Web Based Accounting For Small Business

There is a great selection of Web based accounting software available, including free small business accounting software. From basic accounting to finance to tax reporting, it's all out there.

That's a good thing because at the heart of any business is the flow of money. Even if you run a non-profit company, you need money to keep operating and that means you need to keep track of that money.

Below, I've listed some of the strongest offerings online today, almost all of which offer free accounting software at some level. Read on and, have fun exploring!

Web Based Accounting: QuickBooks Online

Summary: Many, if not most, small-to-medium businesses start their life using QuickBooks and there is one basic reason why: they get it right. By offering a complex accounting system with a step-by-step approach, QuickBooks offers power without intimidating non-accountants.

Now, thanks to the Web, you can get all the great features of QuickBooks online.

Functional Areas: QuickBooks Online offers the same robust features as offline QuickBook versions. In other words, you get a fully-loaded accounting system with robust reporting and online connections with financial institutions.

In addition, you can purchase additional add-ons to support payroll and credit-card payments.

Features: As I mentioned above, QuickBooks Online is fully-loaded. Included:

Create and send invoices
Charge sales tax
Track payments
Create estimates
Time tracking and billing by customer
Delayed billing
Recurring billing
Print checks
Track expenses
Automated online banking - daily expense download
Generate, customize, print, and e-mail reports
Send reports to Microsoft Excel
Class tracking - categorize income & expenses
Track multiple locations
Budgeting
Time tracking
Prepare and print 1099s
Connect multiple users in different locations
Give your accountant access to your books
Set user permission levels

For full details about the above features, see QuickBooks Online's quick tour page as well as their product features and pricing matrix page.

Usability: Even if you are completely unfamiliar with accounting, QuickBooks makes use of step-by-step wizards and in-product help to get you started quickly and keep you up and running.

In addition, they offer support based on the product you select. For more details, take a look at the "Customer Support Included" row on their product features and pricing matrix page.

Pricing: QuickBooks Online offers three packages, each offering a different number of Web based accounting features. The packages are:

Online Free: $0.00/month
Online Basic: $9.95/month (available: a free 30-day trial)
Online Plus: $34.95/month (available: a free 30-day trial)

For full details about the above web based accounting packages, see QuickBooks Online's product features and pricing matrix page.

Vendor "Strength": Intuit, the company behind QuickBooks Online, has been around for many years and is one of the largest players in the accounting software space. You should feel very comfortable using their products as I expect them to be around for some time to come.

You can learn more about Intuit on their about page.

Bonuses:Some added benefits:

For an additional fee, Quickbooks Online offers a payroll add-on that allows you to completely manage your payroll, including direct deposit and taxes.
For an additional fee, you can accept credit cards as payment.
You can access your QuickBooks Online information on either your BlackBerry or your iPhone.

Web Based Accounting: ePeachtree

Summary: The Peachtree brand has been around for a long while providing companies with solid, dependable accounting software. Complex and robust, Peachtree often offers too much for a small business without an accounting team to manage but is just right for a business poised to grow large!

Peachtree does not believe their Web based accounting software is for every company and I applaud them for pointing that out. From their FAQs page:

"I already use Peachtree Accounting desktop software, should I switch?

That truly depends on your business needs. You may find our other products are more appropriate for you. For example, Peachtree Complete Accounting offers much more in depth Inventory and Job Costing features along with the ability to customize reports. We do offer another online solution that gives you remote access to some of your Peachtree desktop data. If you determine ePeachtree is right for your business, we recommend an Internet connection, such as a cable modem, DSL, or T1."

Functional Areas: ePeachtree offers a fully-loaded Web based accounting system with very robust reporting and lots of features. In short, there's not much missed here and perhaps more than you'll ever need.

In addition, ePeachtree offers an add-on Payroll system that is fully-integrated with their accounting software.

