Scott Gregory, QuickBooks Expert

Alert: QuickBooks Online - Turbulence in the Cloud

Buyer Alert: If you are considering moving your business to QuickBooks Online, be aware that they have suffered two multi-day service outages in the last year and several multi-hour outages during that time as well.

If you are already one of the tens of thousands of businesses using QuickBooks Online, you already know all too well the feeling of being stranded with no access to your critical accounting records, credit card processing or payroll service.

WHAT WAS IT THIS TIME?

Was the recent outage because someone tripped over the power cord in the server room?

Or, maybe the processor in the solo 386 computer overheated and quit?

Actually, it really doesn't matter to the thousands of businesses that didn't have the ability to "work anytime, anywhere" as the QuickBooks web site touts.

Here is the official Intuit response to the recent QuickBooks Online service outages.

WHO DOES MAINTENANCE EARLY IN A WORK WEEK?

In reading the Intuit response, my first question is - what online services provider schedules software updates for the early part of a business week? Almost every other online service that I use schedules their updates on Friday nights, Saturdays or Sundays. IT guys - feel free to chime in here. Doesn't it just make sense to do them on a weekend?

The second issue is this as reported in the Intuit message - "Quite simply, this shouldn't happen and there's no excuse for this performance. We didn't meet our own high standards for dependability and customer service".

That apology may work with some customers, but...

It likely rings hollow for those same customers that experienced a similar outage of the QuickBooks Online service in the summer of 2010.

WHAT ABOUT MIRRORING/REDUNDANCY?

The latest figures I've seen indicate that well over 300,000 businesses are using QuickBooks Online. With that kind of user base, shouldn't there be a failover plan in place that would knock the downtime from days to hours?

Since we are not able to peek behind the curtain of the QuickBooks Online data center, we can only guess how it is set up. To observers like you and me, it sure seems to me like an effective failover plan and/or mirrored hot site is NOTin place for service issues such as these. Otherwise, how could the multi-day outage from the summer of 2010 be repeated yet again in 2011?

The statement from Intuit says "We're building resiliency and redundancy into our new products and data centers, so we can keep your services up and running in the event of a failure with minimal downtime."

Um, shouldn't that already have been in place from the severe 2010 outages? Here we are nine months later looking at the same thing.

ALTERNATIVES TO QUICKBOOKS ONLINE?

This is where things get tricky.

Any time a business relies on a "cloud/internet based"solution for any type of service, there are certainly risks involved. Are the risks of using QuickBooks Online more or less than those of using other services? As far as I know, there is no easy way to tell. There is no service that tracks and reports on uptime for online software vendors. The bad news for QuickBooks Online is that they already have two pretty good size black marks on their service record.

Even though no uptime reporting exists, doing your homework can still save you from some potential headaches and heartburn. Here are 7 key questions to ask your cloud software service provider before you sign on the dotted line.

If you have decided enough is enough with QuickBooks Online, you may want to evaluate the pros and cons of these other alternatives:

• Hosting QuickBooks Pro, Premier or Enterprise with a hosting service
• WorkingPoint
• LessAccounting

You'll find that there is no perfect answer in this situation, so weigh the alternatives carefully.

WERE YOU IMPACTED? HAVE SOME THOUGHTS?

I'd love to hear from businesses that have been right in the middle of one or both of the QuickBooks Online service outages.

Are you staying with QuickBooks Online? Are you leaving? Please share your thoughts in the comment box below - thanks in advance for sharing!

Intuit - if you're reading this post, my readers would love to hear from you as well.

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Are Accountants Ready for the Cloud? The Answer is...

This is a guest post by Hunter Richards of Software Advice. The original article was posted here.

Technology enthusiasts have long praised the cost savings and simplicity of cloud computing. But accounting firms may still require convincing.

“I’m a firm believer in [the cloud] - I really am,” says Carolyn Duffy, who directs business advisory services for Hein & Associates. “But if I had some special legacy system, I would have to look at the integration issue.”

Concerns from accounting firms about integration—or software customization, cost or IT services quality—should grab software makers’ attention, given accounting firms’ history of influencing clients’ software-purchasing decisions.  The list of concerns may initially seem troubling for cloud adoption, but vendors are quickly releasing new services and products that ease these doubts.

