Adding new power to your cloud accounting solution

Accounting in the cloud has become more and more commonplace. But few people know just how much extra functionality you can build into a cloud based accounting package, argues JACK MOORE of Page Kirk.

As we delve deeper into the digital age there has been a significant shift towards cloud-based accounting, with a number of accountancy firms demonstrating the benefits to their clients. There are many advantages, of course, especially in terms of efficiency. With 'Making Tax Digital' now effective for most vat-registered businesses, many more will inevitably be required to get on board soon to meet their obligations.

Xero has been the package alongside Quickbooks that most people have been talking about over the past few years. Xero and QuickBooks are well equipped for the essential back-end bookkeeping, as you would expect, but a key advantage is the large number of software add-ons that are available to integrate with these packages.

So what kind of add-ons might you choose? Well, it really depends on your business and its day-to-day needs. Those in the retail or hospitality sectors could benefit from Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS) systems which can feed data directly into Xero or QuickBooks. Let's imagine you're a hotel, for example. You can easily compare wet sales against food sales or how one bar is performing against another, as well as keeping control of your bar stock and ensuring that it's always replenished efficiently. All by implementing and using one add-on.

Dental practices could benefit from a patient appointment booking system which automatically creates the fee for the patient once the work has been completed and sends the sales data straight into Xero or QuickBooks.

There are also people management add-ons that allow employees to input their timesheets, record materials spent on a job, and a whole host of useful functions that can really add value to your business.

Whilst choice is a great thing, picking your way through all the different add-ons can be a real headache. The online reviews of the add-ons can be a good starting point to narrow down the selection. Most accountants and professionals can advise you which add-ons would best suit your business.

To find out more information contact call us on 0115 955 5500 or email enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk.