Everything you need to know about QuickBooks going online-only
Popular accounting software provider QuickBooks is going online-only. The shift is proving painful for some of its users, but there are important benefits and it’s throwing up opportunities too.
Business Control’s Richard Starkey discusses QuickBooks’s shift from desktop app to online cloud-based service, why it’s causing so many headaches, why it’s necessary, and how you can turn it to your advantage.
This job’s a big one
It’s not broken, so why fix it? If you’re one of the 7.1 million worldwide who use the accounting software QuickBooks, this thought may well have flashed through your mind in recent weeks. If it has, that flash is likely to have been one of frustration.
30th of June – that’s the date on which QuickBooks will have moved completely online, and the deadline by which everyone who uses the service needs to have moved their accounting records online. The scramble is on and few are enjoying it.
One of our clients – let’s call her Venessa – has recently completed the transition. Here’s what she told us about her experience:
“QuickBooks is great for service-based businesses, but this online shift they’ve forced on me and all their other customers has been… there’s a tirade begging for release here, but I’ll go for a massive understatement instead: has been difficult.
“Not that the move to a cloud-based service doesn’t have its benefits. It’s the process of transferring all my business’s accounting data online, that’s the nightmare. Such a nightmare in fact, that I had to pay another company, Move My Books, to get the job done. No doubt they’re in high demand at the moment.
“What followed was a long, long week of delays, disruption to my business and expense during which my accountant was constantly on the phone to the QuickBooks helpdesk.
“My advice to anyone about to go through the transition? Prepare yourself.”
A light at the end of the tunnel
Times move on, and unless you move with them, you’ll find yourself left behind, rubbing your eyes in a cloud of dust. That’s especially true if you’re a business. And if you are, getting left behind often means you won’t be one for much longer. Cloud-based subscription service is the direction most tech-based service providers are heading, so it’s a good idea to keep up.
In any case, QuickBooks aren’t switching to online-only just for the fun of it. The move is actually going to deliver some important customer advantages. First off, when it’s complete, everyone who uses QuickBooks will find themselves the customers of a service regularly and automatically updated to realign with new accounting and tax regulation changes as they happen.
And no need to worry about accounting records taking up GB upon GB of memory on your own systems where there might be a danger they’ll become scrambled into a deep, dark, barely-navigable labyrinth. From now on, you’ll get to shelve them neatly in a weightless cloud that can be accessed wherever an internet connection is available.
More information about the shift can be found in this QuickBooks blog article.
The right time to switch?
If you’re a QuickBooks customer and that situation sounds like it applies to your business then, considering upheaval is unavoidable, now might be the time for a glance at what alternative accounting applications can do for you.
Here’s a quick overview of the biggest accounting apps, who they are aimed at and what sets them apart:
Xero provides cloud-based accounting software for small and medium-sized businesses. Its dashboard shows your business’s finances in real-time, its online invoice payments function means customers can pay you securely in a few clicks, and thanks to its analytics tool you can uncover and zero in on financial risks and opportunities.
Sage style their accounting software as the choice for larger companies and those that are scaling up. Their software goes beyond accounting – it can also be used to manage wider finances, payroll, operations and staff – and is available in packages tailored for specific industries.
Exchequer is another provider of cloud-based financial management software. Theirs is geared towards freeing finance teams from ity-bity tasks so they can focus on strategy and performance. This option is designed with larger companies in mind.
Oracle NetSuite offer accounting software to match their grandiose name. Also cloud-based, Oracle NetSuite prides itself on being accounting software designed for the mega-corps. Its features include a native CRM, customizable reporting, financial consolidation and multi-country capabilities (languages, tax reporting).
QuickBooks are the company behind the accounting software that’s most popular with SMEs. Their software is available in five package options, each designed with a bracket of company size in mind. These range from sole traders to medium sized companies that need features such as automatic data backup, custom permissions and bespoke reporting and insights.
If you want a more comprehensive overview of what online accounting can do for your business, download a copy of our free accounting software smartguide.
If you're interested in finding out more about changing accountants, have a look at our smart guide which is all about busting myths where switching things up is concerned. It’s a lot easier than you might think.
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