We are well into 2019 and there’s a good chance that you’ve set some new year goals for your business. Regardless of industry and business size, a common goal that entrepreneurs have is finding a better way to do things. Your bookkeeping process is a crucial part of your back office that can easily be streamlined with modern day technology. With cloud-based accounting software and a whole technology ecosystem built around automation and machine learning, there is now a better way to do your bookkeeping. A way that saves you time and money, while allowing you to grow your business and build a more efficient and scalable operation.
The Importance of a Robust Bookkeeping Process
Bookkeeping is often low on the priority list until year-end rolls around due to the tedious nature and required time commitment.
But the importance of an up-to-date set of books should not be underestimated. Having an up-to-date set of books will provide you with a clear view of your business’ financial health, allowing you to monitor it through the year to make informed business decisions. Moreover, having a good understanding of your business’ financial health allows you to make proactive strategies rather than reactive strategies when building your operations.
Having a robust bookkeeping process will also help you to stay organized, so when tax season rolls around, your returns can be completed on time and with accuracy. In case of an audit, an up-to-date and organized set of books will help to comply with legal and regulatory requirements of appropriate record keeping.
It is important to get your bookkeeping right from the start due to the knock-on effect into other fundamental areas that have an impact on your business growth, such as cash flow management, working capital management, document management and accurate financial reporting.
How the Bookkeeping Process is Changing
By leveraging cloud technology and specialized app integrations, bookkeeping is becoming more automated and less reliant on a manual data entry process. Cloud-based accounting software enables small businesses to access greater processing power with smaller budgets.
Static desktop applications that traditionally required large capital investments and endless consultation trips back and forth from the bookkeeper have changed to cloud-based accounting software (such as Xero and QuickBooks Online), enabling users to work from anywhere and share information securely via the cloud.
Boxes full of disorganized receipts and invoices that had to be sorted and manually entered into the accounting system have changed to cloud-based applications, through apps such as Receipt Bank and Expensify. These apps allow you to simply take a picture of your receipts or expenses and automatically upload it to your accounting software upon approval. Invoices can also be sent directly to the accounting software via email and attached to individual transactions for easy retrieval later on. Physical document storage space has changed to cheaper, and more secure digital cloud space.
And time-hungry manual downloading of bank statements has changed to time-saving automatic bank feeds that allow bookkeepers to directly download transactions from a client’s bank or credit card statement.
All these changes have allowed the role of the bookkeeper to evolve from a reactive number cruncher that is limited in the scope of work that they can provide, to a proactive strategic business partner and advisor that can move beyond the data entry process. With less time spent on manual processes, the bookkeeper can now focus on efficiency and overall health of your financial systems, which will ultimately allow you to focus on growing your business and adding more value to your customers.
‘Bring Your Company’s Bookkeeping Process Into 2019’ Webinar with Enkel & RTOWN
If you’re keen on learning to how you can streamline your company’s bookkeeping process, we’re hosting a free webinar with our friends at RTOWN on 30th January 2019! Our founder and CEO, Omar Visram, will be sharing how cloud-based bookkeeping works, how you can start streamlining your bookkeeping process, and tips on things to look out for during the streamlining process.
You will finish the webinar knowing:
- The essentials of cloud-based bookkeeping
- The process of automating your bookkeeping process
- The tools you need to streamline your bookkeeping
If you want to streamline your company’s bookkeeping in a reliable and affordable way, you can check out the live recording of the webinar here and the discussion deck here.
How We Select and Evaluate Our Recommended Software
We thoroughly research and test the apps we include in our regular workflow for Client bookkeeping services. After deciding on criteria for evaluating the software and then researching the app itself, we tested the app, noting its strengths and weaknesses. We then work with the app for at least a few weeks before deciding whether to recommend it to our readers. We use the software as it was designed for its intended tasks. For a detailed walk-through of how we select and evaluate software, please see the details of our process.