Scott Gregory, QuickBooks Expert

Attention IT Geeks: Information on QuickBooks and Remote Access

2010-03-09T10:00:00-05:00

Looking for ways to help your clients connect remotely to QuickBooks software, especially the Enterprise version?

Download this special whitepaper from Intuit:

Maximizing the Value and Performance of QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions with Remote Desktop Services

In addition, make sure to view this knowledgebase article that discusses the compatibility of various types of networks with QuickBooks.

It is extremely important to note that:

A terminal services environment is ONLY supported for the Enterprise version of QuickBooks, not Pro or Premier.
QuickBooks (any version) is NOT designed to work with WANs
QuickBooks (any version) is NOT designed to work with VPNs - you will find the performance to be abysmal
QuickBooks (any version) is NOT designed to work with wireless LANs - you will very likely encounter connectivity problems and dropped connections to the QuickBooks data file

Remember, don't shoot the messenger! <grin>

I didn't make these rules - just thought you'd find them helpful.

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Downloading Your Way to Disaster in QuickBooks

2010-03-02T00:45:00-05:00

Now I know one reason why so many people run into trouble when using QuickBooks.

I was recently working with a client that had asked for some help getting data imported from PayPal and from her bank account into her QuickBooks file.

So we connected remotely and began to review her setup. As I always do in cases like this, we made a backup of the QuickBooks data before we did anything else- always a good habit to get into (just in case of course).

Then, we began to import the data from her bank. A couple of clicks on the data file she downloaded from her bank and the screen was telling us the import was successful.

WRONG!

One look at the results of the download indicated that all was not well. Not well at all.

The file she imported proceeded to create several new bank accounts in her QuickBooks chart of accounts - and it didn't bother to post anything to her main bank account.

To put it simply, this download process did nothing but screw up her QuickBooks. I was shocked at just how much of a mess it made in such a short time. Off to the trash with using that idea.

AVOID GIVING YOURSELF THIS HEADACHE

At that stage, we restored her QuickBooks backup, and then began the import of the PayPal data.

As before, the import itself went just fine - from a technology perspective.

From an accounting perspective, it was a disaster!

When the import was done, she now had 2 new bank accounts in QuickBooks in addition to her PayPal account. It added a PayPal income account and a PayPal expense account. Note that I said all of these were set up as QuickBooks BANK accounts that would show up on her balance sheet report, NOT the profit and loss report which is where they belonged.

Ugh...

We made a couple of quick tweaks to get this imported data corrected, and she was going to do another download from PayPal to see how that turned out. We're keeping our fingers crossed she can at least use that successfully, but I am doubtful. Hope I'm wrong!

MORALS OF THIS STORY

If you are NOT well versed in accounting or QuickBooks, how will you know if the data you download from your bank or PayPal is posting properly? Just because they say it imports doesn't mean it imports correctly.
Walk first- then run. It is critical to first get a solid understanding of how QuickBooks works via some manual entries of the data you plan on electronically importing later. Otherwise, the download process will only put garbage into your QuickBooks data file a whole lot faster!
There are many banks that can and do provide a great download/import service.When it is used correctly, the download can be a big time-saver. When it is used incorrectly, it can be a disaster.

Do you have a QuickBooks download story to share? Post your story below - we're interested to hear about your experience!

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Download Scott's free QuickBooks guides and learn more about QuickBooks.

Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.

QuickBooks 2011: A Wish List

2010-02-25T09:00:00-05:00

While the release of QuickBooks 2011 won't happen until this fall, it is never too early to put together a wish list of features and functionality I hope to see in the new release.

While QuickBooks 2010 brought us the document management center and the ability to copy and paste information directly from Excel, here is my wish list for QuickBooks 2011:

A remit to address for vendors - c'mon already - this should have been added years ago
Better tools to manage accounts receivable - after all, they are the lifeblood of many small businesses today
A redesigned set of tools to customize reports - the current options within the "modify report" button are really tired and need a refresh
The end of forced phone-in registration to get a license code. You can follow the dialogue on this issue at this very popular blog post.
A fix on the problem that occurs with average cost on inventory items in some cases when the on-hand count goes below zero.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE...

