The Upcoming Tax Planning Season and SALY

The tax planning season is just around the corner. Most small businesses are more focused on the end of summer and gearing up for the fall season. What they should focus on is getting their ducks in a row for the year end and beyond. Here's a reason why small business owners should avoid the SALY (Same As Last Year) and start planning now.

listen to ‘Why Accountants Hate "SALY"’ on Audioboo

More Bean Spilling - Importing Bank Data

So I have had a little time to play around with BeansBooks, a new cloud accounting product by System 76, that makes small business accounting a bit more manageable. In this video we look at the banking import function and how it can save time during account reconcilations.

Spilling the Beans on BeansBooks

In an already crowded cloud small business accounting market, enter another competitor. BeansBooks developed by System 76 is a new cloud accounting service that is designed for small to medium sized businesses looking to take their accounting to the clouds.

Competitively priced BeansBooks attempts to keep accounting simple and offers a clean user interface and is open source that will allow programmers to customize the product to their liking. The ultimate goal of the product is less data entry, easier reconciliations, and current information at the fingertips of the small business owner.

Let's spill the beans on BeansBooks in this short video.

Is your mobile device becoming the "New" desktop?

As many know I am a proponent of using cloud technologies/SaaS products and mobile applications to improve small business performance. Recently I was up loading or actually I was updating some of my mobile apps on my mobile devices (and the time it took me to do this) and this got me wondering if with the increased usage of smart phones/tablets and the corresponding usage of apps; Are we just simply turning our smart phones and tablets into desktop extensions?

                                                         

Desktop filled with software apps

One of the main reasons a small business owner would want to consider the cloud/mobile technologies is to keep the amount of software loaded on desktops to a minimum and forget about the days of updating software, dealing with file corruption issues just to name a few things that take away your time.

But,

With all this transferring of information via smart phones and tablets these days, most of it driven by app usage, now your smart phone or tablet is loaded with software that has to be constantly updated, and  you are back into a time drain.

Smart phone also filled with mobile apps

I personally did a comparison of my desktop applications versus my mobile applications and I have more mobile applications on my smart phone/tablets than my desktop. Take a look and see if you are in the same boat. Then ask yourself if those apps are saving or draining your time.

For me, it gave me a chance to do some "summer cleaning" of some mobile apps allowing my mobile devices to run more efficiently and take less time updating. 

Take a look for yourself and let me know how it turns out.

Your Business in Your Pocket - The Mobile Revolution

Everywhere a small business owner turns these days, there is always some talk about the cloud, mobile apps, and how it can improve their operations. From email systems to document management to accounting, the cloud seems to be the great equalizer allowing small firms and entrepreneurs compete with their large counterparts. But, is all this talk just a fad or trend and can it really make a difference to small business owner?

Well the cloud has been around for quite some time (even though much of what small biz owners read says otherwise) and really if you have not embraced the cloud in your small business, you could be operating at a considerable disadvantage. Most cloud offerings allow the small business owner anytime access to critical information they need to run their businesses. The cloud also is more stable and secure than trying to deploy software or save/backup information internally (I know many will disagree, but it is harder to break into a data center than your internal servers). Bottom line is if you want to stay competitive and be abreast with your peers, a venture into the cloud must be in your future.

But what is you want to stay ahead and not abreast of your peers?

If you want to be on the cutting edge then let me put the bug in your ear now about the next big trend…you ready!

It’s mobile, yes mobile.

With the introduction of smart phones, the mobile revolution is upon us and the time to get in is now (please join me it’s kinda lonely). Imagine a world where you can take a snapshot of a document with your smart phone and immediately upload it into your database, or accounting software and your team has immediate access to the information. Would that save time and money for your small business?

In the coming days we will post a few videos on the new mobile revolution and how you can embrace it now. When a small business couples mobile technology with the cloud, efficiency gains above and beyond their current processes can be realized, and you can save a little time and money.