Features: Ready? Here's the list of what's included in ePeachtree:

Get Up and Running - FAST
Choose from 75 Sample Companies
Specify Remote Users and Security
General Ledger Control
Access for Your Accountant
Sales Orders
Generate Customer Quotes
Enter and print professional invoices
Receive Payments
Track Payment Status
Alert Messages Keep You On Track
Handle Customers More Effectively
Easily Pay Bills
Enter/Print Purchase Orders
Timesaving Vendor Defaults
Store Key Vendor Information
Track Inventory Costing
Flexible Item Setup
Display Item Images for easy identification
Job & Project Tracking
Sales Tax Tracking
Over 100 Business and Financial Reports

For full details about the above features, see ePeachtree's features page.

Usability: For the sake of full-disclosure, I have not seen ePeachtree's interface, so I am not sure what it looks like once you login.

That said, you can peek inside by scheduling a demo using their online form.

Pricing: ePeachtree offers one basic Web based accounting package with add ons for more users:

Basic Package: One User: $44.97/quarter ($14.99/month)(available: a free 30-day trial)
Muti-User Add-On: Up to 10 More Users: $29.97/quarter ($9.99/month) additional

Note: All prices are per company and include access for one accountant.

Vendor "Strength": Sage, the company behind ePeachtree, has been around for more than 30 years years and is one of the largest players in the accounting software space. You should feel very comfortable using their products as I expect them to be around for some time to come.

You can learn more about Sage on their company page.

Bonuses: Some added benefits:

They offer a payroll service for an additional fee.

Web Based Accounting: LessAccounting

Summary: LessAccounting looks like a straightforward Web based accounting solution. Their pitch seems to be, "Easier than Quickbooks" and having used Quickbooks, that sounds appealing to me!

Be aware though, that their target market is small business and freelancers (i.e. non-complex business structures). From their features page:

"We (the Less Everything Team) developed the Less Accounting software after getting fed up with every CPA telling us to use Quickbooks, a product that we found to be overly complicated and buggy with a Mac. So, we built the software for ourselves without any add-ons or confusing features. We just needed to to manage our contacts, money in, money out and reports. That was it! Nothing more or less, just simple accounting solutions for a simple web-based business."

Functional Areas: Functionally, LessAccounting focuses on, well, accounting. They do handle proposals and invoicing, which is handy, and the expense and tracking features are a nice plus.

In their words:

"If you just need a simple, web-based accounting application to keep track of money in and out, we're probably a great fit! If you need double-entry bookkeeping and balance sheets you might want to try something more complicated."

Features: LessAccounting's features seem to cover the basic business accounting bases. Included:

Import Address Books
Contact Management
Import Bank Accounts
Import Wesabe.com
Mileage Tracker
Create Business Proposals
Track Sales Leads
Track Business Expenses
Invoice Online
Run Reports
Export Data
Share Your Account
Invite Your CPA
Dashboard Snapshot
Weekly Email

Usability: One of the attractions of LessAccounting is their welcoming interface. Clean and easy-to-follow, newcomers should be quick to pick up the basics.

If you need more assistance, there are many movies and a community forum.

Pricing: LessAccounting offers 4 pricing structures ranging from free to a reasonable $24.00/month. To see what's included with each level, check out their pricing page.

Vendor "Strength": The company behind LessAccounting, Less Everything, Inc., has been around since 2007. They seem fairly dedicated to their business and have released other online applications as well.

Replies from company officials on the community forum come quickly and aim to solve the issues. If they cannot solve an issue, they add it to a bug or future features list, a good sign that they are listening and plan to be around for a while.

Bonuses: Some added benefits:

They integrate with other popular online applications such as PayPal, Highrise, Basecamp, and more.
It looks as if they have an iPhone app.
They offer a free (and integratable) time tracking application (LessTimeSpent), handy for those that bill by the hour

Web Based Accounting: FreeAgent

Summary: FreeAgent bills itself as the "Online Accounting Nirvana for Freelancers and Small Business". It certainly feels light and airy when you arrive at their site and it becomes immediately apparent that this is software built for non-accountants.

