{"id":2970,"date":"2016-03-28T09:00:45","date_gmt":"2016-03-28T16:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/?p=2970"},"modified":"2019-07-01T15:42:19","modified_gmt":"2019-07-01T22:42:19","slug":"which-accounting-program-should-i-use-for-my-small-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/which-accounting-program-should-i-use-for-my-small-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Which Accounting Program Should I Use for My Small Business?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/accounting_software.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-2995 size-medium alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/accounting_software-300x194.jpg\" alt=\"Accounting software concept image with technology icons \" width=\"300\" height=\"194\" srcset=\"https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/accounting_software-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/accounting_software-622x402.jpg 622w, https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/accounting_software.jpg 862w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>First, some questions to think about before we begin:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What industry are you in? (For example, manufacturers have different inventory tracking needs than retailers.)<\/li>\n<li>How many people will need to use the program at once?<\/li>\n<li>Will the program\u2019s files be on a network?<\/li>\n<li>How large is the business? (More transactions means larger data files, and larger data files tend to require higher-end programs.)<\/li>\n<li>How much accounting experience do you have (since you will likely be the bookkeeper)? How much outside bookkeeping help do you think you\u2019ll need?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Some general comments<\/h2>\n<p>First of all, if you\u2019re new to accounting, it\u2019s a good idea to go with software that\u2019s well established and popular. When you start out, you\u2019ll likely need some help from an outside accountant to figure out how to record transactions properly. By picking a popular program, you\u2019ll make it easier for yourself to find an accountant familiar enough with your software to help you.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, if you\u2019re new to accounting, you\u2019ll want to pick a program that has a user interface designed for nonaccountants. Finally, it\u2019s a good idea to pick a program that comes with high-quality tutorials on how to use the product.<\/p>\n<p>For a lot of first-time bookkeepers, then, something like <a href=\"http:\/\/quickbooks.intuit.com\/pro\/\">QuickBooks<\/a> would probably be a good choice. (<strong>Caution:<\/strong> See our discussion on using cloud-based bookkeeping solutions later.)<\/p>\n<p>One last general recommendation: invest in a high-quality scanner if you can afford it. If your scanner is fast and rarely jams, then maintaining organized, paperless records doesn\u2019t have to be a frustrating experience. We love the Fujitsu ScanSnap scanners and would recommend the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.newegg.com\/Product\/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16838115095\">ix500<\/a> to just about any small business.<\/p>\n<p>Once your business becomes as successful as you surely hope it will be, you will be incredibly grateful to have organized records instead of a trash bag of receipts for who-knows-what. That gratefulness for being organized will quadruple if you\u2019re ever audited by the IRS.<\/p>\n<h2>Know what you need for your industry<\/h2>\n<p>Businesses of different industries need different types of software programs to run efficiently and profitably. You\u2019ll want to think about the unique needs of your business before you pick a particular program.<\/p>\n<h3>Manufacturers<\/h3>\n<p>Manufacturers need an accounting system that can track direct materials, direct labor, and work in progress (WIP). Unfortunately, simpler, cheaper accounting programs often can\u2019t do this very well. For example, as of this writing, QuickBooks on its own doesn\u2019t have a good way to track direct labor or WIP.<\/p>\n<p>If a manufacturer were to use QuickBooks, they\u2019d want to consider an add-in such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fishbowlinventory.com\/\">Fishbowl<\/a> (we haven\u2019t tried Fishbowl, so we can\u2019t vouch for it, but it\u2019s popular and does get good reviews). We\u2019ll also note that small manufacturers exempt from UNICAP can also try some \u201chacks\u201d to basic QuickBooks to approximate labor costs, but this probably isn\u2019t something you should try unless you really know what you\u2019re doing when it comes to accounting.<\/p>\n<h3>Retailers<\/h3>\n<p>Retailers need a good point-of-sale (POS) system that works for their business.<\/p>\n<p>Ideally you\u2019ll want to pick a POS system that integrates with your accounting software. This will eliminate bookkeeping headache by eliminating redundancy in your process for recording revenue.