29/06/2020
My preferred Accounting software is Xero Accounting.
The first thing that I love about it is that you can access this cloud base system anywhere in the world. Literally! I have gone on holidays half way around the world and have been able to answer urgent client queries. Sure depending on the Wifi coverage in a beautiful 5 star resort, it works!
The second thing I love about Xero Accounting is the different types of packages you can choose from. No business too small or too big. Although the standard packages gives you a lot of helpful Accounting tools to run your business, it doesn't mean you have to be on that plan. A good financial services provider like a book keeper or Accountant would assess the size and model of your business and if it doesn't need all the frills, you can just pay for cashbook plans which are only available from qualified partnership status which your book keeper or Accountant should have. Its all about the money. The costs of the plan when you are a small businesses like Sole Traders generally can not justify paying for a standard subscription. However, this is where the cashbook plans comes in.
Why not just use a spreadsheet rather than pay for a cashbook plan? Well how much time do you spend on collecting paperwork and putting them in a pile and then have the time to sit down and sort through and put it into a spreadsheet? Is $15 - $30 a month for a Accounting cashbook plan too much if it means that you can cut your precious time doing your book work in half or even more worth it? How much are you worth an hour in your Trade if you are not a book keeper or have the Accounting mind?
Ok I have peaked your interest so lets get into what Xero can do for you.
1. Bank statements can be set up as a link between your bank and Xero - this gives you a live feed of the transactions going in and out of your bank without having to look for statement dates and all the frustrations that comes with looking for a payment that went out a month ago and you don't know what date it was or who it was. Once set up correctly, Xero has the functionality where you can search your bank statement by $ value range, date range and description. How amazing is that? Even someone who has been doing Accounting work as long as I have finds this function very useful when pressed for time and answers.
2. Coding can be such a pain if you don't know where things should go. Majority of my clients are QS, Plumbers, Builders, Developer, Insurance Advisors. They don't know what coding means. Xero has the functionality for you to set bank rules. It is built in a way that it is actually very intuitive.. wow what does that mean? It means that when setting up your business in Xero Accounting, even if you are only on a cashbook plan you can give your bank transactions a rule that says = If Toyota Finance shows up in the description of your bank statement, code this to "Motor vehicle" expenses. Save this rule and next time you get Toyota Finance come up again, it will automatically code it to "Motor Vehicle" expenses. Ok, you are not convince? Let use Entertainment expenses as another example:
You took a client out to a restaurant to have a few drinks to catch up, nurture your working relationships (which is another thing you would have more time to do if you choose Xero Accounting). So you spent $100 for the night which you can only claim 50% of the cost as Entertainment expenses from your business, you can tell Xero in the rules that 50% gets coded to Entertainment and 50% gets coded to drawings.
It all sounds very technical and confusing but if set up correctly which will take time, it can mean that all you have to do is look at what has been assigned a rule and decide whether it is correct and click OK. Mind blowing right?
3. Need to provide a quote for a potential job? Why not do it from within Xero (please note, this is only available in Standard plans and above). Imagine, generating a quotation from Xero and emailing it through with set in functions to instruct your clients to Accept the quote and while you were sleeping, the quotation has been approved and has automatically gone into a draft sales invoice? No need to manually key in all the details of the quotation or trying to remember what it was that was quoted and whether someone did accept the quote or not. Again, another useful tool!
What I love about Xero is that you can do Bank reconciliation, Payroll, MyIR PAYE returns, GST returns and run a Profit & Loss and Balance accounts and so much more. If you can't find what you need, you can add on Apps that can integrate with Xero to provide additional Ummph to your business.
Xero support is only a click away. Account Managers are friendly and support teams are helpful. What I love most about Xero is that they care about their clients. So don't be surprised if you get a phone call from time to time from your Account manager to check in on how you are doing and they even provide free Counselling to your business and family members. Xero feels like home.
