Small Business Accounting the Easy Way

January 3, 2012 0 Comments

Keeping up with business expenses can be one of the toughest things that small business owners can do. Most of us are not accountants, and all we want to do is run our business and not worry about the “books”. Unfortunately, to successfully run a business, we have to know how we are performing in every aspect. Profitability is a number that we cannot overlook and while we might be profitable in the beginning, we all strive for the black. There are many programs out there that can help with organizing your expenses and sales, but some of those can take some time to learn and can be really expensive. There is one quality service that takes most of the work out of business accounting and it comes from Outright.

Outright is a free and paid online accounting service that works similarly to Mint.com. If you have used Mint.com in the past, then you know how easy it is for personal finances. Outright takes this approach for your business and allows you to easily import and gather information from your online selling accounts at E-bay and Paypal, along with business banking and credit card accounts. Then you can easily see the information and categorize it to fit your needs. You have the option (which I recommend) of allowing Outright to access your online banking information and credit card information in order for it to automatically pull in expenses. It can track these expenses easily for you, so you don’t have to manually enter them.

Some of you may think that you are never going to let an online service have access to your banking information, but Outright uses bank style encryption. Their service also only reads the information in your bank account and you cannot edit your bank account information from inside Outright. You can change what a transaction might say, but this does not reflect in your online banking account. This process is very secure and safe. If you feel that this is not something for you, then Outright allows you to import the information, so it can still be categorized.

If you currently struggle with keeping up with your business finances, then check out the online bookkeeping from Outright. They have created an easy to use product that takes the guess work out of accounting. The best part, is that is is available everywhere since it is online. Sign up for a free account and take it for a test drive. It’s time to simplify your business finances.

5 Ways DSL Internet Can Help Your Business

September 13, 2011 0 Comments

This is a guest post by Laura Backes. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

So you want internet access for your business. That’s great. But what do you choose? Dial-up? DSL? Cable? Oh, you chose DSL? Okay, then. Here are five points to consider about DSL.

The great thing about DSL is that it works through the existing phone lines. How is that great? Well, number one, that means that you don’t have to live in an urban area to get service. Number two, you don’t have to pay extra fees for installation. Number three, it works a heck of a lot faster than dial-up.
What does DSL mean? Technically, it stands for Digital Subscriber Line. DSL turns ordinary copper phone lines into digital lines for fast Internet access. And the best part? No busy signal.
What else is DSL good for? DSL is billed on a monthly basis, usually for a fixed price, and for the majority of providers it includes unlimited usage. In other words, whether you use it for email once a day or you are a net addict and use it constantly, your bill is always the same. This translates to big saving for businesses that are normally charged by use.
Okay, so those are all great things. One bad thing is this- the farther away from the provider you are, the weaker the signal gets. That means the download/upload speed slows down. This is not a good thing, however you can find out where you are located in relation to the provider and choose accordingly.
One thing that you can get with DSL is a stationary ISP. What this does for you is gives you a permanent address for your work computers. This means you can connect to the work network from home. If your ISP is always switching, that becomes impossible.

There you go. Four pros and only one con. Not too bad. DSL is fast, always on, and gives you a permanent ISP. It also doesn’t usually charge you for the amount you download or upload, so there are no surprises on your bill. Just make sure you are close to the provider and you’ll be set.

This is a guest post from Laura Backes, she enjoys writing about all kinds of subjects and also topics related to internet service in my area. You can reach her at: laurabackes8 @ gmail.com.

Don’t Miss Customers

August 18, 2011 0 Comments

This is a guest post. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

Wayne Gretzky once said “you miss 100% of the shot’s you don’t take.” This quote has since been used for motivation and has also been quoted numerous times in various high school yearbooks across the country. Gretzky’s saying can be interpreted in many ways and used for various reasons. I’ve heard of people using the quote to get over the fear of rejection. It is true; if you don’t try you will never know.

This is related to business for a few reasons. Obviously a business owner is missing out on all business opportunities they do not pursue. But have you ever considered that you’re missing your “shot” by not accepting credit cards? I know most of you are thinking, “What does that even mean?” By not accepting credit cards you are unintentionally missing customers. That’s right when you run a business that’s cash only you are missing 100% of the business that accepting credit cards would bring you.

Credit card processing is necessary to conduct business. It can generate a lot more business for you which will result in higher profits. “I am doing just fine with being cash only” you say. I challenge you then to take out your wallet and see how much cash is in it. Now imagine if you were a customer in your store. Would you want to limit your customers to the amount of cash that’s in your wallet? I know I wouldn’t because I only carry twenty dollars on me at a time. This is not unusual either. With about 609.8 million credit cards being held by U.S consumers it is a must that a business accepts credit cards. Companies, like North American Bancard which has over 100,000 merchant accounts, are able to help you start accepting credit cards.

Consumers prefer to pay with debit or credit cards because it makes it easier to track their spending. It also presents them with a more secure way to commute. I know if someone steals my wallet the most they will get is the cash in it, which is why I only like to carry twenty dollars on me. This also limits my spending when I walk into a store to find out they are cash only. I wouldn’t mind spending the cash on something I saw and really liked, but wouldn’t return to shop there in the future unless they started accepting credit cards.

