How to know if you need help with QuickBooks
Do you use QuickBooks as your accounting software? If so, you're in good company. QuickBooks is the world's most popular small business accounting program and is used by millions of people. One reason for its popularity is that QuickBooks was specifically designed to be used by small business owners who don't have any accounting experience. That's the good news. The bad news? QuickBooks is used by people with no accounting experience. This means that the financial information you count on might not be correct.
How much training do you need to use a $200 software package that you can buy at Costco? Probably more than you've received. QuickBooks is a very sophisticated software program and, like any complex piece of equipment, some level of training is required to use this tool correctly. For many reasons, most small business owners don't seek out training on how to use QuickBooks. Unfortunately, this can result in a complex mess and misleading financial information.
How do you know if you need QuickBooks help? Here are three good indicators:
1. You don't know which version of QuickBooks to purchase
Online or disk? Pro, Premier, or Enterprise? Payroll support or no payroll support? Merchant services or inventory management? QuickBooks has more than one program and many add-ons. You might need some advice right off the bat if you can't figure out which version of QuickBooks is best for your company.
2. You're not sure how to answer the interview questions
Once you install QuickBooks you need to go through the QuickBooks interview process. This is when you are asked a number of computer-generated questions so QuickBooks can figure out how to best adjust the software for your type of business. Not understanding how to answer the questions (or not understanding the questions) is an indicator that you probably need help.
3. Your reports don't make sense
The information you enter on a daily or weekly basis is summarized by the multitude of reports that are automatically created by QuickBooks. Something is wrong with your data if the information shown on these reports doesn't make sense.
What happens if you ignore these warnings and keep using QuickBooks? You'll find yourself with one big mess that could take days, weeks, or months to unravel. If you think it would cost a lot of money to pay someone to untangle hundreds or thousands of wrong entries, you are correct. The total cost will depend on how many features of QuickBooks you use and how many months or years of data that needs to be corrected.
So what do you do after you decide you need help with QuickBooks? Fortunately you have several different options that are easily available:
Training
QuickBooks training is provided by everyone from local community service programs to state-run business development offices. These trainings tend to be very helpful for people who don't have complicated accounting needs. If you use QuickBooks to run payroll or manage inventory, these sessions might be too general for you.
QuickBooks online community
QuickBooks has a very active online community that you can tap into when you have questions on specific topics. If you have some idea of what your problem is, your fellow QuickBooks users have probably asked and answered the question already. Responses to questions tend to be very thorough and professional. This is a good option for people with some accounting knowledge or training.
QuickBooks Pro Advisors
If you need more help than the online community can provide, QuickBooks has a list of ProAdvisors that you can search by geographic area and expertise. These ProAdvisors have passed a test showing that they are proficient with the QuickBooks product. A ProAdvisor can help with a multitude of questions or training issues. Click on the support tab on the QuickBooks website to access the user community and/or find a list of advisers for both the online and desktop versions.
Hire a bookkeeper
In the long run, the least expensive and best way to manage the finances of your business might be to hire someone who understands both accounting and the quirks that make up QuickBooks. Check with your fellow business owners or ask your accountant for a referral for a good bookkeeper. Your accounting firm may already have bookkeepers on staff. Since anyone can hang out a shingle stating they are a bookkeeper, make sure you get (and check) references.
Alison Hinson, owner of Alison Hinson MBA LLC, can be reached at ahinson@midmaine.com.
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