Alisa A. Mitchell CPA PAThat’s right: The future is here! Now that it’s officially 2020, it may be time to jump on that accounting app bandwagon if you haven’t already done so. The exciting news is you can actually do a lot of your accounting tasks from your phone instead of your computer.
Here are just a few examples of accounting things you can do on your phone.
Banking
Are you still trudging to the bank to make your deposits? If so, there is a better way! Simply download your bank’s mobile app, login, and look for the Make Deposit function. Get the check you want to deposit, write “For Electronic Deposit Only” on the back and endorse it. On your phone, enter the amount, then take a picture of the check. Presto! Hit Deposit and the money will be in your account in no time.
Receipts
Shoeboxes of receipts are a thing of the past. (Thank goodness, we say, as we wipe our forehead!) Send your receipts to your accountant simply by taking a picture of them and sending them via email or through a document entry system like Receipt Bank or AutoEntry. You’ll need to set this up to connect with your accounting system, but once it’s set up, it’s a real time-saver.
Accounting
Wondering how much income you made last month? Download your accounting app on your phone and login to get many of the features that you have on your computer onto your phone. You’ll need to be on a cloud system like QuickBooks Online or Xero, or possibly have a hosted desktop solution in order to have this functionality.
Payroll
There’s no need to be tied to your desk on payroll day if you can submit or approve payroll from your phone. Many payroll systems have apps you can download so you can be free of your computer.
Add-ons
There’s a mobile app for almost any add-on you might need, such as TSheets for time tracking or Square for taking payments.
Artificial Intelligence
There are even some apps where you can talk in plain English and get a plain English answer back. These apps are using artificial intelligence which is exploding in the accounting space. You can ask questions about your cash flow or check a metric that you like to follow.
Feel free to reach out to us if you’d like to find out more or get help moving some of your accounting functions to your mobile phone.
If you find yourself on the go more often than not, having constant access to your business accounts and these features will be beneficial.
Looking for fresh, effective ways to grow your business in 2020? You’ve come to the right place. In today’s market, it can be difficult to stand out from the crowd, gain new customers or clients, and increase your company’s revenue. Note: We said difficult, not impossible! Below, you’ll find six fun, easy tips to help you achieve your goals and make your business bigger and better as it enters the new decade.
- Freshen Up Your Marketing
Have you ever given your house a new coat of paint? Well, consider giving your business one, too! Not literally, of course, but by freshening up your marketing techniques, clients and prospects will see you in a new light. For example, maybe it’s time for a new logo, more customer reviews to place on your site, or a new angle on your social media posts. Finally, give that old, tired website a facelift: add some new photos, offer a colorful promotion, or add new team members. Change is good and helps keep people (and Google search algorithms) interested.
- Enhance Your Product or Services
Nothing piques an individual’s interest like a new product! If you can, try to add a new product to your existing line. Or, if it makes more sense, simply add features to products you already offer. You have room to be creative here. Think about what your clients really want and try to give it to them.
- Meet with a Financial Advisor
Do you have a financial advisor? Now is the time to meet with him or her and discuss your future goals. Specifically, ask about new opportunities (i.e. investments) to grow your company’s revenue. Now—the start of a new year—is the perfect time to invest in new assets, get funding for new projects or ideas, and cut any unnecessary costs. You are in control of your company’s finances, so make sure money is going where you want it and need it to go. (And if we can help, let us know!)
- Update Your Organization Chart
Could you benefit from hiring a new employee or two? Maybe your company could prosper with the creation of a new position? It’s time to update your organization chart and see what your business needs to grow for 2020. You may discover that you need additional staff and/or a position to help things run more smoothly and effectively.
- Excite Your Team
Don’t forget to take care of your own! Remember, without your employees, where would your business be? Could you make it by yourself, without any help from staff? Therefore, remind your workers that you care for them and that they’re appreciated. The gesture can be as big or small as you want. For example, you could add an employee perk or benefit. Or, consider doing something small yet meaningful, like a team dinner or bonding event—anything to help show your employees that they’re more than just staff.
- Strategy, Strategy, Strategy
We’ve saved the best and most important tip for last: strategy. Remind yourself why you got into this business in the first place, as well as what your goals are and what you want to accomplish. Then, take a look at your current strategy. Will your strategy help you achieve those goals? If so, then great; you’re on the right track! But if not, then it may be time to rework that business strategy.
Think about what you need to do or change to reach those goals, and then work on incorporating them into your business plan. It could be you just need a minor tweak or two, or maybe your company requires a larger kind of shift. Either way, only you can determine whether or not your strategy is working.
It’s a new year—a new decade—and change is good! Let 2020 be the year that your business really takes off and grows. Now is the best time to accomplish all of your goals, and whether you use the list above or have ideas of your own to increase revenue, remember that only you can make a successful change happen.
The topic of money affects our emotions, beliefs, and behaviors in a very personal and individual way. Whether we have enough, need more, or are indifferent can impact our overall financial status. The most important thing to know about this topic is to be self-aware of your own feelings and actions and how they impact your wealth.
How do you feel about money in general? Does your brain repeat common beliefs like “Money doesn’t buy happiness” or “All rich people are selfish?” Does money scare you? Excite you? Do you feel like you don’t deserve to have money? Or do you feel entitled to having money? Is your ego wrapped up in how much money you make?
There is no right or wrong answer to any of these questions, but what your inner thoughts are telling you about money can impact on a subconscious level your ability to earn more or keep what you have.
How do you feel about how much money you have? Do you feel blessed? Or do you feel like you never have enough?