That is certainly not a bad thing of course, especially when you are dealing with 1-3 people companies where those 1-3 people need to be focusing on the work of their business, not the business of their work.

Functional Areas: This is Web based accounting at its most basic, which is often just what freelancers and very small businesses requires.

FreeAgent is what I call a "closed loop system", helping you communicate and track everything dealing with a job from start to finish. It even goes beyond the loop when needed by wrapping up loose ends like what you owe Uncle Sam. It's simple, elegant and just what their target market needs.

Features: The included features are very interesting; standard accounting with a Web 2.0 twist. My favorite feature is the tracking capability that tracks an estimate through acceptance, invoicing and billing. Handy! Included:

Contacts
Estimates
Time Tracking
Invoicing
Expenses
Banking
Accounting
Taxes

I urge you to check out the "FreeAgent tour" for much more detail about the features listed above.

Usability: FreeAgent has a clean and fresh interface and a number of options for support including:

FAQs
A Knowledge-Base
Customer and Company Forums

Pricing: FreeAgent costs $20/month (there is a 30-day free trial available).

Vendor "Strength": FreeAgent has been around since 2007. They have many customer testimonials and press coverage and regularly update their company blog. They respond to forum posts and discuss plans for continual improvement. I fell comfortable recommending FreeAgent for your use as I believe they will be around for a while.

Web Based Accounting: International

Summary: The software listed in this section is produced by companies outside of the US. Because of that fact, a US-based company might have issues using them so, if you are US-based, buyer beware!

However, if you are not US-based, these all seem like solid offerings. Explore and see if one is right for you.

International Accounting Listings:

Clarity Accounting
Saasu
Xero
Clear Books
e-conomic

Site Selection Criteria

The sites listed above are selected using the following criteria:

Functional Areas - is this software a one-trick-pony (which are sometimes useful) or the central tool you've been looking for to run your business?

Features - how many does the vendor offer and how useful are they?
Usability - is the software easy to learn and use or do I need to take a training course and know how to program?

Price - how does the vendor price different levels of functionality and usage limits (space, users, etc.)? Will the price scale well as you grow and need more features and/or higher usage limits or become quickly unaffordable? Also, when it comes to price, I tried to balance functionality with what a small business could afford and thus larger, more expensive, players were cut off the listings.

Vendor "Strength" - will the vendor be around for a while or are they about to go belly-up? I calculate "Strength" by measuring how often and how recently the vendor's software has been upgraded and the vendor's news and/or blogs have been updated as well as what the industry buzz and coverage has been.

Matt Mansfield is the leader of the "Leverage The Web Revolution".

Head on over http://www.leverage-the-web.com and download our free 79-page manifesto, "Leverage The Web: Why all successful small businesses and startups in the future will be run using software online".

Join the revolution today!

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Tips To Start Your Accounting Career

What are the best ways for you to get your accounting career started? When I started my career, I know I was a little intimidated by the process. However, once you know what you are doing and how to go about lining everything up, you can actually you're your accounting career up and running in no time.

The first step to getting your accounting career up and running is to make sure you have the proper education. In order to have an accounting career you will want to make sure you have some sort of accounting education. Check on line and you may be able to find a school or program that can help you with getting your degree. If, though, you already have your accounting degree, you are one step closer to getting your accounting career off the ground.

Once you have your education completed, the next step in getting an accounting career going is to figure out what you want to do, exactly. For instance, you can choose a corporate accounting career, you can work for individuals, or you could even work for a non-profit organization of some kind. In other words, before you get your accounting rolling you will need to figure out what exactly your accounting career is going to be.

Once you figure out what type of accounting career you want to get started, you can begin your search for a job. There are three good places to look for jobs that can get your accounting career off the ground: the internet, newspaper, and through a headhunter. Check online job sites to see what types of accounting jobs are available in your area. Finding an entry-level job can be just the boost you need to get your accounting career going.

