Accounting and the things about running the business

M

Matt Vivlamore

Senior
Jan 11, 2011
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Southern MD, USA
www.meerkatsound.com
What do you use to track your business with? For the past few years, I've been using Excel Doc but I think I have outgrown this. I am looking into QuickBooks.


Accounting & Taxes. In the past I've done it myself and used TurboTax Home & Small Business; but looking at my numbers from this past year, I am not so sure if I am comfortable by doing it myself.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

We use Quickbooks largely because our accountant mandated it and because Intuit does keep the payroll tax calcs up to date. As a computer program goes it just plain sucks. Unless you have an accountant that insists on your data being in that format I'd suggest something else, anything else. If you use a Mac be aware that the Mac version of Quickbooks is in no way comparable to the Windows version, it won't even perform payroll calcs, its an entirely different and much lighter program. Intuit has the lions share of the market in the same way that MS has Office as the defacto standard for general business software that is to say not on the merits of its functionality or user interface but simply on name recognition.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

Quickbooks online. The mobile app is incredibly useful for a production company because of the ability to quickly pull up customer information, invoices, payments, etc. at the venue or on the road. Also nice to be able to invoice people immediately at the show so you aren't trying to remember to do it Monday in the office.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

Tom Manchester said:
Quickbooks online. The mobile app is incredibly useful for a production company because of the ability to quickly pull up customer information, invoices, payments, etc. at the venue or on the road. Also nice to be able to invoice people immediately at the show so you aren't trying to remember to do it Monday in the office.
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Thanks Tom, was going to pull the trigger on this today. I used to use QB on my PC but the online version is more in line with my needs and habits.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

Riley Casey said:
We use Quickbooks largely because our accountant mandated it and because Intuit does keep the payroll tax calcs up to date. As a computer program goes it just plain sucks. Unless you have an accountant that insists on your data being in that format I'd suggest something else, anything else. If you use a Mac be aware that the Mac version of Quickbooks is in no way comparable to the Windows version, it won't even perform payroll calcs, its an entirely different and much lighter program. Intuit has the lions share of the market in the same way that MS has Office as the defacto standard for general business software that is to say not on the merits of its functionality or user interface but simply on name recognition.
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All of this, right here.

We use QB because our accountant.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

I use Quickbooks for the business and Mint for home accounting. My business is simple enough that I would use mint for it except that Mint can't access the business account on my banking website. It may be worth seeing if it can access yours before spending money on Quickbooks. Mint has been really useful in tracking our household spending, creating budgets, etc. It's free.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

John Chiara said:
Thanks Tom, was going to pull the trigger on this today. I used to use QB on my PC but the online version is more in line with my needs and habits.
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I think I pay $13/ month or some minuscule amount, but make that back by eliminating at least 1 hour of having to sit down in my office every week and, and also bring in an additional $2-3,000 a year in small payments that would otherwise be forgotten about or lost.

One issue I used to have is forgetting if I had received checks for invoices. I made a habit of closing out the invoice for each check received only when I had it in my hand at the counter at the bank from my phone. That way when I see that there is a closed out invoice I know for certain that I had that check in my hands and put it in the account.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

So there is this about Quickbooks or just about any information tracking system. Running a business really, really, really requires a level of structure that some kind of invoicing and billing system does tend to formalize - IF you do in fact use it and use it religiously. We have a booking database that tracks our inventory and staffing, has a calendar, a list of repairs that is linked to the equipment inventory, a list of purchases linked to our vendor / client list and allows seeing all those details for the last ten years. Anyone in the shop or the warehouse can access that information from any comp. That database is entirely separate from Quickbooks. Even lending out a mic or two to friends and family goes into the booking database so that it's much easier to find those LDCs you loaned to your sister for her choral group performance back in September - and never got back. So yes, data tracking is a good thing in and of itself and to the extent that the software creates a sort of straightjacket compelling you to do a good job of keeping your business organized it's a plus. I know at least one back line rental company that uses Quickbooks for its POS order taking. Quickbooks has several flavors of the product with that sales in mind but nothing that I know of that tracks a rental inventory so that you don't book out more X32 consoles on a given day than you own. I just think that Intuit doesn't do as good a job of that as could be done but anything that reminds you every time you go to start a new rental or show that you haven't been paid for or haven't gotten back the last three rentals is a good step.

Tom Manchester said:
… bring in an additional $2-3,000 a year in small payments that would otherwise be forgotten about or lost.

One issue I used to have is forgetting if I had received checks for invoices. I made a habit of closing out the invoice for each check received only when I had it in my hand at the counter at the bank from my phone….
Click to expand...
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

Riley Casey said:
As a computer program goes it just plain sucks. Unless you have an accountant that insists on your data being in that format I'd suggest something else, anything else.
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I don't understand this statement. I really like my Quickbooks.
As a computer program to keep track of money it's great.
Unless you mean as a computer program to follow your rental inventory. Then you are using the wrong program. That is not what it is designed for.
 
Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

I use a system built on the Filemaker database software, custom built as there were no Mac native applications 15 years ago when I needed one. Add to that the continual griping of my competitors about the Intellivent software that they were using growing my own seemed a sensible solution. Today there are many options, most still Windows based but no matter what you use, unless you are working entirely on you're own, one show at a time, one rental at a time with no overlap and no depth of inventory that could ever allow anything out the door without being glaringly obvious the next time you need to take a show out then a database that allows you to see how many times you've rented out that wireless rack and for how much over what period of time then you have no real way of assessing the success of your business and the best path forward for making it successful. Fine if your doing it as a hobby, less so if you hope to make a living at it.

Max Warasila said:
So what software do you use for the inventory tracking, just out of curiosity.
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Re: Accounting and the things about running the business

What about software for Inventory Management? I would like something I can input gear/equipment in. Again, Excel has been by friend, but I have over 100 line items on it. I just need a simple application to track what I have... and tells me when I acquired such item (what, how much, serial number, etc)... and then when I decommissioned it (date, why, price, who & location).
I also want to be semi-anal; for example I want to be able to list each cable out because I purchase 4-6 at a time. Also, I want to be able to filter the list (excel term) to list all the "20' XLR Cables" to see how many I have from Whirlwind, EWI & CBI.

I don't need a Rental-Check In/Out application.
 
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