Customization

“If you have a secret sauce in how you want to handle some orders or how you handle your pricing, then often times the cloud might not be the best way to do that,” says Doug Wiescinski, a partner at accounting firm Plante & Moran. 

Accountants often cite customization problems as a reason to avoid the cloud, but software vendors such as NetSuite and Intacct have already gotten the message and have built customization tools. As more of these hit the market, the process could be easier in the cloud than it’s ever been for on-premises systems. 

Data Integration

“Every additional outsourced app brings another set of steps to go through to create and delete accounts and a new ID and password for the employee to have to remember,” says John Neall, chief information officer of accounting firm UHY. “That may not seem like a lot. But when you multiply that by the number of apps that employees are required to run, it becomes very time consuming just to maintain operations.” 

Cloud applications have typically offered limited application programming interfaces (APIs), middleware and other integration tools that are widely available for on-premises systems. But a number of new middleware offerings, such as Informatica, SnapLogic and Dell’s Boomi, are beginning to fill the void with mature APIs and other products - so integration is also becoming more convenient.

Cost

“The pricing models [of the cloud] have been inconsistent,” says David McDonald, a senior managing consultant at BKD, another accounting firm. “Usually, once you get to the five-year range, your TCO is higher for the cloud versus on-premise. And you own nothing.”

Some accounting professionals warn that cloud systems can incur a higher total cost of ownership (TCO) than on-premises alternatives, despite its ability to save money with lower up-front costs. But the on-premises approach is often not an option for smaller firms without the up-front cash for professional IT resources. The nature of smaller, recurring payments actually empowers these businesses to use software when it’s otherwise impossible.

IT Staffing

“The added benefit of a team of [in-house] IT professionals that care about the business” can be much more valuable than services from “a vendor hosting thousands of other clients,” says UHY’s Neall. 

Accountants also recommend comparing outsourced IT services with the value of a dedicated in-house team. Businesses have a love-hate relationship with IT, so they may prefer to shift that function to the software vendor; this concern is unlikely to have a major deterrence effect.

Software selection is never easy, but moving to the cloud is looking better and better. If accounting firms’ current hesitations are any indication, then the doubts about cloud computing are more vulnerable than ever. 

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Is Your Accountant Bullying You?

I'm curious...

When you asked your accountant about choosing accounting software for your business, is this about how the conversation went:

YOU: "I want to get my books in order for the new year. What accounting software do you think I should use to do that?"

YOUR ACCOUNTANT: "I think you really should use QuickBooks. Many of our clients use it and it is a very popular package."

Here is my translation of what your accountant really meant...

"Since we don't know about or use any other accounting software other than QuickBooks, it has to be the right choice for you. Oh, and by the way, even though we're accountants, we really only know how to use QuickBooks for what WE need it to do. When it comes to helping you understand how to use it for what YOU need it to do, we really can't help you there either".

SAD BUT TRUE

Unfortunately, I have heard this dialogue repeatedly over the years.

The conversation on the topic of accounting software is usually very slanted in terms of what will make it easiest for the accountant. Not what will make it easiest for you on a daily basis.

And that's too bad. It doesn't have to be that way.

WHAT IF QUICKBOOKS IS OVERKILL?

In my mind, there is no question that QuickBooks is a fantastic software package. Especially when you consider the price point. It provides an incredible amount of tools and functionality that allows small businesses to keep track of their finances. I have been providing QuickBooks consulting and training services since 1999 and plan to continue doing so for many years.

But...

For many small businesses, QuickBooks may simply be overkill. These businesses don't need a full-blown general ledger and all the complication that comes with it.

SOME REAL WORLD OBSERVATIONS

Tradtitional accountants tend to get the jitters if they aren't working with accounting software that has the capability to prepare a balance sheet, trial balance, journal entries and historical detail back three centuries ago (ok, that last point is an exaggeration, but you get the idea).