Another way to find that local job is through one of the local newspapers. Check the classifieds in the paper under accounting. There you can find accounting career entry level jobs that may help you. You can also contact a headhunter in the area. A headhunter specializes in placing people in jobs for their clients. If you have the education required to get into an accounting career, a headhunter may be able to place you with one of his or her clients.

Getting any career off the ground is a little bit of a challenge for most anyone. You want to get your accounting career going, and that is something that can be done as long as you know how to go about it. First, make sure you have the education required of someone with an accounting career. Next, figure out exactly what type of accounting career you would like to have, whether it be corporate, private, or non-profit. Finally, it is time for you to get a job and get your accounting career rolling. If you want to build a career, get yourself started by following these simple tips and you will be going before you know it.

If you would like to view more of my articles on accounting jobs [http://www.ac-accountingcareer-tips.info], please feel free to visit my accounting careers website!

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What is the Difference Between a Current Account and a Savings Account?

Over the years I've never fully understood what the girl meant when she asked me if my account was a "current account". I remember thinking, "well if I'm currently using it then I guess it's my current account", but I was never rude enough to say that. I never used to have a savings account, because I lived by the day and never had any savings to keep in it.

Since I've settled down and got a steady job I've began to wonder the differences between a current account and a savings account, and what a savings account had to offer me. Let's start with the basic differences - a savings account gives you a better rate of interest for your savings and a current account gives you more services to use with your account. A current does accumulate interest, but at a fraction of the interest that a savings account does, plus the money doesn't sit about long enough in a current account to accumulate much interest. If you would like to save a bit of money every month to keep for a rainy day then a savings account is the way to go. You won't have easy access to your money like a current account, so it's not so easy to spend, and it will gain good interest, and so grow for you for the future.

The main drawback of a savings account is the benefit I just mentioned: with a savings account you don't have ease of access to your money that you would have with your current account. By this I mean you may not get a bank card for your savings account, so you cant withdraw money at a bank machine; or you may have to give like 3 or 5 days notice to withdraw money from your savings account.

I have a Barclays' current account for my wages to be paid in to, but with bills, paying off debts such as credit cards, and the general cost of living there was never any surplus money there for me to call "savings". Now that I have paid off most of my debts and can start to see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel I have began to thought about doing a bit of saving for the future.

For more information on current accounts and savings accounts you can visit Moneynet's bank account comparison page and find out what different types of accounts, from different banks and institutions, have to offer you.

Disclaimer:

All information contained in this article, is for general information purposes only and should not be construed as advice under the Financial Services Act 1986.

You are strongly advised to take appropriate professional and legal advice before entering into any binding contracts.

About the Author:

Michael Hanna is a keen writer, and internet marketer living in Scotland.

Contact details:
E-mail: samqam@googlemail.com
Phone: 0131 561 2251
Michael's Website: Taxi Belfast Airport
Belfast Taxis

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What is a Checking Account?

Checking is a service provided by banks, savings and loans, and credit unions. When you need to store your money safely you need an account.

Checking allows an individual or a business to make bank transactions (such as depositing money or withdrawing funds) from a federally insured bank account.

The specific terms of a given account will depend on the policies of the bank the account is held by, but in general accounts are all the same.

All checking accounts offer the holder of the account personal checks printed by the bank and personalized with the account holder's details - these checks can be used in place of cash for payment, although these days more and more businesses won't take personal checks.

The new alternative to checks is the electronic debit or ATM card. The holder of the account can use a card to access their individual account, take out cash withdrawals, make payments, make bank transfers, and even buy stamps and other convenience type items, all depending on what is offered by your bank's ATMs.

A checking account is basically a way to keep your money safe and have constant access to it.

How Do You Open a Checking Account?

All banks offers some form of checking service. The checking account is the generic "bank account" that banks depend on. Sometimes you need to have a checking account with a bank before they allow you to open a money market account, a CD, or any other specialty bank account with them.