Travel Receipts Got You Sour as a Lemon??? Make Lemonade

I hope everyone had a great holiday this past week. If you were one of the many people traveling this past week, I am sure you have quite a few receipts from your trip that you may want to organize to see how much you spent over the holiday.

Or maybe you are a constant business traveler that is tired of trying to keep up with all of your receipts when you travel for business.

If this describes you, I am sure that the time it takes to organize and tally up what you spent, and where has you as sour as a lemon.

Here's a quick video on a new web-based product with a corresponding smart phone app that can make lemonade out of those receipts. Let me know what you think.



The Tech Accountant

Update: Lifelock has acquired Lemon to expand in the the mobile arena. A new app to play with on Andriod and iOS.

Let Technology Wear Some of Your Hats

Small business owners and entrepreneurs all know that starting and operating your own business is a rewarding but tough experience. Typically when a small business is in the start-up or growth stage, the owners will attempt to wear all the hats from being the sales manager to the bookkeeper. Although this will give a small business owner a wealth of experience in operations and processes, could their time be better spent doing what they do best?

Many small business owners want to know how they can break away from doing the back office functions and most times the solution is to hire someone to do the work or outsource. Sometimes when this solution is implemented, the costs are more than the benefit and the small business owner is back at square one.

The new way to get operational tasks done is to use technology in conjunction with and employee or contractor. This way a small business owner can continue to the be the backbone of the economy and cut their operational and overhead costs considerably.

Let's take marketing and public relations for example. In the past small business owners could not compete with their larger counterparts due to the high cost of websites, customer relationship management and public relations companies, tv, and radio, etc. Nowadays a small business owner can build their own website (or outsource) with WordPress, use social media sites and apps like Facebook and Twitter for public relations and CRM, broadcast themselves on YouTube, and podcasts, and get paid instantly with PayPal, Google Checkout and others.

These are just a few ways technology can help a small business owner cut costs and focus on what they do best. Feel free to post your ideas too.

The Tech Accountant

15 Tech Factors to Watch For

Small biz owners and consumers both will like this quick (about 7mins or so) video that provides 15 tech factors to watch for and a look into the future of the internet and how we all will use it. Much of the video confirms the information that I heard recently at a social media seminar regarding the growth of social networks and how consumers use the internet.

Watch the video here

What does this mean for a small biz owner? Technology will be an important and integral part of your marketing, operational, and long term strategy. Small biz's will look more to social networks for customers and clients, using cloud services can keep the small biz owner connected and by embracing technology your small biz will be better positioned for growth.

So what do you think small biz owner's? Are you currently using technology (social media, smart phones, cloud computing) in your small business?

Look forward to hearing from you.

The Tech Accountant

3 Steps to a Smoother Tax Season

Now that tax season is over, many small biz owners are getting back into the groove of running their operations and focusing on the rest of the year. As tax season was winding down, I had a great deal of small biz owners approach me and ask what they can do to make tax season move a bit more smoothly next year. The majority of the problems that small biz owners are facing are closing their books on time, organizing their important documents for tax season, and getting those documents to their tax professional for tax preparation.


Usually the answer is better organization and proactive tax planning throughout the year, but after I make that comment, most small biz owners look at me with a blank stare. Now I would like to provide a bit more detail regarding how to streamline their business operations and stay on top of everything before tax season comes back around. Here are three steps to getting your small biz ready for next tax season:

1. Use a computerized accounting system
2. Scan important documents
3. Use a file storing system

Listen here for more details on getting your biz ready for next filing season.



These are just a few of the things that a small business owner can use to streamline their business operations and get them ready for a smooth tax season next year. With a little assistance, a small biz owner can have a less taxing season next year.

