Do you spend too much time sorting through paperwork or collating documents for your accountant? Do you want that time back to focus on your business or spend it with your family? Using the right technology can enable you to do just that.
The first step to consider when thinking about your business and improving efficiencies is the software that will be at the core of everything you do, the accounting platform. This will determine how you send out invoices, how you receive and make payments as well as providing insights into how the business is tracking financially. The software that we believe provides this better than the rest is Xero.
Ever since Xero disrupted the accounting market with their adoption of a cloud based system there has been an ever growing amount of apps that have come along with it. A few of these apps have become staples for our clients as we are taking care of their bookkeeping needs.
What apps do we recommend?
A summary of three main apps we use across a lot of our bookkeeping clients are below:
Receipt Bank is an add on to Xero that handles all the receipts and invoices that you often just shove into a drawer and forget about. You never really know how long to keep them for before throwing them out so they often just sit there for years collecting dust and taking up space. With Receipt Bank, you can take a quick photo on your phone, upload it and then throw away the receipt. Suppliers can also send their invoices directly to Receipt Bank so you don’t forget to pay anything that is sent to you.
XBert is relatively new on the Xero marketplace, having only been available for less than a year, but is quickly becoming a staple for all of our bookkeeping clients. The add on ensures the data in Xero is accurate and in turn reduces risk for those businesses. One of the best features it has is to look up the business name or ABN and match it to the government register to check whether it is registered for GST or not. It will then alert you if the details are incorrect. Having this working at the same time as Receipt Bank means we can identify and update any incorrect data before lodging GST returns with the ATO. We can also provide the tool to clients with internal finance teams who can use it to audit their own work.
A lot of businesses can use Xero payroll to meet all of their needs but for those that need time sheets, pay employees under an award or require specific rules for employees (such as time in lieu) then there are other options available. In our opinion, the best option for both features and value, is Keypay. Along with meeting all compliance requirements, it provides features such as time and attendance, rostering, leave management and automated super payments to name a few. There is a mobile app that allows employees to view and create leave requests, submit time sheets and update their details if required. There is also an extensive reporting function which can provide reports on any data that has been entered into the system. Overall, Keypay provides a much more robust system than Xero payroll and at between $4-$6 per employee it also provides great value for money.
How can we help you?
Jaquillard Minns provides various bookkeeping offerings including reconciliation of accounts, creditor payments and processing payroll. However, if there is something specific you are interested in we can tailor our services to suit your needs.
If you are interested in moving your bookkeeping services to us, or would just like to chat about a recommendation for a new app for your business, please give us a call and we would be happy to help.