Here is the reality as it applies to many small businesses (and I'm talking about those with revenues less than $100-$200k):

• My experience has shown that if they do run a balance sheet, it is almost completely wrong a large percentage of the time. Why bother with it then? Let the accountant prepare a correct one at the end of the year instead.
• If you mention the phrase "journal entry" to many small business folks, their eyes instantly begin to glaze over.
• Many accountants don't trust the numbers they get (for good reason in many cases), and they end up completely re-keying data into their own bookkeeping or tax preparation software. So if they do this, why are they forcing their clients to live in the world of QuickBooks when simpler alternatives exist?

WHAT ALTERNATIVES ARE OUT THERE?

The beauty of "web 2.0" is that there are some new accounting software vendors that offer some really compelling products.

A few of them that come to mind:

• Freshbooks
• Less Accounting
• Xero
• Indinero

WHAT DO YOU NEED YOUR ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE TO DO?

This is the key question that your accountant should be asking you to help you make an informed decision.

For example, if you need your accounting software to handle purchase orders or sales orders, many of the examples listed above will get knocked out of consideration because they don't offer that functionality. And that is perfectly fine. You've identified what you need and they might not have it.

But...

What if you only need your accounting software to take care of invoicing some clients, keeping track of a checkbook and producing a profit and loss statement every month so you can see how the business is doing?

If that is the case, the world of alternatives just got bigger.

EASIER DOESN'T MEAN MISTAKE-FREE

If you are an accountant reading this post, I know what you're thinking. It doesn't matter how easy the software may be - we'll have clients that mess it up. And you are absolutely right.

The issue of whether a business should even be doing their own bookkeeping and accounting is definitely one that is debated frequently. But you know the outcome of that debate - until a business owner has tried to do the books themselves first, they don't see the value of outsourcing it or bringing someone on board who "gets it". Why not try to make it as easy as possible right out of the gate, rather than introduce all the complexities of QuickBooks first thing?

GRADUATE TO QUICKBOOKS - THE ULTIMATE GOAL?

QuickBooks has been around for decades now. They have a 90%+ share of the small business accounting market for good reason. Everyone know about them.

However, all you need to do is follow a Twitterstream for a few days, and you'll no doubt see comments coming through such as (these are actual quotes I have seen!):

•  "I think QuickBooks just broke my brain"
• "QuickBooks is making me pull my hair out. Soon = bald."
• "There it goes again. QuickBooks sucking all the oxygen out of the room. How rude."

When I first discovered Freshbooks a few years ago, I struck up a great conversation with a VP (who has since left the company). One remark he made really rang true, and it was:

"We hope that our clients ultimately get big enough and sophisticated enough to graduate to the world of QuickBooks. If they do that, everyone is a winner."

I couldn't have said it any better myself.

WHAT'S YOUR TAKE?

It would be great to know more about your perspective on this issue that many small businesses face every day.

Feel free to post a comment in the box below!

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Organize Your Receipts for Tax Time and Import into QuickBooks

Yes, it is that time again...

The annual madness surrounding the compilation of data and preparation of your business taxes.

CONSIDER A NEW (AND MUCH BETTER!) APPROACH

Sure, you can take your bag of receipts to your CPA like you always do to get your taxes done. Keep in mind that this approach very likely leads to the loss of critical tax deductions, since your CPA can't make heads or tails out of some of the information you've given them.

Or, you could simplify your life as well as that of your CPA by investing in a service like that offered by Shoeboxed.com.

AN OVERVIEW OF SHOEBOXED.COM

The Shoeboxed.com service is based on a very simple workflow (see the service in action on the video located on their home page):

1. You gather your business receipts, put them in an envelope and send them off for scanning and processing (or, you can do your own scanning and categorization).
2. The Shoeboxed data team scans and organizes your receipts
3. You view your information online, print it, download it or send it to your CPA all nice and organized.

DOWNLOAD TO YOUR FAVORITE SOFTWARE

Once the data has been scanned and organized, you can download the reports into a number of different data formats, including:

• QuickBooks
• Quicken
• Excel
• PDF
• CSV
• Freshbooks
• Bill.com and others

CAPTURE INFORMATION ON YOUR MOBILE PHONE

Shoeboxed.com gives you the ability to snap a picture of your receipt and get it added to your account with ease.

They also offer free iPhone apps for business card and receipt scanning.

