That's still a numbers of bookkepers in Singapore still offer a manual bookeeping service, according to one survey. For some businesses, there’s nothing wrong with sticking with paper or an Excel spreadsheet, but if you’ve never used accounting software, what are you missing out on?
One of the most common questions I’m asked is when should I move from Excel to accounting software? My answer is quite simple – when you can’t quickly and easily manage the day-to-day business using Excel then it’s time to move. Trust me, if you’re there, you’ll know it.
Everyone’s skill level with Excel is different, but basically Excel is a great, cheap and easy solution when you’re just starting, but as soon as you need to manage several customers’ outstanding invoices or you start employing people that’s when things start to get really tricky. Then there’s the stage where you’re busy but you’ve got no money and need to understand where it’s all going. All of these are good indications it’s time to move to accounting software.
So what can accounting software do for me that I can’t do in Excel?
It can take care of entering your bank and credit card transactions – These days most accounting software packages can link to your bank and credit card accounts, meaning that the old days of doing hours of data entry are officially over. Overnight, your bank transactions can be pushed into your accounting software and with minimal effort by you the majority of your transactions can be automatically allocated for you or in some cases even allocated to outstanding customer invoices.
Easily produce a profit and loss report – Accounting software is specifically designed to produce a variety of different reports to help you run and manage your business. A favourite of mine is the Profit & Loss report which shows you what your income and expenses are for a selected period and whether or not you are actually profitable or not. As with most things, this is only as good as the information in the system, so having the live bank feeds mentioned earlier makes this even simpler. Now with minimal effort you can track how your business is going as often as you want – even daily if you’re keen.
It makes sure you’re paying staff the right amount – When it comes to payroll Excel can’t compete with accounting software. Payroll is much bigger than just paying someone every week. There are rules about payslips, leave entitlements need to be managed and let’s not forget IR8A Forms as well.
Using a software package such as MYOB Payroll and Premier can help you ensure that you are paying the correct amount to your employee.
That's still more than above 4 points benefits. Your sales reports and purchases reports just only one click button away .