The Tech Accountant

Your data is safer in the clouds

Many small biz owners are still on the fence about taking their biz operations to the clouds. In a recent interview with Michal Lev-Ram for CnnMoney.com, Google’s enterprise chief Dave Girouard provides some compelling reasons for small biz owners to reconsider their stance. Most small biz owners cite security and uptime as their biggest resistance to the cloud here’s what Girouard had to say about both issues:


“Our belief is that your data is safer inside Google than it is inside your own computers. But we are doing all sorts of things to make sure our user data is protected.”

In regards to cloud system’s uptime, Girouard stated:

“There's no system that's prefect and no company that's perfect and we certainly aren't. In 2010 Gmail had 99.984% uptime.”

His statements got me wondering if those small biz owners that were resisting the cloud had procedures in place to protect their data and if their procedures had a 100% uptime. I posed the question of the cloud in one of my accounting discussion boards to get small biz accountants’ take on the matter and many of them were still resisting the cloud. One accountant even said that she used a portable hard drive that she took back and forth with her to the office.

Although the portable drive is a great way to save and backup your mission critical data, it should only be a small step in your backup and data warehousing plan. Which brings me to another point Girouard made in the article that cloud based companies are more agile than their “old school” counterparts. When asked about the advantages of Google’s cloud services versus those of other major software vendors, Girouard stated that since they are a 100% web company it is easier for them to adapt to the changes in the marketplace as they happen.

This is true for any business. Even a small business can be more nimble than their competitors if they build their business infrastructure in the cloud. Feel free to read the CNNMoney.com article and draw your own conclusions and opinions and post them as a response to this blog post. Would love to hear your thoughts.

The Tech Accountant

3 Ways Small Biz Owners Can Use Tablets

Up until recently, the sign that a small biz owner was upwardly mobile was a laptop or even a netbook. You would go to the local coffee shop and see everyone deeply engaged in their work or online meetings via their portable computers. Fast forward a few years to the present and laptop and netbooks in the coffee shop are a thing of the past like Starbucks “secret menu” items.


Now when you go into a coffee establishment, everyone is swiping away multi-tasking on their tablets. Tablets are making quite an impression in the consumer market and many larger biz’s are using them in some very interesting ways. Small biz owners can also enjoy the benefits of using a tablet instead of your clunky laptop. Here are three ways:

1. Remote Desktop – Need access to your laptop or desktop back in the office? With a tablet and remote desktop app (Like GoToMyPC) you can access your PC or Mac back in the office and remain fully connected.

2. Presentations – Need to watch or join a web conference or presentation? Use a web conferencing app like Webex or GoToMeeting to join online meetings while away from your office.

3. Accepting Payments – Need to improve your cash flow by accepting payments away from the office? There are quite a few apps out there that can assist with this task. A few that come to mind are PayPal, Sage Mobile Payments and Intuit GoPayment.

These are just three reasons I came up with for using a tablet from my own business processes (Feel free to add more). The beauty is most of the apps mentioned are free and coupled with the fact that you don’t have to carry around that cumbersome laptop, a tablet may be a wise choice for your small biz.

The Tech Accountant

4 Ways Cloud Computing Can Improve Your Small Biz

Recently I had the pleasure of reading a survey by Gartner Inc. regarding the future of cloud computing for large scale businesses. According to the survey, by 2015 around 50% of the Global 1000 businesses will use cloud computing for many of their revenue generating processes. That got me to thinking, “How can the small biz owner benefit from the cloud?”I came up with four ways that I think the cloud can improve a small biz’s operations. Here are four reasons that I could think of that make cloud computing a viable option for a small biz owner:


1. Cloud computing make a small business more agile because the owner can utilize IT resources in a faster more efficient manner. Gone are the days of setup and implementation of on premise software. A small biz owner can sign up for a cloud service and be up and running that same day.

2. Cloud computing allows small biz owners scaled economies providing them better use of the resources that they pay for. Small biz owners can have better control over their resources because the features that they pay for are the only ones that they need. In the current small biz environment, many software resources are being underutilized or not used at all.