<\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ll also want to make sure that your POS system is designed for what your business sells. For example, QuickBooks has a POS system, but as of this writing, it doesn\u2019t work with electronic scales, so if your shop frequently sells bulk items by weight, you might want to look for a different product that\u2019s a better fit.<\/p>\n<p>Tablet-based\u00a0POS systems are pretty popular nowadays. Tablets\u00a0are easy to use, the touchscreen means you can go paperless with receipts (customers simply sign with a finger), and the whole setup looks sleek and modern to your clientele.<\/p>\n<h3>Mid-sized retailers and wholesalers<\/h3>\n<p>Mid-sized resellers of inventory need more sophisticated inventory tracking than most small businesses. (By mid-sized, we mean more than one warehouse of inventory.)<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re in this boat and you want to use QuickBooks, you\u2019ll need to get QuickBooks Enterprise then purchase the Advanced Inventory add-in for the functionality you need from your accounting system.<\/p>\n<h3>Professional and creative service firms<\/h3>\n<p>Professional and creative service firms need a way to track billable hours. This is because if the product you\u2019re selling is people\u2019s time and expertise, then you can\u2019t do good cost accounting without tracking how much time your team members spend on different clients\u2019 projects.<\/p>\n<p>Ideally you\u2019ll want a time-tracking system that integrates well with your accounting system. Similar to integrating POS software for retailers, this will lessen the\u00a0bookkeeping headache by eliminating redundancy in your process for recording revenue.<\/p>\n<h2>About the cloud<\/h2>\n<h3>Statute of limitations issues<\/h3>\n<p>Make sure you understand your recordkeeping requirements really well before signing up for a cloud-based bookkeeping service.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the issue. Taxpayers must retain the records they use to prepare their federal tax returns for three years after either (a) the due date of the return or (b) the date the return was filed, whichever came later. The statute of limitations for federal tax returns is generally this same three-year window, but sometimes the IRS can expand the statute of limitations to six years if they think you\u2019ve done something really bad. Therefore, many tax professionals advise their clients to keep records for their tax returns at least six years after filing.<\/p>\n<p>If your records are paperless and your accounting software is a desktop program, then keeping documents for six years is easy; just keep the old program and files saved on your computer (with a backup in case something happens to it). When the computer with your old records becomes out of date, stow it away in the back of your closet until the statute of limitations is up.<\/p>\n<p>However, if you use a cloud-based bookkeeping service that uses subscription model pricing, then keeping records around is a bit trickier. Let\u2019s say you close your business in 2015 and file the final tax return in spring of 2016. Will you have to continue to pay the cloud vendor\u2019s subscription fee until spring of 2022? Even after your business has closed and you\u2019ve filed your final tax return? The answer had better be \u201cno,\u201d or this surely isn\u2019t a product you should buy into.<\/p>\n<p>You should also make sure that if the company selling the service goes down, you still have access to your books. The law doesn\u2019t care if it\u2019s some software company\u2019s fault that you don\u2019t have your business\u2019s records anymore. It\u2019s your responsibility as the taxpayer to ensure that your records are around for at least three years.<\/p>\n<p>The most popular cloud-based bookkeeping programs have devised some ways around these issues. For example, QuickBooks Online has an option to keep a copy of your data on your own hard drive (see their <a href=\"http:\/\/quickbooks.intuit.com\/quickbooks-faq#quickbooksaccounting\">FAQs here<\/a>). Xero explains a way to export your data out of their system <a href=\"http:\/\/help.xero.com\/us\/Q_DataOut\">here<\/a>. In addition, it says <a href=\"http:\/\/help.xero.com\/us\/MyXero_DeleteOrg\">here<\/a> that it will archive your data in order to help you comply with statute-of-limitations issues. You\u2019d want to carefully review these sorts of backup plans and ensure they\u2019re adequate before you entrust your books with any cloud service provider.<\/p>\n<h3>Benefits of the cloud<\/h3>\n<p>On the other hand, there are numerous benefits that come from using a cloud-based bookkeeping program such as QuickBooks Online or Xero.<\/p>\n<p>First, your software will always be up to date. This is generally good for security reasons, but it also tends to eliminate some IT hassle from your life, as well.<\/p>\n<p>Second, these cloud-based programs seem to have a much wider variety of third-party applications they can integrate with (especially if the accounting program is popular). For example, if you\u2019re a retailer who plans to use a POS system that integrates with your accounting software, you\u2019ll have many more options to choose from if your books are in the cloud. Thanks to the cloud and these third-party application providers, highly integrated and enterprise-quality IT systems are now affordable for small-business owners.