PRICING

Shoeboxed.com offers the following pricing:

• Free trial for 30 days
• A "DIY" plan at no cost
• Lite plan - $9.95 per month
• Classic plan - $29.95 per month
• Business plan - $49.95 per month

Annual plans are also offered that provide additional discounts

Each plan has a different set of features and benefits, so be sure to assess which option best suits the needs of your business.

Multi-user accounts (for accountants, CPAs and corporate workgroups) are also available.

THE KEY BENEFITS

Shoeboxed.com can help your business in two critical ways:

1. Allows you to be FAR more organized and up to date DURING the year. Having information about the expense trends of your business during the year is essential to managing your finances.
2. Allows your CPA to spend a LOT MORE value-added time and thought on the best ways to minimize your taxes instead of the time they currently waste just sorting out the mess you give them each year (right about April 13th...)

Are you currently using Shoeboxed.com in your business? If so, drop us a note in the Comments section below to let everyone know how it is working out for you.

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7 Key Questions to Ask Your "Cloud" Software Provider

While the dust still settles from the massive Intuit/QuickBooks service outage (read this excellent article from IT BusinessEdge!), I felt it was a great opportunity to find out what small businesses should do on a proactive basis to evaluate their "cloud" software providers. (NOTE: "Cloud" is the current buzzword for software that runs via the internet, not via a traditional installation on a local desktop or
server).

Given that, I consulted with my IT guru and business partner, Mark Nekic. Mark is the president of Neothink, an IT solutions provider, and he came up with an excellent list of topics that should be front and center in a discussion with any potential vendor of "cloud" software services.

Let's dissect Mark's suggestions in more detail. Keeping in mind that you run a business and probably aren't fluent in "geek-speak", I'll try to keep these explanations simple and informative.

"CLOUD" SOFTWARE PROVIDERS - KEY QUESTIONS TO ASK (#1, #2, AND #3):

1. What is your service level agreement (or SLA for short)? What happens if you don't meet it? This question is designed to educate you on just what the vendor promises your uptime will be (compared to downtime) to access the software. Usually stated as a percentage, such as 99.8% uptime. Find out what happens when they are down. A lot of Intuit customers are asking this very question about SLA and uptime right now.


2. Do you have a disaster recovery (business continuity) plan? If so, can you send me a copy? This is designed to help you understand just what the vendor can (or will) do in the event they have an unplanned emergency at their main business site. In relation to the Intuit outage, the story is that they had multiple power failures at their main data center, thus they went dark. Looks like they will be buffing up their disaster recovery plans, like right this minute.


3. Can you provide documentation of your uptime for this year and last year? Or asked another way, can you provide documentation of your outages? This information should be readily available from your potential vendor.
   
   "CLOUD" SOFTWARE PROVIDERS - KEY QUESTIONS TO ASK (#4  AND #5):


4. How do you communicate problems, outages, and fixes to your customers? Have the vendor explain to you what channels they use (Twitter, Facebook, e-mail, etc.) to keep you posted and up to date in the event of an outage.
   
   
5. How are backups implemented and how long is my data kept? You have a right to know just how the vendor is dealing with the storage and archiving of your data. Don't be bashful about asking. I don't think it's necessary that the vendor tell you the exact model and serial # of backup system they are using, but should provide plenty of insight to understand how safe your data is.
   
   "CLOUD" SOFTWARE PROVIDERS - KEY QUESTIONS TO ASK (#6  AND #7):


6. Who has access to my data and/or the hardware on which it is running? This question gets to the heart of the idea of whether your information is on a shared server and just how your data is protected from prying eyes, either internally or externally.


7. How is redundancy implemented within your environment? Do you have spare disk drives, servers, power supplies, internet circuits? Do you have a spare data center to switch to in the event your main data center goes kaput? As with the above questions, you should have a good understanding of just what is supposed to happen in the event of an outage in any one of the critical pieces of the puzzle. Many of us are wondering why there was no backup data center involved with the Intuit outage. It is hard to believe that they didn't have one of those, or at least they aren't saying anything about it.

If you like the idea of "cloud" software but find the due diligence involved in asking questions like those above to be mind-numbing, be sure to enlist the help and advice of a trusted IT professional. Their insight in helping you separate fact from b.s. will more than pay for itself very, very rapidly.