3. Cloud computing makes small biz owners more productive. With anywhere anytime access, cloud resources allow small biz owners the ability to work from anywhere and be “open” virtually anytime.

4. Cloud computing will improve a small biz owner’s bottom line. With cloud computing being at the forefront of the new way of doing business, there will be a great deal of entrants into the market all competing for the small biz dollar. Vendors will also add more benefits to their cloud offerings expanding the growth of cloud computing making the current model of operations a thing of the past.

These are just a few reasons that I came up with that make operating your small biz in the cloud an option that a small biz owner may want to investigate. Feel free to post your opinions regarding cloud computing and small biz. Would love to hear your thoughts.

The Tech Accountant

3 Steps to Digitize your Documents

I am always looking for better ways to accomplish everyday tasks for small biz owners and individuals. One problem that many face is how to keep, and organize important documents so that they are readily available when needed. Thanks to technology, we can now digitize our documents and keep them in the clouds thus making our desk space clean and clear of clutter. Here are three steps to take the documents from your desk to the clouds:


1. Start using or purchase a scanner – Scanners have come a long way since the days of the basic flat bed (although one of those would still work). Scanners have better image quality, are faster, and come with more features than the early years. Scanning your documents allows you to keep a digital image of the documents and save it for later use. Depending on your needs, there are multi-purpose machines, or scan only machines for those who will have larger paper workloads.

2. Save documents to the cloud – By saving your documents in the cloud, you have another level of protection in the case that your hard drive is stolen, corrupted or destroyed due to a disaster. Again depending on your needs, there are quite a few vendors that offer low-cost or even free cloud storage services.

3. Use Smartphone apps – If you are a small business owner or individual that is away from your office a great deal, Smartphone apps are one of the best ways to track your expense receipts and make digital copies of important documents. With these apps your can save digital copies of your receipts and convert them to PDF’s for later use. Check your app store for these apps.

These are just a few ways to digitize your important documents. Be sure to do a needs assessment before digitizing your documents and taking them into the clouds to ensure that your current and future needs will be meet with the technology that you choose.

The Tech Accountant

Is snow clouding your biz? Here are 3 ways to bring back the sunshine

Snow storms that bring icy roads are a sure fire way to stop many businesses from operating, but for some businesses a snow storm should not be a problem. As many of you already know there has been quite a few snow storms moving across the nation (Florida was the only state not to have snow this week) lately and the one that hit the southeast has brought many cites to a halt. Technology can help many small businesses continue operations even in the event of inclement weather. Here are three technologies that can keep your small business operating when Mother Nature throws snow balls at your operations:

1. Web Conferencing – You have your presentation all ready for the big meeting tomorrow but when you wake up ready for work you find out the city is shut down due to a blizzard. No worries. By using a web conferencing service your meeting can continue as planned. Web conferencing allows users to conduct live meetings, presentations, and training via the internet. So if you are stuck at home find a nice quite place (away from the kids) and conduct your meeting just like you were face-to-face

2. Web Portals – You have the contracts all typed up and are ready to deliver them to the client but there is one problem, the roads are icy and you can’t make it to the client’s location. Not a problem if you are using a web portal. Web portals allow you to share documents with virtually anyone anywhere as long as they have access to the internet. The client can login to the secure portal (just like online banking) and access the document, review and send back to you. The contract is in the client’s hands possibly faster than you delivering it.

3. Remote Desktop Sharing – You have been snowed in your home for the past few days and have not been able to make it to your client’s location. The client is having a problem with their software and they need you there to resolve the issue. With a remote desktop sharing, you can access your client’s computer and walk them through the solution to their problem or even resolve the problem yourself. The client is happy that they can continue business as usual and you look like a hero without even leaving your home.

These are just a few ways a small business owner can use technology to continue their business operations when dealing with mother-nature. We currently use all of these technologies are more in our firm even when there is not a snow storm. Be sure to research these solutions for your small business so that you can apply them in the future.

