Select the right accounting and payroll software

It is important to choose the software that best suits your business.  To do that you need to learn how to use the features, thus enabling your business to attain maximum benefit from your investment.

Accounting packages are sometimes sold in parts (as modules) but remember to take into account the future requirements of your business. If your business is going to grow and require additional accounting software features in the next year or two, it is generally more cost effective to purchase the full accounting system from the start.

Every accounting and payroll software package will have limitations and it is important to find these out before a final decision is made. JJ Admin has always believed that grading the limitations in order of frustration helps in the decision making process.  Most accounting systems will not have every feature you want - select the one with the least frustrations.

Talking to others, especially those in the same industry, about their existing accounting and payroll software will give you insights into the questions to ask software retailers. Many clients ask their accountant for advice. Remember that you may change accountants in the future, and also that what is suitable for them, may not be the best software for your particular business.

After talking to others make a list of the things you need out of the system. These might include:

• how detailed does the stock system need to be?

• is job costing a requirement?

• are you planning to produce a separate profit and loss for various departments or projects?

• how many companies (multi-company), or people within your business will need to use the data at any one time (multi-user)?

• will you want to customise invoices, reports, and email or export these?

• How often do you want to change a past invoice or entry? Is this going to be impossible or easy?

Some systems close off at the end of each month and others don‘t.

Ask for a demonstration. This can be by way of the product sent to you - click here for an Ace Payroll demonstration CD - click here fo a QuickBooks demonstration CD. Or ask a local representative to demonstrate how the system can work for your business - click here for Bay of Plenty enquiries.

A very important factor in selecting software is support! Is support available? What form does it take - email, telephone, one-on-one, limited hours? JJ Admin excels in all these areas with unlimited patience.

The value of training should never be underestimated with accounting and payroll software, or considered to be a unnecessary cost. Mistakes can be costly - including your accountant spending extra time sorting the end of year accounts out to the more serious Inland Revenue Department penalties for incorrect entries and/or reporting. For this reason your trainer should be someone with good accounting background as well as software knowledge.

Training should teach you how to input data in order to get the information you need out to be more informed about your business. Training sessions should be spaced out to give you a chance to become familiar by implementing what you are taught, and should not be more than one hour long in any one session.

And lastly, purchasing accounting software will not necessarily save on your accountancy fees, as many hope, but should allow you to have the financial information at your fingertips to allow informed descisions to be made for the future.