Thanks again to Mark for taking the time to provide this insight to my readers. I hope you find it informative as you evaluate your options and vendors while you consider using software or services "in the cloud".

Feel free to post your thoughts and comments about your "cloud" computing experiences in the comment box below. We'd love to read them!

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What are the Benefits of Using a Service to Host QuickBooks and Other Software?

I recently came across a very interesting article in the Practice Development News from InSynq. The article offered some valuable insight into why businesses have opted to access their QuickBooks and other applications via a hosted solution instead of handling it in-house.

In the article, author Joanie Mann shares feedback received directly from their hosting customers. Here are the leading reasons why businesses opt for a hosted solution with InSynq:

• Ability to connect anytime, anywhere, with my applications and data (48.1%)
• Ability to collaborate with team members and/or clients (21.6%)
• Ability to focus on my business and not on my technology (10.8%)
• Benefit of knowing my data is secure (3.6%)
• Benefit of 24x7 technical support (2.4%)
• Benefit of predictability in IT cost (1.2%)

As you can see, businesses of all types really value the idea of anytime, anywhere access for their QuickBooks and other critical business software.

Based on my consulting work with small businesses using QuickBooks, I would have thought the "ability to focus on my business and not on my technology" would have scored higher in the survey. I see small businesses struggling on a regular basis with the technology piece of this (i.e. servers, networking, desktops, etc.). In fact, I've been in several businesses that were ready to toss their servers out the window.

If you find your business becoming more mobile and need "always on" access to QuickBooks, the use of a hosting service should be considered as a critical addition to your playbook.

RELATED POST: HOSTED QUICKBOOKS: WHAT IT IS + WHY IT MAY BE PERFECT FOR YOUR BUSINESS

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Should I Use Quicken or QuickBooks for My Business Finances?

Here is the short answer:

• Use QuickBooks for business finances
• Use Quicken for home and personal finances

Both software applications are made by the same company (Intuit), but from my vantage point, they serve vastly different audiences.

QUICKBOOKS - WHY IT DOESN'T WORK FOR PERSONAL FINANCES

In case you weren't aware, QuickBooks actually evolved out of Quicken.

Quicken was first created (way back in the days of DOS!) as a solution for tracking household income and expenses. Then the developers said - "but wait, what about tracking business income and expenses?" And thus QuickBooks was born.

From the very first time you see the opening screen of QuickBooks, you just know it is a business solution. I mean, how many times do you refer to "create invoices", "create purchase orders" or "use the chart of accounts" in your home finances? Probably not often, if ever. However, a business will use one or all of these functions daily.

In addition, if you tried to look at the cash flow statement that QuickBooks offers for your personal finances, I would encourage you to take two aspirin and retire for the evening. How helpful is it that you see a line that says "adjustments to reconcile net income" or "net cash increase provided by investing activities" when monitoring your home cash flow? Not very. This statement is even a bit hard for many businesses to comprehend.

Finally, QuickBooks has no clue when it comes to tracking an investment portfolio. You can't download stock or mutual fund information to it, no matter how hard you try. The reason? Most businesses have a hard enough time keeping cash in the main business checking account, let alone worrying about other investments like you might with your personal finances.

QUICKEN - WHY IT DOESN'T WORK FOR BUSINESS FINANCES

Over the last 10 years, I have worked with many businesses that thought they could pocket the $90 price difference between these products and start out with Quicken. Most of them very quickly came to the realization that Quicken "didn't quite cut it" when it came to the needs of their business.

For example, Quicken knows nothing about purchase orders. Yet these documents are integral to many business operations. Nor does Quicken know anything about sales orders - another very useful tool, especially to manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors. I won't even get into the real accounting-speak like "chart of accounts", "journal entries" and the like. Quicken comes up empty there.

Also, Quicken doesn't have the wide range of reports that are geared to a business like QuickBooks does. QuickBooks comes with 120+ different reports right out of the box that are conveniently broken down into such groupings as "company and financial", "customers and receivables", "vendors and payables", "inventory", etc. Won't find many of those in Quicken.

In addition - you can't buy add-on software for Quicken like you can for QuickBooks.There are over 450 applications that integrate with QuickBooks to help solve a specific business need that may not be handled well (or at all) within QuickBooks. For example, you can use the SmartVault document management system that ties very nicely into QuickBooks - tools like that just aren't available for Quicken.