The Tech Accountant



Small Biz Cloud Considerations

Small business owners (SBO’s) who use any kind of technology in their business will have undoubtedly heard someone mention “cloud computing” or “SaaS” (software as a service) and how this new technology will be the future of their business operations. Due to tighter small business budgets and a bit of misunderstanding of what the cloud has to offer, many small business owners continue with the “if it ain’t broke…” way of doing things. When speaking to small business owners about how they can streamline operations and save money, the topic of cloud computing seems to come up a great deal. I usually hear reasons for resisting the cloud to include security issues, control of data, and learning curve.


More importantly, if a small business owner is in the process of investigating a move to the clouds what steps should he take to ensure a smooth transition?

What I found out is that not every cloud accounting vendor has designed their product in the same manner. With security, disaster recovery, and data access being ranked the most important pain points for small business owners, I felt there was a need to get these questions answered first.


There are typically two approaches a cloud vendor will take when building their security infrastructure. Some cloud vendors address the security issue internally usually by building their own data centers with security measures built in and some cloud vendors outsource these functions to another vendor. Of the cloud accounting vendors that I spoke with, one did outsource their data center to an Amazon server farm. Their rationale was that Amazon’s security is top notch and they could focus their energy of developing the features of their cloud accounting product.

Cloud accounting products must also reassure small business owners that their data will be safe in the event of a disaster. A small business owner must ask in depth questions regarding the cloud vendor’s data center location, if there are additional data centers, and where those data centers are located to ensure that in the event of a disaster, the small businesses data will be protected and available.

Although having access to the data at all times is an important part of cloud computing, knowing who has access to your data is just as important. All the cloud computing vendors that I spoke to assured me that the only individuals that would have access to my data would be the individuals that I gave permission to. As with on premise software, a small business owner must have the proper controls in place to deter unauthorized access to certain areas of the software. The cloud vendors that I spoke to have integrated various levels of controls into their cloud offerings that include user name and password protection, password expiration dates, and permission access that limits what certain users can access.

As you can see, there are quite a few issues that need to be address before a small business owner takes a leap into the clouds. By speaking with cloud vendors, mapping out a plan, and test driving systems before going full speed with a cloud accounting solution, a small business owner can move their mission critical data to the clouds seamlessly.

The Tech Accountant

The New Smart Vault

Cloud vendor SmartVault has come out with some great new features in their update release that are sure to be on the holiday list for small biz owners. Be sure to view the video below to see the new features in action.



I will be testing the new feature this week (since this will be a slow week) and will be sure to post some feedback regarding them. I will say that I am glad to see the product expanding more into other markets and not just the QuickBooks market. Smart....very SmartVault.

The Tech Accountant

Cloud Accounting for Small Biz's

Just in time to get small business owners ready for the new year and tax season, cloud accounting vendor Outright has partnered with Google and Shoeboxed.com to offer small business owners an easier way to integrate back office admin functions with their accounting product. Be sure to watch the video below and see how using cloud products can save you money, increase productivity, and focus on growing your business.

 

The Outright product is mainly geared toward sole proprietors (Schedule C)....sorry for everyone else, but there are cloud options available for you too.

The Tech Accountant

10 Signs Your Small Biz may be ready for the clouds

Cloud computing continues to make inroads into our everyday lives as indicated by many surveys taken recently. That got me wondering if small business owners were also embracing the cloud more for the coming year. There are still quite a few small businesses out there that feel the need to continue to use on premise software for their operations feeling that if it ain’t broke…well you know the rest. The importance of using the cloud finally came to a head when I was recently on an engagement and before I could start to work, I had to update the software. So I came up with a brief list of 10 signs that your small business is ready for the clouds:


1. You receive a CD to load the software

2. You have to go thru a registration/renewal process

3. A new version comes out every year

4. Software has to be updated

5. You have to call tech support for problems

6. You spend time being tech support researching your own problem

7. Support contract expires every 3-4 years

8. Corrupted data issues

9. Desktop has too many version icons

10. Your PC runs slower

Listen to me elaborate a bit more about the list here:



This is just a quick list of things I see when working with clients why the cloud would help them lower their costs, increase productivity and efficiency and let them focus on growing their businesses. If anyone can think of any more or even why a small business owner should stay with on premise software feel free to post a comment to the post.

