Learn How Online Accounting Software Has Transformed Accounting
Online accounting software has revolutionized the way that companies in the UK work, especially how they handle accounting. Accountants across the UK are quickly saying goodbye to hours and hours of data entry, duplicate entries and the element of human error in data. They’re enjoying benefits such as easy findability and have become consultants to their bosses or the companies that they freelance for.
How does as simple as an accounting software manage to achieve such far-reaching effects, you ask. Let’s find out.
Automated data entry
You can merge your business bank account with your online accounting software so that data flows directly to your books. This means that accountants save precious time that they would have otherwise spent on manual data entry, which is also prone to human error on account of its mundane nature.
Your accounting team might also be in a position to have more up to date data, not just because day data flows directly to your accounting books but because other teams in the mix can now submit expenses and reimbursements in real-time thanks to a receipt scanning tool. Users can just take a picture of any source document from their smartphone and upload it to the software. The software not only extracts all the key figures and particulars but also retains a copy of the source document in case your accountant wants to check or vet it later.
Error-free data
Besides the element of human error being eliminated thanks to automatic data entry, accounting software can spot errors and anomalies in the data and will flag these up to accountants.
Duplicate entries – the bane of an accountant’s existence – wreak havoc because they make balancing the books a huge challenge. Accountants spend endless hours looking for duplicate entries and the process may be likened to searching for a needle in a haystack. Online accounting software solves this problem by purging duplicate entries from the system or merging them if they have some unique data.
Automated filing
Accountants save company accounting data painstakingly in various files and folders. Most accountants are very methodical – it’s almost as if it is part of their DNA. However, this takes up incredible amounts of their time and often does not lend well to easy searchability. Instead, accounting software automatically files and categorises data, segregating files at least by date and type, and grouping files from/to the same company.
If one sets up a more sophisticated filing method, the system follows suit and starts to automatically categorise and file according to the new system.
One of the amazing things it achieves is grouping suppliers according to tax.
Business and tax insights
Accountants go from being just accountants and can widen their scope (and ramp up their usefulness) by playing consultant. Online accounting software gives accountants spontaneous business insights that they can spell out and explain to their bosses or clients.
The software is also able to offer insights on how upcoming taxes stand to affect a company’s profitability. An accountant can share these insights and also work together with other teams on changing pricing in such a way that the tax is passed on to the end consumer.
Compliance
Compliance is an increasingly important factor for businesses today and we’re not just talking about the law but also compliance with internal or shareholder/stakeholder-given rules and regulations. Online accounting software helps you manage your data better to keep the powers that be satisfied and to display transparency and due diligence on your part.
As for legal compliance, online accounting software helps you to categorise, track and store your company data in a way that meets government regulations.
Secured, centralised data
Your data is not only secured by double firewall protection when you opt for online accounting software but is also saved for 7 years, as per UK tax laws.
It is also easily searchable because everything is saved under one roof and most software brands have a search box function that lets you track down specific data.
Obtain clarity remotely
Gone are the days when an accountant needed to catch hold of someone and make them explain a particular spend. No more sending unprofessional photos or screenshots of the accounting platform either. The accountant can simply invite the person to provide clarity on specific line items by calling their attention to it using the internal chat feature.
Live data
No more calling your accountant from a high profile meeting asking for the most recent numbers before you make a big decision. You can access your company’s data live and on the go from your smartphone because most online accounting software brands have a partner app downloadable for free.
Conclusion: Don’t be a laggard. The UK’s best companies have already jumped aboard the online accounting software bandwagon with Dext. Visit https://dext.com/uk to get started at just GBP 20 per month, or start with a free trial.