BUT WAIT - I SEE THAT YOU CAN MIGRATE FROM QUICKEN TO QUICKBOOKS

That is true. There is a "migration tool" inside QuickBooks that will allow you to import Quicken data and information.

Here is the reality - in every situation where I've used the "migration tool" over the last ten years, it ends up getting about 70% of things right, and makes a mess of the other 30%.

That 30% that isn't "clean" is a big deal. It is already putting you in a bit of a hole, since there is information and things that show up in QuickBooks that shouldn't be there or that simply cause confusion in the way they were converted.

The tool itself does what it is supposed to - it converts Quicken data to QuickBooks format. However, the end result is not a sparkling clean setup in QuickBooks in my opinion.

ONE FINAL NOTE

When I refer to QuickBooks in this article, I am referring to QuickBooks Pro. While there is a free "Simple Start" edition of QuickBooks, most businesses usually outgrow it pretty quickly. Your business is worth the investment in the Pro version.

There is no question in my mind, that when used properly:

• QuickBooks is the right choice for a business finances
• Quicken is the right choice for home and personal finances

Those are my thoughts about these two very popular software packages. It would be great to get yours - just drop a comment in the box below. Thanks for reading!

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Hosted QuickBooks: What Is It + Why It May be a Perfect Option For Your Business

Don't worry - I'm not going to get all geeky and IT-like on you with this post...

Maybe you've heard the phrase "you could use a hosted QuickBooks solution" and weren't quite sure what it meant or if it even applied to your business.

Or, maybe you have multiple locations and need everyone working in centralized QuickBooks data and doing it as simply as possible?

AN EASY WAY TO VISUALIZE HOSTED QUICKBOOKS

Close your eyes for just a sec...

Imagine sitting down at your desktop or laptop computer and signing into QuickBooks. It doesn't matter where you are located, nor does it matter where your staff is located. As long as you can get to the internet, you can get to your QuickBooks.

If you can visualize this, you've got the idea of "hosted QuickBooks" nailed down. That's it.

NO NEED FOR SERVERS OR AN IT DEPARTMENT TO MAKE IT HAPPEN

Now, visualize your current configuration to get to QuickBooks. You've probably heard things like "servers, remote desktop connection, terminal services, WAN, VPN connections" and all sorts of other cyberbabble when it comes to getting your team connected to your QuickBooks.

With a "hosted QuickBooks solution", you don't need any of that. Period. Did I mention that you just need a connection to the internet?

THE QUICKBOOKS HOSTING SERVICE IS YOUR IT DEPARTMENT

That's right. You are outsourcing all the geeky IT stuff that is needed to make all of this work to a company known as a "QuickBooks hosting service". Their team of trained experts does all the heavy lifting on their end so you don't have to.

Did I mention that all you need is a connection to the internet to make this concept work in your business?

A REAL LIFE QUICKBOOKS HOSTING COMPANY

InsynQ is one of three companies currently approved by Intuit that provides this type of service to businesses like yours that are looking for a simple way to connect their team to QuickBooks.

They offer a service called "QuickBooks Accounting Station" that is a hosted QuickBooks solution. It can work with QuickBooks Pro, Premier or Enterprise software, so you have flexibility to meet the needs of your business.

In addition, they offer the ability (should you need it), to host other software that works with QuickBooks such as Fishbowl Inventory, SmartVault, QVinci, and Bill.com. 

ISN'T IT EXPENSIVE TO USE A QUICKBOOKS HOSTING SERVICE?

Let's ask the question another way - how much cost (both hard and soft costs!) is there to keep your current QuickBooks configuration up and running? You probably don't see it directly, but those costs are embedded in your profit and loss report right now.

Naturally, there is a cost involved to use a QuickBooks hosting service. Just be sure to make an apples-to-apples comparison when you are evaluating your options. Don't forget to include the convenience factor into your calculation - did I mention that all you need is an internet connection to use a QuickBooks hosting service?