Limiting the customer to a spending ceiling is just one of the disadvantaged that being cash only presents. The other is turning away customers in whole. Some Americans do not carry any cash on them and prefer to pay with their credit or debit card 100% of the time. These customers will leave your store the second they find out its cash only. It could leave you missing out on sales and gaining repeat customers. Credit card purchases are almost 2.5 times more in total than cash purchases since they have no spending restriction. There is also the impulse factor. Consumers are more likely to make an impulse purchase with a credit card than cash. Accepting credit cards is the easiest, fastest, and most reliable way to increase your sales.

The Importance of Keeping Your Identity Safe

May 29, 2011 0 Comments

As technology progresses, there are more and more ways to make our lives easier. From online shopping to text messages, we all love convenience. Unfortunately, technology comes at a cost to all of us. One of those costs is the widespread use of Identity Theft. There are many ways for a crook to steal ones identity and use it for their prosperous advantage. We all want to think that our identity is safe, but as we continue to adopt new technology, crooks are usually one step ahead of the security of the new technology. This leaves anyone vulnerable. Since I discuss business most of the time, I have to remind you that your business is just as vulnerable as you are to identity theft. How?

Most business owners do not setup businesses correctly and use their social security numbers to get bank accounts and credit cards for the business. While it is the easiest way to get started, it also leaves your business open to the affects of identity fraud. If someone steals your identity, they then have access to your business assets and can ruin you and your business in one moment. For this reason, I stress upon many people to look into identity theft protection. There are many ways to protect your identity, but you just have to start looking and find the service that will work best for you.

Of the many services out there, I like the services of IdentityHawk. This company works hard to make sure that you are safe from Identity Fraud. Some companies out there just monitor the credit bureau sites to help you make sure you stay on top of unauthorized purchases and loans. While this can be good, it is not the best situation. It can take a long time for something to show up on your credit report and when it does, it means that someone already has your identity.

IdentityHawk is a little different. They first provide you with an Identity Health Score. This combines many different factors about you and provides you with an assessment on how vulnerable you are to ID theft. With this score, you can then decide how proactive you need to be in combating ID fraud. After your health score, IdentityHawk will monitor public records, credit bureaus, and black market chat rooms to make sure that your identity is not being used without your permission. Many thefts occur and are propagated throughout black market chat rooms. People buy and sell credit card numbers and social numbers like they are candy. If IdentityHawk finds your numbers in these rooms, then you are notified immediately via text message or email. You then can work quickly to squash the crook in their tracks and hopefully stop and unauthorized access before it starts.

If you are concerned that you might be a victim of identity theft, then it is time to start being proactive. This is especially important if you own a business and have it setup based on your social security number. You need to take the appropriate steps to ensure the success of your business, and Identity Theft protection is a necessary step. IdentityHawk offers a 30-day trial of their service, so you can get a feel of how they will assist you with ID protection. Be proactive and try out IdentityHawk for the piece of mind that makes life a little easier.

Why A Traditional Merchant Account Is Superior to Paypal

May 18, 2011 1 Comment

This is a guest post by Veritrans Merchant Services. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

Paypal is quickly becoming one of the most popular of the online payment processing services. It would seem that consumers interested in both buying with Paypal and sellers wish to use Paypal for their online merchant account needs. But, does popularity automatically translate into the very best payment and credit card processing service available? The answer may very well be no. In fact, there are traditional merchant account services available which could greatly exceed what Paypal has to offer.

Such an assessment is not pulled out of thin air. There are quite a few well established reasons why a merchant account may be a much better option than selecting Paypal.

So, what is a traditional merchant account for credit card processing? Basically, the online version of a merchant account is no different than the one you would employ with a brick and mortar store. You would align with a major bank which would help facilitate credit card processing. Basically, once the credit card order is processed your funds will be deposited into your bank account. This is a simple business concept that has been employed effectively for decades.

At this point, some may be saying that Paypal offers many of the same benefits with far less steps. Why would a traditional merchant account deliver greater benefits than what Paypal offers? There are more than a few reasons why a merchant account is more beneficial.

It is true those doing less than $2,000 a month in revenue might find Paypal to be a better plan. For those that are doing in excess of $2,000, however, a merchant account has far more to offer. One reason is that a merchant account may end up being cheaper because the transaction fees are lower. Yes, there will be a monthly fee for merchant account credit card processing. However, you will make that money back in what you save from the transaction fees you would incur with a high volume of monthly revenue.

Another major issue with Paypal is that it is a very arbitrary service in terms of its rules. Really, Paypal can do what it wants when it wants. One example of this would be putting an immediate hold on the account if it sees problems with your account. Once the account is put on hold, you are in a lot of trouble as far as collecting your money. You will not be able to withdraw funds and customers may not even be able to send you money. That basically shuts your entire business down at least from a credit card processing perspective. With a traditional merchant account, there is far too much to lose from a customer service angle to engage in such arbitrary freezes on an account. This is not to say Paypal will automatically shut down your account without warning but unexpected events do occur and you will certainly want to avoid such issues.

Also, when it comes time to withdraw your funds, Paypal might have a several day delay for the money to be deposited. With merchant account credit card processing, you will likely find the funds are delivered a lot quicker which is always a major plus when you want to access your funds. Paypal has its benefits but it also has its issues. For those wishing to avoid such issues, a traditional merchant account might be the best option.

Veritrans Merchant Services is a merchant account provider that offers low rate credit card processing for small business.
1301 Regents Park Dr, Houston, Texas 77058
(281) 474-4144

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