the new user. The new user will also have the ability to fill these in once they have access to their account.
5. Once all information is accurate for the user account, select Save button.
6. Email with the link for setting the account password is sent to the address provided in the Email field of the new account.
   1. The password link is only valid for 24 hours. If the link expires, reach out to brand portal support to have a password reset email sent.

 

Changing Saved Account Information

Users can update any fields saved within their account at any time. When you choose Edit for a user account, you can fill in or modify the field content as needed. After saving your changes, if a customized template uses these fields to auto-populate information, the updated content will appear the next time the user customizes a template.

Account field updates don’t affect products already in the cart or during reorder.

 

Deactivating a User

When a user account is deactivated, an email will be sent to the user notifying them that they no longer have access. Accounts cannot be deleted, they can only be deactivated. Individuals that leave your organization should be deactivated so they can no longer access your Brand Portal.

1. Navigate to My Account > Company Users
2. Locate the user from the list and select Edit. The Edit User dialog will open.
3. Change the selection of the Status field to Inactive.
4. Select the Save button.
5. Email is sent to the address of the account notifying the access has been removed.

Changing Account Permissions

As stated in the User Account Configuration Details section, permissions are managed by the User Roles and Customer Groups an account is assigned. There is no way to set individual permissions.

1. Navigate to My Account > Company Users
2. Locate the user from the list and select Edit. The Edit User dialog will open.
3. Change the accounts User Role and/or Customer Group to apply the correct permissions to the user account. See section User Account Configuration Details above for more details.
4. Select the Save button.
5. The user account will now have the new assigned permissions. User will need to log out of their account to apply the changes.

 

Changing the Email or Password Associated to an Account

Individual users can update their account email and password by following instructions found on the Customer Service page of your Brand Portal. Admins should not make these changes. If the user cannot update their details, contact brand portal support for assistance.