Before you go to open a checking account, you should be aware that some banks will make you put down a deposit before you become a customer of their bank and open your new account. A few other things you'll need to have with you when you open an account - proof of address, proof of identification, and a social security card. Any government-issued ID (such as a passport, driver's license, state ID, etc) will work as proof of identification, and you can "prove" your address by showing a power bill, a pay stub, or some other official letter or bill with your name and your address printed on it.

Special Types of Checking

Some banks offer special forms of checking for customers who have specific needs.

Customers with poor credit, credit issues, or low income such as students or people with little credit history should look for very basic checking accounts (sometimes called "no frills accounts") which don't charge fees for certain features. In exchange for fee-free account access, your account will be limited in terms of interest earned and the amount of withdrawals you're allowed to make.

If a customer is interested in earning a higher interest rate, certain accounts do pay a greater interest rate if a customer keeps a specific minimum balance. In exchange for keeping $2,500 in my checking account each month, my interest rate goes up almost a full point.

There are other kinds of specialty accounts - so called "life line checking accounts" exist. These are basically checking accounts for older citizens or other customers whose monthly income is not from a traditional job. These checking accounts don't charge fees like monthly service fees for low balances or surcharges for ATM use.

Depending on what kind of customer you are and what kind of account you're looking for, different types of accounts exist. Contact banks nearby to find out about their special programs..

Maintaining Your Checking Account

Keeping track of a checking account can seem difficult if you've never done it before. When you pay with a check it can be difficult to keep track of that money, as it is not automatically deducted from your account balance. It is easy to get in dire financial straits this way if you don't maintain your account.

When you boil it down, a checking account is a series of deposits and withdrawals. To maintain your checking account you have to keep a physical record of your checks, debit card use, and any deposits coming in to make sure that you keep a positive balance. If the bank closes your checking account and sends your balance due to a collection agency for failure to maintain positive standing, this is called "defaulting" and will leave a terrible smudge on your credit score and your future ability to borrow or open an account.

If you want to keep your account positive, you need to understand how a check works. When a person writes a check in exchange for goods or services the recipient of the check treats it like a cash payment and completes the transaction. After that check is deposited into the recipient's bank account, a bank employee files the check electronically and the check writer's bank works out the amount to be withdrawn from the check writer's account -- this is called "processing" the check. This happens every time a check is written and deposited against an account.

How to Keep Track of Your Checking Account

Most banks offer a variety of ways for their customers to keep an eye on their checking balance. Not only should you keep your own tally of deposits and withdrawals, but you can use any number of systems offered by your bank to make sure your and their records are correct.

The most common methods of keeping your balance in check is keeping your bank's printed monthly statements of debits and credits. These paper statements are mailed to you monthly, or available online all the time. ATM machines even offer an option to check an account balance, and many banks have phone-in centers where you can use an "automated teller" for certain financial updates and transactions.

You should closely compare your own list of checks you've written with the list of checks that have already been deposited to determine how much money is actually available in your account balance.

As long as you are a responsible account holder and you maintains good records of your transactions, you should be able to keep a minimum balance in your account and avoid penalties.

A checking account is just about the safest and easiest way of paying bills and dealing in money. Everything from direct deposit of your payroll check to using PayPal to shop online requires a checking account. Sure, savings accounts are good for adding interest, but a checking account allows you to make everyday transactions like paying rent and bills or purchasing everyday items.

What Is a Checking Account? Find out now.

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Small Business Offshore Accounting - Myth Vis-a-Vis Reality, A Report

Outsourcing business processes is not only for big business. Nowadays small business organizations are taking to outsourcing to increase their business efficiency and profitability. Outsourcing today is the latest tool for the transformation of any conceivable business process.

