Accounting is a challenge for many small businesses. When you’re an entrepreneur with limited resources, hiring a full accounting staff and IT department is not always an option. As a result many small businesses start out using QuickBooks because it is easy to use and learn. But in order to take a business to the next level of growth without growing accounting staff, established small businesses need more sophisticated accounting software online.
“One of the major to-do lists for any small business is to have a qualified accountant, or if you love numbers, a SaaS accounting program to help manage your business startup,” said a recent article at CloudTweaks.com.
Here are the top five accounting challenges for small businesses, according to survey results published in the Cloud Tweaks article.
- Accounts receivable collection – 51%
- Managing business cash flow – 44%
- Managing paperwork – 33%
- Closing the books each month – 28%
- Managing employee payroll – 27%
These challenges can be addressed quickly and efficiently with an enterprise resource planning solution, but many small businesses lack the necessary IT resources to implement, manage and maintain an ERP system on-premises. It can be tricky to choose the right solution for businesses that are outgrowing QuickBooks but don’t want to scale up their IT and accounting departments.
In order to expand beyond QuickBooks, businesses need a fully functioning accounting system on an affordable cloud deployment model to save on IT expenses. But they also need easy-to-use accounting features including predefined charts of accounts, reports and workflow to streamline accounting processes, reduce paperwork and improve cash flow.
Let’s take a look at some of the features to look for in accounting software online to help solve the top five accounting challenges without growing your staff.
Accounts Receivable Collections
Software solutions should come with an AR module that supports automated billing and allows users to track collections to keep tabs on accounts receivables and make sure they’re getting paid as quickly as possible. Simple, predefined reports should be available to pull a list of customers whose balances are over a threshold the user chooses, allowing the company to prioritize and evaluate customer histories. This also allows users to see if the balance issue is a one-time occurrence or a trend that needs to be addressed.
Managing Business Cash Flow
It is critical to find an online accounting solution that comes equipped with tools to track and manage your cash. Businesses need a cash-flow calendar that lets users look back or look ahead to see how funds flow in and out of the business ‒ simply by selecting a given day, week or month. Bank reconciliation tools should give you a clear look at your actual cash on hand as well as all your deposits and debits across all your bank accounts.
Managing Paperwork:
With electronic reporting and direct connections to Excel, Outlook and other Microsoft Office applications, your solution should reduce redundancies associated with manual data entry improving paperwork through automation across departments and connections to email as well as employee portals.
Month End Closing:
Working off of multiple instances of QuickBooks and disparate systems to keep all of your financials in order creates complicated reporting processes that make month-end closings a financial management nightmare that wastes countless hours. You need accounting software online that can help you close the books every month in minutes, not days. Your solutions should have workflow automation, consolidated reporting, analytical accounting and automated multi-entity reporting.
Managing Employee Payroll:
Look for Payroll and Human Resources features that simplify payroll by eliminating unnecessary paperwork and redundant processes through automation and consolidation, while improving accuracy, control and flexibility inside your payroll processes. Get payroll right every time with U.S. and Canadian payroll, Federal Magnetic Media for payroll compliance reporting and easily transfer from ADP/PC Payroll for Windows® into General Ledger with Payroll Connect.
Start a free trial today to see myGPcloud’s accounting software online in action. Or get the free eBook below to see if you are ready to go beyond QuickBooks with myGPcloud.
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