QuickBooks Online

I knew it was time to get a better system when I forgot my company’s excel sheet with all the day’s appointments at home. I was forced to cancel all the appointments…without calling and telling the customers beforehand.  There couldn’t have been an airplane skywriter that told me clearer:  It was time to make a change.

I was running a small computer tech service and repair company in Madison, Wisconsin called netNerds. I hired really smart computer ‘nerds’ to go help people with their computer problems. It started with 2 contractors and grew to 9. It started with flyers and chalk on the sidewalks and grew into contracts with big clients and a booked schedule. It started an excel sheet and my cell phone and grew into QuickBooks Online.

netNerds has since stopped running. I still have the LLC and a website up (neednetNerds.com) but that’s to satisfy my emotional attachment and not my bank account.

[Fast forward a few years.]  I am now one of the product managers for the QuickBooks Online team…mostly focusing on our pre-accounting solution called Billing Manager, the easiest invoicing software you have used! Yep, I’m totally not biased or anything.  

The mission this team is tasked with is to “Help small businesses succeed.” Plain and simple we’re out to improve the bottom line of our customers.  So that got me thinking.  What did I learn from netNerds…my small business experience? What would I do differently if I could do it again?

It comes down to two things:

1. Play around with the numbers.

We have to acknowledge that sometimes accounting just isn’t a crazy amount of fun. (I know, a shocker!!) This makes us procrastinate actually doing it. Who hasn’t put it off for a day or two at some point? And then, when we do get into the product, there is a tendency to do just enter our invoices, reconcile the bank account and call it a day.  

If this blog had sound effects and animation there would be red lights flashing “ERROR!”  What I realize now is that I should have taken more time to play around with my numbers and find those business insights.
How much more do I have to spend if we increase our customers by 20%?Was that large client really profitable? (turns out he wasn’t!).  What is my employee turnover and training costs?

QuickBooks Online has since made it so much easier to find those insights just from logging in. The new Company Snapshot is enlightening!  Yes, accounting may not be that much fun compared to other things, but that doesn’t mean you can’t ‘play’ around with your numbers.

2. Know when to change your business processes/systems.

At one point I was answering the phones, grassroots marketing, hiring employees, answering our support calls, signing deals, managing the website and trying to grow the business. Just thinking about that makes me want to take a nap…but it’s the same story for all small businesses in the beginning. You do it all…except sleep.

There comes a point though, when you have to make a change. For me it was choosing an online scheduling system that automated the manual work.  (a Setster type app).  For you it may be just as simple as calling QuickBooks support to find out how you can better use your current tool.  What is it for you that is going to help free up your time and your sanity level so you can focus on growing the business?

 So the journey continues – full circle.  I am now working for the product I used to use.  Pretty exciting! More exciting is that the QuickBooks online team has the awesome charter to help make life easier and business better for lots of people, whether you’re the bookkeeper or the business owner.  We’d love to hear from you…in the comments or with your feedback on the product!  What are your 2 things you have learned about running your business?

Kristen
Twitter: @Intuit_Invoice