However, myths are still abounding about accounting business process outsourcing; particularly among small business entrepreneurs who are still not sure whether such step can really create value for their enterprise, as in their perception, only big business can benefit form these initiatives. This article explores them one by one:

Myth: Accounting BPO make people jobless. Thus effectively harming the economy of the country

Reality: False. It promotes Growth and Efficiency

Small business outsourcing accounting services is a major budget-balancing act and an option for increasing business returns and lowering process time that does not call for job losses. The efficiency gained through fast and less expensive outturn makes end-price competitive. More products at affordable prices improve consumer dynamism and ultimately, everybody; from the manufacturer to the customer to the government accrue significant benefits. This is particularly more relevant for the small business sector because by outsourcing functions like accounting, they can save costs without compromising on quality and channel this cost saving to hiring people for operational areas to increase productivity and market sales. Ultimately, there is no loss of employment opportunities.

Myth: Complex IT integration is highly required in Outsourcing your account.

Reality: Server and Internet Connectivity is enough. No such Integration required.

The outsourced service provider can use Remote Server model to access client's computer securely to perform services like Bookkeeping, Accounts Receivables, Accounts Payables, Tax Returns, Account reconciliation etc. In the Secure File Transfer all the accounting records are transferred securely from customer's computer to the outsource vendor to perform the work. After performing the work the offshore vendor will upload the files back into customer's computer securely.

An IDC study entitled US Finance and Accounting Outsourcing Market Forecast and Analysis 2003-2008 has predicted that the global market for finance and accounting outsourcing services, which reached over $30 billion in 2003, will reach $47.6 billion in 2008.

Myth: Accounting Outsourcing is only and only for Big Business

Reality: It is also for Small Business.

In today's fiercely competitive global industry, every second and every dollar that you save is very important for your business. So it is also important for small business to save money. That's why Account outsourcing is required for all Business. By outsourcing non-core business activities like Bookkeeping, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, Accounts Reconciliation, etc, to destinations like India, China, Philippines, etc, where there is abundance of technically skilled manpower at almost one-tenth labor cost as that of US, small business organizations can save substantially on operational costs. Simultaneously, they generate more time to devote to core business issues like procuring orders, improving technology and raising resources.

Myth: There is a doubt in Accounting Outsourcing security

Reality: There is no question on the reliability of the service.

No offshore service provider would risk his business possibilities by unauthorized use of accounting data of the outsourcing company. Through secure FTP software, offshore units transfer all the documents securely into the client server. Using customer specified accounting software; the client performs all the work and export the finished accounting files back in to customer's server securely. The customers will import the accounting files into their Accounting Software. Thus there is no possibility of any breach of data security.

Most accounting packages involve general data handling like daily sales figure, preparing an outstanding statement, maintaining expense register, preparing tax returns etc. Small business outsourced accounting services do not ordinarily involve handling of business critical data. Even if they are there, a reliable service provider with proven experience and credentials can handle the assignment with trust and confidentiality to secure efficiency and cost saving for small business units.

Myth: Outsourcing is only about Transaction Processing

Reality: False. Almost all Non-core Business Activities eg Accounting BPO can be outsourced

After its start a decade ago, big business houses mostly outsourced transaction processing activities using high-end technology platforms. The situation has now totally changed. Big and small companies routinely outsource Accounting, HR, Financial Services, PR and similar functions to cost-effective destinations like India. Accounting is particularly a domain that has witnessed tremendous growth over the past few years and has immense possibilities as small business entrepreneurs with strong sales often need a full-time bookkeeper to oversee the books. But, in fact, such services have little to do with the volume of sales and more to do with the level of accounting activity, such as invoicing, bill paying, payroll and the like. Companies with a full-time bookkeeper can save about $30,000 a year by using outsourced bookkeeping services to highly competent service providers in India.

Small business outsourced accounting has immense possibilities to secure greater business efficiency and higher returns and is proven all over the world. Highly enabled service providers aided by cutting-edge technology in offshore destinations can provide extremely reliable and value-added accounting services to ensure greater returns for small business. It's a trend that will altogether change the face of doing small business for good.

The author is cofounder of Cybelink, a company specializes in small business financial and accounting outsourcing like Bookkeeping, Tax, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, etc. For more info visit www.cybelink.com

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