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Small Business Accounting Software: What You Should Look for
1. You're just starting your new business and you're
wondering what you should look out for with regard to
the accounting software you'll need to run your business
efficiently? Perhaps that question should start with: do
you really need to buy accounting software?
2. Depending on the nature of your business the answer may
very well be no, you may be better off by getting a friendly
spreadsheet expert to set you up a series of linked
spreadsheets that will last you from now until you retire
and sell your business.
3. If your company deals in prepayments, has few purchase
invoices and doesn't generate a large number of sales
invoices every month, you can avoid buying software all
together. Many High Street banks supply easy start up
packages with a cash flow, forecasting, profit and loss as
well as balance sheet set up in spreadsheet form that are
perfectly sufficient to get you started.
5. Whatever you do decide, never ever ask your accountant
to recommend software to you! Invariably your
accountant, trained for years to hide behind accountancy
jargon, will recommend software that is suited to large
multi-nationals with zillions of dollars turnover and a
whole team of accountants looking after their affairs, but
that is utterly incomprehensible to anyone who's not a
trained accountant.
6. Instead, go online and try out at least three different
online small business accounting software providers for 30
days, free of charge. Once you're happy that you've found
the one you like best, you can sign up to their secure
online software.
7. If your business requirements change and you need
something different, you can usually cancel the online
contract with just one month's notice and no harm is
done. With traditional accounting software you don't have
this advantage, since you're required to buy the expensive
package and are then stuck with it, until you can find the
money to buy something that suits your business best.
8. Most accounting packages fall down on the foreign
currency front, so if you are dealing with multi-currency
sales invoices, but the volume of invoices you sent out
every month is large, you should stick with spreadsheets
rather than buying any software at all.
9. One of the most important aspects of small business
accounting software is the sales and purchase ledger
functions. Yet this is an area that many traditional
accounting packages neglect. Sales invoices and monthly
statements must be clear and easy to understand to avoid
delays in payments, which causes havoc with your cash
flow.
10. Equally, you want an accounts software package that
allows you to look up any expenditure quickly, while at the
same time making monthly payments to your creditors
manageable.Advantages of buying Small Business
Accounting Software
11. With the right accounting package you can vastly improve
your cash flow and knowledge of your business' financial
position at any given moment. Online accounting software
allows you secure access from anywhere - and with
monthly subscription payments spread out over the year
you won't need to lay out a large upfront fee either.
12. Accounting software that allows you to tailor-make your
statements and sales invoices, so that they look
professional and underline the branding you're trying to
achieve for your business image can also be vital for your
long term success.
