Hi there, Small Biz Tech Girl here, ready to help you put the power of the Internet and technology to work for your business.
I don't know about you, but I have hired both a bookkeeper and a tax accountant for my small business. I let them do the heavy financial lifting for me. Still, there are money-oriented tasks that I haven't yet delegated including sending client estimates and invoices. That's where Web-based accounting programs can help.
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Back to online accounting programs.
Since I'd rather be spending my time consulting, blogging, podcasting, and the like, I've looked for easy-to-use, Web-based accounting programs to help me handle my money tasks.
I'd recommend checking out invoicing applications such as Freshbooks at freshbooks.com or Zoho Invoice at Zoho.com. They aren't the only ones out there that can manage your invoices, but they're quite popular and feature-rich.
Features of Online Accounting Programs
Freshbooks, for example, offers both online invoicing, which includes the creation of estimates, as well as a time-tracking tools with a timeclock widget that ties your timesheets to each client. Zoho Invoice doesn't offer the time-tracking feature, but it does integrate with Zoho Projects where you can manage your project time. Freshbooks integrates with Basecamp at basecamphq.com, a robust Web-based project management system that I mentioned in episode #6.
For me, the simplicity of Freshbooks nearly brought tears of joy to my eyes. With a Web-based accounting program like Freshbooks or Zoho Invoice, you can:
- access your client account information from anywhere at anytime;
- create estimates and then easily convert them to invoices;
- send invoices by e-mail that the client can access privately and, depending on your service package, even pay you online; and
- run sales reports in a variety of formats and configurations to see how your company is growing.
I think my favorite part about using an application like Freshbooks isn't that I have a complete record of everything I've done for each client, nor is it that I can quickly identify my company profit centers, although both features are definitely helpful.
I have to confess that I love the fact that I no longer lose track of invoice numbers and don't have to send embarrassing e-mails to clients asking them to renumber the last invoice I sent.
Other features that might make a Web-based accounting tool useful include:
- the ability to brand your invoices for a more professional look;
- an automated repeat feature you can set up for recurring invoices; and
- overdue reminders and payment receipts to easily handle invoicing busy work.
Cost of Online Accounting Programs
In terms of pricing, Freshbooks fees start at $14 a month and go up to $149 a month for enterprise level service. Zoho Invoice starts at $5 a month and goes to $35 a month. Zoho Invoice measures their service levels by the number of invoices you can send. Freshbooks offers unlimited invoicing but limits the number of clients you can include or staff members you can add. Both applications offer free versions that are limited in features but still useful.
Other Web-based applications that might suit you include Blinksale.com that can import clients from Basecamp; Harvest at getharvest.com to track time and manage invoicing; and Cashboard at getcashboard.com which offers estimates, time tracking, and invoicing.
Free Trials
A quick and dirty tip for you regarding any of these Web-based tools is to try several of them out for free for a short period of time to see which one might work best for you.
Bottom Line: If you have to handle invoicing for your small business, don't shy away from Web-based invoicing and accounting programs. They can almost make sending out invoices fun. Well, almost...
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