How can cloud-based accounting help my small business?

Are you still using pen and paper for all your budgets, payslips, and inventory
management? Or maybe you’re still using Excel or Google Docs? Even the latter is
considered superfluous now that you can advance your accounting and bookkeeping
needs with cloud based, online bookkeeping software.
Worried about how you’ll make the switch? Don’t be.

Why is cloud accounting important for a
small business?

Bookkeeping is essential for small business owners because it is how you can
remain compliant to taxation laws, maximise your profits, and write your business
some sound financial budgets and plans with ease. Proper bookkeeping is the
backbone of accounting, as bookkeeping is the process of working for your business
to storing your Client and Supplier invoices, collating your business’ financial data, helps you
keep track of your debtors and creditors and maintain your stock levels, plus tells you how your
business is performing.

The best way to carry out processes like these is by using cloud-based, online
accounting software. This is simply because you can’t lose information that’s stored
on a trusted system and cloud-based software streamlines all your daily
transactions.

There are several cloud based accounting programs out there these days and each
of these software has its own benefits. We recommend small business accounting software to
you based around:

 How many employees you may have
 How accessible you want the system to be to your staff
 Your budget – there are spectrums in terms of pricing, so this is an important question
 How knowledgeable you are in the world of accounting software
 How many modules do you want in your software
Therefore, there is no straight answer to which software is the best for your small
businesses.

What is the relationship between
bookkeeping and accounting?

Accounting and bookkeeping actually work hand-in-hand. Accountants need
Bookkeepers and Bookkeepers need Accountants. Think of bookkeeping as the day-
to-day management and recording of your business’ income and expenses.
Accounting is a broader and more long-term assessment of a business, including
things such as algorithms, projections, and – of course – ATO & Government
compliances. Therefore the numbers and data prepared by a bookkeeper assists
accountants. There is no battle of accounting vs. bookkeeping; each as important as
the other, and both dedicated to helping your business succeed.

What accounting software should I use for a small business? Reach out to us here at
Larkin Partners, as we can talk you through your needs for the best outcome.