A refresh of the customer center - seriously, room for just 2 contact names, phone numbers and e-mails? What business doesn't have the need for more functionality here without having to purchase a CRM add-on.
The ability to purchase two additional licenses for QuickBooks Enterprise instead of being forced into buying five at a time. Businesses don't grow their staff in nice even 5 user chunks.
An upgrade to the budgeting tools - I don't think those have been touched in more than five years
Reduced in-product advertising - it seems to me like this has really increased over the last several versions of QuickBooks.
The ability to customize statements - very little can be done with this form currently.
To Do items that are unique to the user and that aren't shared on the master to do list
The "pressing Enter moves between fields" preference to be on by default. This one keystroke derails many new users to QuickBooks right away

AND FINALLY

Stop asking each user if they want to enter memorized transactions. Designate people who even see this box in the first place.
Control the process of installing software updates - Centralize that activity in the Admin account, especially after the oodles of problems that R9 in QuickBooks 2009 caused.

I'm sure I will think of more to add to this list. This is plenty to get started :-)

More importantly, what is on your QuickBooks 2011 wish list? Feel free to post a comment below!

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Download Scott's free QuickBooks guides and learn more about QuickBooks.

Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.

Boost Your Billable Time and Productivity With This Handy Software

2010-02-24T09:30:00-05:00

How much unproductive time do you spend each week traveling from the office to client sites? (my guess is a lot!)

How many times have you arrived at a client site only to discover that you could have handled the work quickly and easily from the office? (frustrating, isn't it?)

To boost your productivity and reduce these time-wasters, you should consider a product called GoToMeeting.

CONNECTING REMOTELY

GoToMeeting allows you to connect with your clients and/or prospects via a secure internet connection and phone (or with a headset connected to your computer) to:

Solve business problems
Work together on a project
Demo a new product to them
Conduct a webinar

Once you have connected to an online meeting, it really is just like working on-site. GoToMeeting allows you to:

Share the contents of your computer screen with other meeting attendees
Have other attendees share their computer screen by making them a presenter
Mark up the screen with drawing tools such as highlighter, pen, etc.
Have online chat with meeting participants

LESS THAN 3 MINUTES

I created the GoToMeeting account I use in my QuickBooks consulting practice in less than 3 minutes and was literally off and running.

When you host a meeting, each participant in the meeting is securely connected to the meeting, usually in 2 minutes or less (even faster if they have used GoToMeeting for prior meetings).

MEET NOW OR MEET LATER

I like the fact that you can create a meeting "on the fly" and meet right away, or simply schedule a meeting at a future time. GoToMeeting even sets up the meeting invitations that can easily be sent using Microsoft Outlook.

As far as I know, you can have an unlimited number of meetings on your account every month. There are no limitations.

NO SOFTWARE TO INSTALL

GoToMeeting is known as "Software as a Service" (or SaaS in geek-speak). That means you do not have to have an IT department to set it up or keep it running. They take care of all of that on their end.

The current price of a GoToMeeting account is $49 per month, with annual plans available that offer a discount. If your business is service-based, you should be able to recover that cost in less than a day by being more productive.

FOR BIGGER MEETINGS

You can have from 1-15 people in attendance for a GoToMeeting session. If your business needs more room than that, you can investigate a product called GoToWebinar. That product incorporates all of the features of GoToMeeting plus allows you more attendees and more advanced functionality.

Most businesses will be fine with the GoToMeeting option, but it is good to know that there is a growth path if needed.

I SAVED TIME AND MONEY AND CLIENTS ARE HAPPY!

Just this week, I have fired up 3 meetings to help clients nail down solutions to their QuickBooks headaches. One was located in New York, one in California, and one in Idaho. GoToMeeting has allowed me to expand the reach of my QuickBooks practice with ease and be a lot more productive at the same time.

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Subscribe to this QuickBooks blog today!

Download Scott's free QuickBooks guides and learn more about QuickBooks.

Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.

QuickBooks Should Come with a Warning Label

2010-02-23T10:00:00-05:00

"Ugh, QuickBooks confuses the crap out of me..."

"This QuickBooks class is way over my head....I need basics"

"OK QuickBooks. I give up for the night..."

Do you feel the frustration here? Maybe you have even said the same things!

These poor souls were sharing their dismay on Twitter recently about working in QuickBooks.

The sad thing is, most of these people are headed for big and costly trouble and probably don't even realize it.

JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DOESN'T MEAN YOU SHOULD...

What is it that makes small business owners think that they should actually keep their own books?

Especially when they have no background in bookkeeping and by their own admission "they don't want to be an accountant?" I have heard that phrase literally hundreds of times.

Is it because they saw the commercial that promised "if you can write a check, you can use QuickBooks" (the ad conveniently forgot to include the word "correctly" as in "use QuickBooks correctly")

Or was it the fact that they were lured in with a "free starter copy of QuickBooks"?

Either way, I believe their premise in doing their own books is simply wrong. Just because "do-it-yourself" accounting software exists and is inexpensive, doesn't mean that they should buy it and dive in.

It does NOT ensure that they will be sprinkled with "magic bookkeeping dust" and come to understand the issues behind keeping a good (and correct!) set of books for their business.

NOT AS CHEAP AS THEY THINK IT IS

The poor soul that buys into the "do-it-yourself" accounting fantasy usually gets a pretty rude awakening.

That awakening comes when they hand off their financial information to their CPA at tax time.

In fact, I can hear many CPAs bellowing in their offices right now - "what a $@!* mess this QuickBooks file is!" I've heard it every year for the last ten years.

So what starts out as a "cheap" way to do their own books quickly racks up additional costs as the business owner pays their CPA to "clean up the mess". Besides, don't they want their CPA spending time trying to lower their tax bill instead of sorting out a years' worth of mis-postings and mistakes?

Was any money really saved going the DIY route? Doubtful. Very, very doubtful.

But off in the distance, you can hear the CPA going "cha-ching".

AND THE BEAT GOES ON

Unfortunately, this same cycle repeats itself year after year. New businesses spring up on a regular basis where optimism is running rampant and cash is running tight. "I can buy a cheap copy of QuickBooks and do my own books" is being muttered right now by someone wondering the aisles of Staples.

If the truth were known to these businesses, they would read (and heed!) the warning label that should be prominently attached to their software box.

THE WARNING LABEL WOULD SAY...

"Do NOT attempt to use this software unless you have working knowledge of bookkeeping or have had an expert set it up and show you how it applies to your specific business". Failure to do so can have catastrophic consequences to your checkbook."

Skeptical? Just know that poor bookkeeping practices were one of the primary factors in over 25% of bankruptcy filings according to data from the SBA.

If you remember the old commercial that said "you can pay me now, or pay me (a lot more) later", you have captured the essence of doing your own bookkeeping.

Am I missing something here? Have your own thoughts on DIY bookkeeping? Feel free to post a comment below...

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Subscribe to this QuickBooks blog today!

Download Scott's free QuickBooks guides and learn more about QuickBooks.

Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.

How Do I Change the Font Size in QuickBooks Reports?

2010-02-18T10:00:00-05:00

Good news! - you don't have to accept the default font settings in QuickBooks reports.

In fact, you have a great deal of control over the size, type and color of the information that appears in the various QuickBooks reports.

To change the font settings on a particular report, run the report of your choice, then click the "Modify Report" button in the upper left hand corner, then the "Fonts and Numbers" tab:

Simply select the area of the report you want to change, click the "Change Font" button, make your selections, and continue to click OK until you exit the window. Your report will then reflect your updated font preferences. Be sure to click the "Memorize Report" button when finished so QuickBooks knows you want your own copy of the report saved with these customized settings.

BONUS:

You can also set the default font settings for ALL QuickBooks reports by following these steps:

In the menu bar at the top of QuickBooks, click Edit, then Preferences
Click Reports and Graphs, then the Company Preferences tab
Click the Format button, then the Fonts and Numbers tab
Make the changes you prefer, and click OK until you exit the preferences area.

IF YOU WANT TO CHANGE BACK TO THE DEFAULTS

Changing back to the original font settings is a snap - simply repeat the steps above, and click the Revert button instead of the format button, then click OK until you have left the preferences window. All of your QuickBooks reports will then return to their "out of the box" status.

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Subscribe to this QuickBooks blog today!

Download Scott's free QuickBooks guides and learn more about QuickBooks.

Scott Gregory is a specialist with QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise accounting software. He has been helping businesses "think beyond the ledger" for over 25 years.