FOR MORE DETAILS

InsynQ has put some great materials together for you to learn more about this concept called "hosted QuickBooks"

• The QuickBooks Accounting Station
• How Does QuickBooks Hosting Work - White Paper
• Short Video on QuickBooks Hosting to See For Yourself

CONTACT INSYNQ

For more details about the InsynQ hosted QuickBooks services, dial Eric Estoos at (866) 206-1781 x2026. Be sure to mention promo code "bottomline" so he knows that you are a reader of my QuickBooks blog!

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Boost Your Billable Time and Productivity With This Handy Software

How much unproductive time do you spend each week traveling from the office to client sites? (my guess is a lot!)

How many times have you arrived at a client site only to discover that you could have handled the work quickly and easily from the office? (frustrating, isn't it?)

To boost your productivity and reduce these time-wasters, you should consider a product called GoToMeeting.

CONNECTING REMOTELY

GoToMeeting allows you to connect with your clients and/or prospects via a secure internet connection and phone (or with a headset connected to your computer) to:

• Solve business problems
• Work together on a project
• Demo a new product to them
• Conduct a webinar

Once you have connected to an online meeting, it really is just like working on-site. GoToMeeting allows you to:

• Share the contents of your computer screen with other meeting attendees
• Have other attendees share their computer screen by making them a presenter
• Mark up the screen with drawing tools such as highlighter, pen, etc.
• Have online chat with meeting participants

LESS THAN 3 MINUTES

I created the GoToMeeting account I use in my QuickBooks consulting practice in less than 3 minutes and was literally off and running.

When you host a meeting, each participant in the meeting is securely connected to the meeting, usually in 2 minutes or less (even faster if they have used GoToMeeting for prior meetings).

MEET NOW OR MEET LATER

I like the fact that you can create a meeting "on the fly" and meet right away, or simply schedule a meeting at a future time. GoToMeeting even sets up the meeting invitations that can easily be sent using Microsoft Outlook.

As far as I know, you can have an unlimited number of meetings on your account every month. There are no limitations.

NO SOFTWARE TO INSTALL

GoToMeeting is known as "Software as a Service" (or SaaS in geek-speak). That means you do not have to have an IT department to set it up or keep it running. They take care of all of that on their end.

The current price of a GoToMeeting account is $49 per month, with annual plans available that offer a discount. If your business is service-based, you should be able to recover that cost in less than a day by being more productive.

FOR BIGGER MEETINGS

You can have from 1-15 people in attendance for a GoToMeeting session. If your business needs more room than that, you can investigate a product called GoToWebinar. That product incorporates all of the features of GoToMeeting plus allows you more attendees and more advanced functionality.

Most businesses will be fine with the GoToMeeting option, but it is good to know that there is a growth path if needed.

I SAVED TIME AND MONEY AND CLIENTS ARE HAPPY!

Just this week, I have fired up 3 meetings to help clients nail down solutions to their QuickBooks headaches. One was located in New York, one in California, and one in Idaho. GoToMeeting has allowed me to expand the reach of my QuickBooks practice with ease and be a lot more productive at the same time.

RELATED POST: Online or On-site Event Registration Made Easy

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Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.

Event Registration Made Easy - Either Online or Local Events

I'd like to share information with you on a service that has really helped streamline and simplify my business this year.

TERRIFIC SUITE OF TOOLS FOR EVENT REGISTRATIONS

In my QuickBooks consulting practice, I host events (both local and internet-based) where event registration is needed. I came across the EventBrite web site from attending another online event and decided to take a closer look.

Glad I did!

 

EventBrite takes care of pretty much everything I need to organize an event and allow people to sign up for the event quickly and easily.

Here is a sample of what I can do with the software:

• Create a very attractive landing page without having to know HTML and other geek-speak
• E-mail those who have signed up with updates and news ahead of the event
• Process payments via - the EventBrite payment system, PayPal, Google Checkout or a combination of the the three
• Get reports about the event
• Use built-in tools to promote the event on my blog and other locations

In addition, I have found their support to be quite helpful with the few questions I have had since I started to use the application.

There is no monthly fee to use the EventBrite service. They get paid when people sign up for my QuickBooks events - a very small portion of the ticket price goes to them and the rest goes to me. For free events, there is no charge at all to use the service.

Are you already using EventBrite? Post a comment below to let our readers know what you like about it!

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Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.