The Tech Accountant

Statements too broad for the IRS

Recently when speaking to a few of the attendees of our small business workshops the topic of business expenses came up and one of the attendees was under the impression that all a business owner needed to validate an expense was their bank or credit card statement. Unfortunately it gonna take a little more than that for it to fly with the IRS.

The IRS defines a business expense as a cost that is ordinary and necessary to carry on the trade or business. Expenses are typically deductable if the business is out to make a profit (i.e. not a hobby). If a small business owner is audited, and a review of the business expenses is warranted, it is important for a small business owner to have more than just their bank or credit card statements to substantiate their purchases. The IRS is looking for proof that the purchase was for a business purpose and most statements only provide the date, amount, and the vendor, not what was purchased. A prime example of the IRS not allowing statements as evidence of business purposes can be uncovered in KEITH J. FESSEY, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent a quick Tax Court case that I recently came across (I like to read stuff like this).

In summary Mr. Fessey was not allowed a large portion of his business expenses due to his poor recordkeeping. So what is a small business owner to do?

Small business owners need to keep the receipts and attached them to each statement so that they are easily recognizable and locatable. There are times however that the receipt can fade and the ink is no longer readable. In these cases, a small business owner can use technology as a backup. By scanning the receipt (and the bank/credit card statements) into a file and either store the file within their accounting software, their hard drive or the clouds. There are a great deal of scanning vendors out there for small businesses to use so be sure to Google “receipt scanners” to locate one for your small business.

By retaining your receipts and having a backup, a small business owner can ensure that their bank and credit card statements are not too broad for the IRS.

For more information on business expenses be sure to speak to your tax professional or read IRS Publication 535.

The Tech Accountant

Rain Clouds on Peachtree? Here’s you Umbrella

Yesterday I received an e-mail from Sage Accountants Network that Sage Peachtree’s cloud based solutions will be discontinued on November 30th of this year. With the discontinuation of the Sage Peachtree cloud products (ePeachtree, Peachtree Web Accounting, Sage Peachtree WebsiteTrader and WebsiteCreator Services) is there a “next step” for clients that are using these products before the November 30th deadline? I have been getting calls/emails with questions and concerns about:


• Having access to their data after Nov. 30th

• Will Sage offer any other cloud products to move data over to

• How this affects the use of desktop Sage Peachtree products

Here is what we know so far regarding alternatives to Sage Peachtree Cloud products:

• ePeachtree – extract data by November 30th and Sage will offer customers a free desktop version of Sage Peachtree Complete Accounting and Sage Peachtree Simple Payroll

• Peachtree Web Accounting – Sage offers two alternate sources for web accounting. Sage Remote Access powered by GoToMyPC and Sage Peachtree Accounting 2011 using Terminal Services. To see which solution will work for your small business click here.

• Sage Peachtree WebsiteTrader and WebsiteCreator Services – Probably the toughest of the alternatives, clients will have to transfer their websites to another provider. The transfer can be completed via uploading the code to a new provider via FTP or exporting the website catalog item list to an XML or CSV file.

These are the solutions that are currently offered by Sage to somewhat minimize client’s pain with transferring their data to alternate sources. Clients must take the initiative and start planning for the transfer now to ensure that there is no interruption in their office procedures and administration and they can also test the transfers before the yearend reporting season. Be sure to seek assistance from a Sage Peachtree software consultant to correctly walk you through the transfer of your data.

The Tech Accountant