Every business needs to be organized using various tools and these include small business owners too. These tools are used to provide reports, simplify data, organize information and for easy access to the business financial information. A business that uses accounting software saves time compared to the ones using spreadsheet or manually handling their accounts.
Small business owners with large base of customers and employees need accounting software to be able to keep accurate records. It also helps them to reduce redundant data entry. It creates efficiency in the business finances as there is no need to spend time going through the ledgers.
There are so many options when picking an accounting software package nowadays. This post is going to discuss that and give most suitable choice for small business owners.
Why your small business needs accounting software
As a small business owner, you need to select the proper software for yourself. You need to consider it very well as the wrong one can have a negative effect on your business and damage your financial records. Some of the things you need to consider are cost, compatibility, capability and so on. Accounting software will keep records of clients for those businesses that provide services.
It will be of great benefit to them. As for those who sell products, it will be good to choose the software that has inventory provisions.
A good accounting package will meet the needs of your small business in terms of invoicing, tax reporting and information about payroll. You will be able to monitor sales and expenditures instantly without going through the process of updating manually. When you opt for accounting software, it saves time and helps to eliminate redundancy of data.
Although you can do your budgeting and planning using spreadsheets, it is not entirely safe. It is very easy to misplace and only one person will be able to track the changes made to it. In other to make work fast, you need multiple people updating and recording information, this can only be made possible with accounting software. Having accounting software is a very good investment for small business owners.
Tips in choosing accounting software for small business
There are certain things you need to consider before you choose the right accounting software for your small business and some of them are;
1. Feature Consideration
The first thing to do before choosing an appropriate one for your business is to make a list if the features you need the software to possess to run your business. You should not do this alone; collaborate with some of your team members to make sure you are not leaving anything out. Some of the features you might need are; Payroll, Sales tracking, Inventory management, account support, and so on.
There are different software for several industries so make sure you are opting for the one that will be suitable for your needs. You can also seek opinions from professionals if you are having problems settling for one. Small businesses have lesser needs than larger ones so you need to get software with few and less complex features.
There is no need to buy extra feature you would not need. You can consider getting additional ones as your business continue growing.
2. Suitability
Now that you have realized the feature you should be looking for, you need to ask yourself if it will be suitable for your business. You need to be able to determine if the software will be able to expand to the growth of your business. Can you upgrade it or add modules to it later on? Small business won’t stay small forever. Will it be installed or used online? Will you be able to download your bank transactions? You need to do your research to determine the level of suitability.
Consultation
You need to speak to a professional, probably an accountant in order to ask the type of reports you need to submit to them regularly. Once you know about these reports, make sure your software will be able to generate it without any problem whatsoever. As a small business owner, using accounting software helps you to save cost; you won’t have to be consulting an accountant all the time.
3. Cost
This is probably one of the most important tips for a small business owner to choose an accounting software. Most of the software will offer free trial for few days, this is the time to use it and discover if it is the right choice for you or not. After this, you will have to pay for it to continue use. You need to consider getting the software that won’t affect your business budget. Every dollar is important for small businesses.
Accounting Software’s for Small Businesses
1. Intuit QuickBooks:
This is a good tool for small businesses as it has everything needed to keep accurate account books and it is automatically updated. It can be operated on a PC, Phone or tablet. You can track your cash flows and also create reports like balance sheets and many more. QuickBooks offers a 30 days free trial. The pricings are $7 per month for one user, $17 monthly for 3 users and $30 per month for 5 users.
2. Fresh Books:
This provides its users with a single dashboard in managing their accounts and finances. It backups regularly and uses a mobile app to keep track of the business all the time. When you use it, you can send out invoices and also enjoy time tracking. It is $15 monthly for 5 users, $25 every month for 50 clients and $50 per month for 500 users. The mobile app is available for use on Android and IOS.
3. Xero:
You are free to try Xero for free since as a small business owner, you can send inventories, invoices, and others from your phone using this software. You can get financial reports and connect them to your bank account. It is $9 monthly for starter, $30 every month for a standard plan and $70 for the premium plan.
4. Kashoo:
It creates customized invoices, tracks expenses and provides reports that can be shared with professionals. It is one of the most suitable choices for small businesses. The pricing are %29.95 every month, $16.65 annually and $199.95 yearly. The mobile app is only available for IOS.
5. GoDaddy Bookkeeping:
This software integrates with eBay, Amazon and bank accounts, so if you sell on any of these sites, it is the best option for you. It imports data from there, calculates tax and also creates invoices. It is $4.99 per month, essential pricing is $9.99 and the premium is $14.99 every month. Also available for use on Android and IOS.
Conclusion
Finally, that is all there is to know about accounting software. I hope you have been able to discover some of the reasons why small businesses need accounting software with this post. Every good business irrespective of the size needs to get their financial records in check in other to save time and run the business smoothly without any problem.