What are your current behaviors towards money? Are you a spender or a saver? Your behavior may be driven by your beliefs and emotions. If you’re not happy with your behavior toward money, there’s an opportunity for you to change the relationship you have with money.
Once you can bring your beliefs and behaviors into your awareness, ask yourself if they are serving you well or hindering you? You may want to find some sort of happy medium that fits your needs. Everyone has different circumstances, but if you can change your beliefs and then your behavior towards money, then you might see a change in your ability to meet your financial goals.
The ultimate goal is to be content with the relationship you have with money. Everyone is different, and that’s OK. You have to be you! But if you’re not happy with the relationship you have with money, there is opportunity for you to do some work in that area. And if we can help, please feel free to reach out.
You might wonder why there are so many extra tasks at year-end. While the government requires much of the work, there is clean-up work and adjustments that need to be done to make the books accurate. It’s not always cost-effective to perform all of these updates monthly, so you’re actually saving money by doing some of them at year-end.
Here are just some of the items that are performed at year-end.
Tax-related:
- If you have payroll, employees need to be sent their W-2s, and the federal and state government need a copy of the W-2s with a W-3 transmittal.
- For employees, you must also have an up-to-date W-4 signed by them.
- For employers, your federal unemployment 940 return is due.
- If you have contractors, they need to be sent their 1099s, and the IRS needs the 1099s and the 1096 transmittal.
- For contractors, you must also have an up-to-date W-9 form from them. You may also need to request an insurance certificate, or you may get a surprise at your workers compensation audit.
- For vendors that claim exemption from sales tax, you’ll need to be sure you have an exemption certificate in your files from them.
- If you pay sales tax annually, your return and payment are due.
- Your personal federal, state, and local income tax and returns are due in the spring, and they can be extended until later in the year.
- Depending on the type of entity your business is organized as, you may have franchise, federal and state tax returns to file. This deadline comes up sooner than the individual tax return due date.
Books-related:
- Just about every asset on your balance sheet needs to be verified in some way or other:
- Petty cash accounts need to be reconciled and reimbursed as of year-end
- Bank accounts need to be reconciled with the bank statements. This includes PayPal.
- Accounts receivable balances and all other receivables need to be tied to each customer and any amounts determined to be uncollectible need to be written off.
- A physical inventory count needs to be taken and the inventory account should be adjusted accordingly.
- Fixed assets need to be reconciled to their fixed assets ledger and depreciation should be properly recorded.
- Goodwill accounts need to be checked and amortization adjusted.
- Accruals, deposits, deferred accounts and all other asset accounts need to be adjusted if necessary.
- Liabilities and equity need to be adjusted too:
- Accounts payable balances and all other payables need to be tied to each vendor.
- Liabilities that haven’t been recorded need to be added to the books.
- Loans need to tie to lender statements, and interest paid on loans needs to be properly expensed.
- The Equity accounts need to be checked and tied out to prior year balances.
- Corrections and adjustments need to be made:
- Any misclassifications and corrections need to be made on the books with adjusting journal entries or other classification tools.
- If the client is a cash-basis taxpayer, a reversing journal entry needs to be made to get the correct tax numbers.
- A clean set of reports can now be run and used.
Documents-related:
- This is a good time to file and store your receipts in case you are ever asked for them. For long-term storage, thermal receipts should be copied or scanned in before the ink fades.
If you’re wondering why we’re so busy this time of year, it’s all of the extra work we have to do over and above the normal monthly load. If you have questions about any of this, just ask anytime!
Did you know that you can add apps to help increase the functionality of your core accounting system? The process will save you time and frustration. It is because every business is different that you may—and likely will—need these add-on features that aren’t already included in the accounting system you currently use. That’s where the apps come in: They provide a deeper functionality in the areas you need them. Take a look below at some examples we’ve put together.
- Payroll
Payroll apps help to simplify how you pay your employees. These payroll apps were created to help you implement an easy and automated method of managing payroll and all things HR-related.
Popular payroll options include Intuit’s many options, Gusto, ADP, OnPay, and Patriot. Explore the different features of each app and find which one works best for you and your needs.
- Time Tracking
The best and most accurate way to keep track of an employee’s time is with an app. A wide range of apps can make not only tracking but scheduling your employees’ time simple, too. These apps include:
- ClockShark
- BigTime
- Time Tracker
- TSheets
- And more!
Again, each app will offer different features. For example, most have timers, but only one might offer geofencing, so find the one that’s best for your business. Regardless of which one you choose to use, though, you will quickly discover how much time and energy you save without having to do time tracking manually.
- Inventory
Need more functionality to better manage your inventory? If you run an ecommerce, retail, or wholesale operation, you may need an inventory app to give you more features. Back order functions, drop ship handling, and recall functionality may be required depending on what you sell. Here are some popular apps for inventory:
- SOS Inventory
- BigCommerce
- Unleashed
There are also many ecommerce apps in this space: WooCommerce and Shopify, to name a few.
- Cash Flow
Dozens of apps exist to help you manage your cash flow as well as get funded:
- CashFlowTool
- Cash Flow Frog
- PayPie
- Chata.ai
- FUndbox
- Blue Vine
- Fundera
- And too many to list
Managing your cash and debt are important areas and ones that are easy to find to help you get quicker answers to your questions.
Now that it’s 2020, try working smarter, not harder. Add-on features can help! Remember, the examples listed above are just a few apps currently available. Determine what you need for your company to make better decisions, and then look around for the perfect app.
And, if we can help you implement your ideas faster, feel free to reach out to us anytime.