Accounting is most certainly not the the most favorite entrepreneurial occupation – rightly so. Let’s face it accounting is all about the past, at a time when we all need to look to the future to navigate these perilous financial times.
But, accounting software will help us to manage the past, improve our cash-flow and make better informed decisions for the future. The problem is that most accounting software products are just about accounting and not about managing your businesses finances with a forward looking emphases.
What are the accounting software features you will need to manage your business better for the future? Here are some to look out for:
■ Cloud Computing – will help you to manage your work-time better, automate data back-up, allow access from anywhere & anytime and allow you to collaborate easily with others.
■ Cash-Flow Integration – taking control of your cash-flow is vital for your businesses survival, a automatic 30 day cash-flow forecast will keep you on track.
■ CRM Integration – How much credit are you going to give your client? If you have no client history, you are stabbing in the dark and put your business at risk.
■ Sales Integration – selling online or off-line, both needs to be connected to your accounting software, this will save you time & money, while keeping you up-to-date. An invoicing function is not enough to provide you with what you need.
■ Software Integration – many vendors will talk about APIs, to connect to other software vendors for some or all of the above software modules. Don’t be fooled, your data is being shared and distributed to different vendors, the API is going to fail and you the customer will be suffering – always look for an integrated solution, ie. everything from one vendor.
These are just some of the considerations you need to keep in mind when choosing you next accounting software.
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