What to look for when choosing Accounting Software and Apps for your Business
Choosing the right accounting software and apps for your business is not easy. There are plenty of options on the market, especially when considering the different products MYOB, Xero, Reckon and Quickbooks all offer.
At Aspen Corporate, we don't tie ourselves to just one software company. Our bookkeeping team works with clients who use all of these platforms. We are experts on all of the main accounting software packages.
What's more, we have worked with many clients to help guide them through the process of finding the best bookkeeping software and aps for their business. We can help you find software and apps that provide both internal management, and external accounting, taxation and business services requirements with the added benefit of simplifying cashflow management and EOFY reporting.
Your business is unique and has unique needs. What works for a friend may not work for you, even if you operate in the same industry. When we work with business to match them with the best cloud accounting package, we do a deep dive into their business to help match them with the best software for their requirements, and once they have the software selected we help the find Apps to make things even easier.
To help you we've listed the somethings to consider when selecting the right software.
What is your budget?
The cost for accounting software can go from free, to a small countries annual GDP. There are cheap basic options, while industry specific software can come with a hefty price tag.
Understanding your budget will help you filter out a lot of the options.
What features do you need your accounting software and apps to have?
The range of potential features is considerable. Common ones include:
- Payroll? How many people will be on the Payroll, how is it easy to use STP, how many staff are in your payroll team.
- Bank Reconciliation and Bank Feeds
- Billing and Invoicing – How many of these each month do you do
- Expense tracking by employee – is it necessary for your business?
- Auto payments for Superannuation – could this benefit your business?
- Multiple location features – if your business operates across multiple sites and locations, do you require reporting by location?
- Multiple departments – do you require reporting by department?
- Currency/ import export support.
- Third party integrations or add-ons – look to see if the software can work with other software you regularly use in your business such as email marketing software, HR, POS systems, job management, inventory management, CRM systems
- What are your reporting requirements? Do you require expense reporting by job, location, department, or employee for example? Does the software produce management reports to make it easy manage your business on a daily basis, regardless of your industry?
- Automation options. Some bookkeeping software allows you to set up automatic invoices, reminders, overdue reminders. You can set up bank feeds and save time with suggested transaction matches.
Support
It's safe to assume that at some point, you will need support. Make sure to see what sort of support you will be offered. Is there a phone line, 24-hour online team, or an email address you can contact?
Usability
Can you use this on a mobile? If something urgent crops up while you are out of the office, can you resolve it on your phone? If you have employees going out to sites, can they issue invoices on site? Or does it all need to be managed centrally? What is the interface like on your phone vs your computer, how does it preform across different platforms?
How many users do you want to have access to the software? Different packages manage this in different ways. You can pay per user, per file and different variations on both. Having an idea of how many files you require, for how many users will help you determine the most suitable software.
There is no accounting software solution which will meet all of your needs, but there are definitely options that are better than others. Setting up on a bookkeeping or accounting package can take time, so investing in making the right choice the first time is worth doing.
We work with all of the major accounting software packages, and have experience a lot of the different apps on the market. Contact our bookkeeping manager, or your Aspen Corporate Advisor, if you would like expert advice on choosing the right accounting software for your business.
Thinking outside the box.
Our thinking doesn’t
just deliver value.
It saves you time.
It’s more than just reducing expenses or helping you improve profitability today. It's about fast tracking your success by taking the time to build a shared vision of your best future. Backed with dedicated and unparalleled team industry leading expertise, empowering you with the tools and guidance to make informed decisions, streamline your financial processes, raise the bar on what’s possible and help you achieve your business goals more efficiently.
The most valuable thing to our success is you. The most valuable thing to you is time.
Where knowledge meets
understanding in tax solutions.
With over thirty years of experience, we know that a good business stems from the roots; from our people.
We offer a unique combination of taxation, accounting, financial and advisory services tailored to the individual requirements of your business.
The contents of this website should be read in conjunction with the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
LIABILITY LIMITED BY A SCHEME APPROVED UNDER PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS LEGISLATION
Liability Limited by a Scheme Approved under Professional Standards Legislation