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, the cloud makes it easier for you and your accountant to collaborate on your bookkeeping. When your accountant can easily access your books online, getting help when you need it becomes much more efficient and cost effective for everyone.<\/p>\n<h2>Quicken is not accounting software<\/h2>\n<p>Some small-business owners hope that, because they\u2019re most familiar with Quicken (and because Quicken is cheap), they can get away with using Quicken to keep their business\u2019s books. To which we say, Quicken is not accounting software. It is personal budgeting and financial management software.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re a one-man-band consultant whose only asset is a laptop, then maybe you can get away with using Quicken Home &amp; Business. If your \u201cbusiness\u201d is renting out your spouse\u2019s old condo, then maybe you can get away with using Quicken Rental Property Manager. But just about any other business needs real accounting software.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>If You Own a\u00a0Small Business, You Are Probably Paying Too Much\u00a0Tax<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/ebooks\/small-business-tax-deduction-secrets\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-7415 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/stephennelson_smallbiztax-231x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"231\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/stephennelson_smallbiztax-231x300.jpg 231w, https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/stephennelson_smallbiztax.jpg 246w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\" \/><\/a>Small-business owners often don\u2019t do a good job maximizing their legitimate tax deductions. They don\u2019t, for example, structure their operations to protect legitimate deductions. They frequently\u00a0don\u2019t do enough to create new deductions. And rarely do they understand how to recycle, or double-deduct, amounts that\u00a0can be used more than once.<\/p>\n<p>What\u00a0a financial tragedy! You can get smarter about tax deductions and save your business a bundle.<\/p>\n<p>Ready to get started doing a better job with your tax deductions? Consider our $40 ebook\u00a0<em>Small Businesses Tax Deduction Secrets<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>This 70-page ebook\u00a0provides clear\u00a0instructions\u00a0about how you can\u00a0annually save thousands of dollars in income and related taxes simply by more effectively using legitimate small-business tax deductions. Interested in more detailed information? Click <a href=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/ebooks\/small-business-tax-deduction-secrets\/\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n<form action=\"https:\/\/www.e-junkie.com\/ecom\/gb.php?c=cart&amp;i=SLNSBTDS&amp;cl=23704&amp;ejc=2\" method=\"post\"><button type=\"submit\">Purchase and Download<\/button><\/form>\n<p><a title=\"View Cart\" href=\"https:\/\/www.e-junkie.com\/ecom\/gb.php?c=cart&amp;cl=23704&amp;ejc=2\">View Cart<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Tip:<\/strong> If you are a client of our CPA firm, don\u2019t purchase this ebook\u2014or any of our others. Just email us and ask for your complimentary copy.<\/p>\n<h2>Immediately\u00a0Downloadable &amp; Money-Back Guarantee<\/h2>\n<p>The book is instantly downloadable. You get the ebook when you purchase it.<\/p>\n<p>Also, we provide a money-back guarantee. If you don\u2019t find the information you need or want, no problem. Just <a href=\"http:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/795-s-corporation-tax-return-preparation\/\">email us<\/a> and request your refund.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>First, some questions to think about before we begin: What industry are you in? (For example, manufacturers have different inventory tracking needs than retailers.) How many people will need to use the program at once? Will the program\u2019s files be on a network? How large is the business? (More transactions means larger data files, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2995,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2970","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bookkeeping","8":"category-software","9":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Which Accounting Program Should I Use for My Small Business? - Evergreen Small Business<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/evergreensmallbusiness.com\/which-accounting-program-should-i-use-for-my-small-business\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Which Accounting Program Should I Use for My Small Business?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"First, some questions to think about before we begin: What industry are you in? 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(For example, manufacturers have different inventory tracking needs than retailers.) How many people will need to use the program at once? Will the program\u2019s files be on a network? How large is the business? 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