Blog

How It Works, And Why It Saves Money, Time

Author: Chris Coggins

Proper management of accounts receivable is essential for maintaining good cash flow. If you don't receive timely payments from your customers, you may struggle to pay your own bills on time.

Although it's up to your customers to process your invoices and submit payments, they are only half of the equation. Your own accounts receivable practices play a major role in efficiency and the bottom line.

How do you currently manage accounts receivable? For many companies, the process looks something like this:

• Supply a product or provide a service to a customer.

• Create an invoice based on the purchase amount.

• Send the invoice to the customer.

• Internally track the date the invoice was sent and the due date.

• Analyze aging reports.

• Send payment reminders and implement a collection process, if necessary.

• Receive payment via a check in the mail and update your accounting system.

• Deposit the check at the bank.

Although each of these steps may be fairly basic, it is the combination of activities that can become costly and inefficient, especially when you account for the amount of staff time required. Whether you have part-time staff dedicated to the task or assign the function to your administrative staff (or do it yourself), using cloud-based solutions for these types of back office functions can save you both time and money.

Using a virtual accounting solution, you can do all of these steps within one user interface. All of the steps can be completed online, and information is updated in real time.  So if you were using such a system to manage accounts receivable, the process might look more like this:

• Log in to your virtual accounting solution.

• Send an invoice with the click of a button.

• Receive customized reminders regarding outstanding payments.

• Click to send payment reminders.

• Receive payments electronically. The customer's record is automatically updated.

At The Tax Office, we offer Back Office Support System (BOSS), which can help you streamline your accounting operations, including accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, tax filing and reporting. Contact us today to learn more about how BOSS can help you save time and money by outsourcing and greatly simplifying your bookkeeping chores.

Keeping an Eye on Cash Flow is Vital for Businesses

Author: Chris Coggins

Managing cash flow is like trying to herd cats. Just when you get close to success, it slips through your grasp. So you have to plan for it, make it an element of your 2013 goal-setting, if you haven't already.

Timing is everything. You must coordinate the coming and going of funds (or have sizable reserves). If you don't, poor cash flow can disrupt product development, marketing and overall growth, and it can damage your reputation and credit rating.

Worst case? Inefficient cash flow can put you out of business.

Predictability is critical.

It’s essential to understand your cash flow patterns. In fact, your business depends on your ability to make accurate projections. Developing a systematic approach helps you orchestrate the flow of money and set goals to maintain it.

The cash flow goal-setting process is essentially the same as other business planning. You should:

• Review and analyze your financial history.
• Plot income and expenses. You’ll see clearly when you might not have enough revenue to pay bills.
• Build a budget to establish rough projections.
• Minimize fluctuations. You may need to occasionally borrow money, at least short term.
• Try to increase sales when you most need income.
• Create an investment strategy that puts extra cash to work for you.

Managing cash flow is an ongoing activity that will help ensure that you’ll be prepared if the business environment changes, new opportunities to invest or increase sales appear, or you encounter unforeseen challenges.

Most small businesses need help analyzing the movement of their funds and projecting out to the future. That's where we come in. We've helped countless companies create plans for maximizing cash flow. Turning this task over to us at The Tax Office is a smart, strategic and cost-effective business decision.

Need more comprehensive help managing money? We can provide all of the benefits of an inhouse accounting department -- without the payroll expense and personnel issues. Our working partnership with you can include financial goal-setting. We're also accomplished in managing your day-to-day bookkeeping and other chores like tax preparation and payroll. So contact us today for a free consultation.

Are We There Yet?

Author: Chris Coggins

If you've been in business for a couple of decades, you've come a long way from paper ledgers and calculators.

If you're a young company, you take it for granted that you use accounting software, upload files and e-mail questions to your accountant, and e-file your taxes.

But there's another significant change in the works. Cloud-based accounting -- often called virtual bookkeeping or web-based accounting – is young, but elements of it are a reality today.

Someday, rather than buying all-inclusive desktop accounting software like QuickBooks, you'll choose solutions from an a la carte menu, selecting the best fit for your company, even if those applications come from different developers. They'll be integrated with each other, and all of your bookkeeping and related file-sharing and communication will be done over the Internet.

Clearly, we're not there yet. Some application developers have created single-task solutions with limited integration capabilities, but we're a ways from comprehensive cloud-based accounting.

At The Tax Office, Inc., we've begun the transition to tomorrow's financial management scenario. Our Back Office Support System (BOSS) is entirely web-based, and can meet all of your bookkeeping, payroll, general accounting and reporting needs. You simply fax or email your bills, payroll data, etc. to us, and we'll do the rest.

Your business will benefit in numerous ways.

• No more paperwork for you or your staff.
• No more worries about upgrades, backups or unexpected data loss. Your files and software will be meticulously maintained on our host servers.
• No more missing bill payments or payroll tax filings or any money-related obligations because you're away from the office. You'll have access to all of your financial information from any web-enabled computer.
• No more late-night struggles to reconcile accounts or make the books balance or create reports.
• No more guessing about your company's financial health or sweating taxes. You'll always know where you stand. And our real-time knowledge of your business will let us help you make intelligent, profitable plans.

We have decades of accounting, payroll and tax experience and expertise. Contact us today, so you can shed your bookkeeping responsibilities and concentrate on shaping your company's future.

How We Can Automate Your Accounting Workflow And Save You Time, Money And Headaches

Author: Chris Coggins

Financial management for a business can be a full-time job. In fact, depending on the size, type and complexity of your organization, proper accounting could require a full-time, experienced staff member or a team of professionals. In competitive economic times like these, and considering the cost of employing people, it's not always a viable solution to handle this work inhouse.

Our Back Office Support System (BOSS) can help. You get the benefits of an experienced accounting team in a more cost-effective, efficient model.

BOSS is a comprehensive, outsourced accounting solution. Our expert accounting team can complete the tedious daily tasks that take up your staff's time, tasks that don't add sufficient value for customers, the company or shareholders.

This solution takes advantage of myriad web-based connectivity and communication technologies. Your staff faxes or emails bills, statements and payroll data to our team on a regular basis. We handle bill payment and general cash flow management, payroll processing and tax filing, monthly reconciliations, W-2 and 1099 preparation, tax returns -- anything related to accounting. And we can help with your overall business strategy, especially as it relates to your financials.

There are numerous benefits of outsourcing your daily accounting functions through BOSS. They include these:

• Staff members that do have some financial expertise can concentrate on meeting your company's goals, creating business models and providing value-added analytics.
• You gain access to expert accounting resources on an ongoing basis at a fraction of the cost of full-time staff.
• Your information is readily available through online access at all times.
• You can take advantage of professional support and suggestions from an experienced accounting team throughout the year.

We provide a continuum of services, so you can choose the level that is right for you. For more information about how we can help drive efficiencies and save your company time, money and hassle, contact us today.