Net 30, POs and Credit Limits: Trade Accounts Online

Net 30 terms for B2B ordering mean an approved trade account places an order now and pays the invoice within 30 days, usually referencing their own purchase order number. Moving that online is mostly about three settings per account: whether they get terms, how long the terms are, and how much any one person on their team can order without sign-off.

What Net 15, 30 and 60 actually mean

The number is the count of days the buyer has to pay after the invoice date. Net 30 is a common default in the trade, with Net 15 for newer or smaller accounts and Net 60 for larger distributors or project work with long payment cycles.

Some businesses add an early-payment discount (for example "2/10 Net 30", meaning 2% off if paid within 10 days, otherwise the full amount in 30). That is a commercial choice. If you offer it, make sure your invoices state it clearly.

Terms are credit. You are funding your dealer's job for a month. That is why the decision about who gets terms deserves its own process. Check with your accountant on how terms and any discounts should be recorded in your books.

Who gets Net 30 terms in B2B ordering

A simple policy you can explain in a sentence or two:

1. New accounts pay by card or deposit for their first few orders.
2. After a track record, they can apply for terms, often with a short credit application and trade references.
3. Approved accounts start at Net 15 or Net 30 with a modest limit.
4. Limits and terms are reviewed on a schedule, based on order volume and how promptly invoices are paid.
5. Overdue accounts lose terms until the balance is cleared, and go back to card payment.

Write the policy down and share it with dealers. It removes awkward conversations, because the written rule makes the decision.

Why purchase order numbers matter

A purchase order number is your dealer's internal reference for the order. Their bookkeeper uses it to match your invoice against what they approved. If the PO is missing from your invoice, payment often stalls while someone tracks it down.

Make the PO field part of the order itself, entered by the dealer at checkout, and carry it through to:

• The order confirmation email.
• The invoice.
• The packing slip, if your dealer receives goods at a job site.
• Your production system, so your shop can reference it when the dealer calls.

Whether the PO field is required or optional can be an account-level setting. Larger dealers usually want it required so nothing goes out without one.

Credit limits and approval limits

These are two different controls that often get mixed up.

A credit limit is your risk control. If a dealer has an outstanding balance near their limit, the next order should switch to card payment or wait for a payment.

An approval limit is a feature you give your dealers. A kitchen dealer may let a junior estimator build orders but want the owner to approve anything over a certain amount. When your portal supports this, you become easier to do business with, and you avoid orders that the dealer later says were never authorized.

Invoicing on terms without manual work

The traditional flow is slow: the order ships, someone in the office creates an invoice in accounting software, emails it, then chases it at day 31.

An online flow can do most of that automatically:

1. The dealer places the order with their PO number and selects terms.
2. An invoice is created with the right due date and sent by email.
3. The dealer pays by card or bank payment from a link on the invoice.
4. Reminders go out before and after the due date.
5. Payment lands in your own account and the invoice is marked paid.

Payment landing in your own processor account matters here. Your money, refunds and any disputes stay between you and your processor, which is the subject of why payouts should land in your own Stripe account.

Terms belong with the rest of the account

Terms work best as one setting among several on the dealer account, alongside the price tier, the PO requirement and the team logins. Reviewing them together once or twice a year keeps your trade programme consistent. For the pricing side of that review, see dealer pricing tiers without the spreadsheet. For the full list of what a trade portal should cover, see what a B2B dealer portal should do for a door manufacturer.

How Inlay handles this

• Each dealer account in the Inlay dealer portal can be set to pay by card or on Net 15, 30 or 60 terms.
• Terms orders are invoiced through your own Stripe account, so payouts, refunds and disputes stay between you and Stripe. Inlay takes 0% of sales.
• Dealers enter PO numbers on their orders, and team logins can carry approval limits.
• Dealers can see the status of their orders and reorder in one click.

Book a 20-minute demo to see trade accounts with terms set up on your catalogue.