When you look at the two companies Xero Accounting and GoDaddy hosting companies are very similar. They both provide cloud-based solutions, for a subscription fee and have small businesses as their major clients. They are both in a very good position to provide accounting software for their customers.
One of the Xero Directors sold an accounting software program to GoDaddy in 2012 and at the time TechCrunch reported that Accounting software is a logical service for them to provide to their small business clients. What does it mean for the future though?
Xero is well known for purchasing apps which integrate with it and provide vertical integration. The best known acquisition in recent years is the purchase of Hubdoc for receipt capture. This made Xero compete directly with some of the other companies who’ve been doing this for a while like Dext (formerly Receipt Bank) and AutoEntry.
Well they’ve done it again in the purchase this year of Planday in Europe for staff rostering, attendance and reporting. But how will they compete with QuickBooks Online and KeyPay?
It’s interesting and exciting that Xero now offer their Xero Learn service to training course publishers like EzyLearn for $6 per month. This ongoing access to Xero Accounting software seemed exciting at first but then I realised that it’s just accounting software! AND it’s just for training! AND 30 days is MORE than enough per case study!
Most students don’t want to access Xero accounting software forever. Even business owners don’t really want to pay an ongoing fee for their accounting software – they want something else..
I was reading some recent announcements from Xero as they try to displace Sage as the small business accounting software of choice in the United Kingdom and notice some announcements they have about how Xero is a great tool for property management.
It was an eye opener because it shows how aggressive they are against MYOB by quoting a client publicly who converted from MYOB to Xero. They didn’t mention that Re-Leased software also has an integration with QuickBooks Online – but why would they? Here’s what they wrote..
OUR HARDCOPY COURSE workbooks are the written foundation of all our online training courses. Sometimes these workbooks start as little more than a list of transactions. We then create the training course outline and film the breakdown of this in a series of brief, easy to absorb videos.
We made the move online a long time ago and with it came great benefits but it wasn’t a simple case of doing the same thing we did in our Sydney training centres! We had to deal with the loneliness and disconnection associated with not being in an office with others!
Our new, updated online business courses are designed to give you tools to be confident doing your work online.
Xero Certification is designed for contract bookkeepers to increase the number of customers who use and support the software.
Like all “partner” programs offered by software vendors including MYOB and Intuit QuickBooks the purpose of these programs is to increase their “channel to market” but it may not always suit every student.
Pardon the pun but it’s true, Sage One training course materials will now be included in the Bookkeeping Academy Training Course Package along with Xero Accounting, MYOB & QuickBooks.
Many bookkeepers use EzyLearn to keep up to date with the various accounting software programs now available and this latest announcement is for you. Training Course materials and support for Sage One and Reckon One.
‘Social proof’ is testimonials, reviews and feedback of others, that vouches for the product or service we’re thinking of buying. Social proof backs up the fact that what we’re considering buying is what it says it is.
Come see some social proof about EzyLearn by meeting some students from the past few weeks — you just might have a lot in common with them.
How can you provide great customer service? Consistently?
IF YOU ARE LIKE most businesses, you’re probably communicating with your customers and clients via multiple touch points — email, social media, phone calls, chat bots. But how are you keeping track of all these interactions?
A lot of the time, however, people enrol in an Excel online training course or Xero online training course because they need to refresh a specific set of skills for their job, which means they don’t have the time to focus on other areas that don’t have an immediate relevance for their work.
Since then, however, a number of cloud-based accounting applications have entered the market — QuickBooks Online (now distributed by their US-based parent company Intuit), Reckon One, Saasu, Zoho, and so on.
Even though Xero was hailed as a breath of fresh air when it first entered the market, it is still a little more complicated to use when compared with other cloud accounting apps, like QuickBooks and Reckon One. For instance, the purchase orders feature is still hidden behind bills, when it could easily be access via a dropdown menu. But it’s not a major quibble.
Xero’s contact profile misses a beat
Although Xero allows you to assign customer numbers for your suppliers or customers in the contact profile, it doesn’t have the functionality to record customer numbers assigned by supplier or customer.
In MYOB, you must upload your bills to your in-tray, and then link them to your transactions. This is annoying, because it requires you to leave the transaction window and open the in-tray one.
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Remember that when you select a cloud accounting package for your business, do not choose solely based on price. Make a list of the needs of your business and the functions you’ll require, and then select the accounting package that suits your needs the most. Ask your bookkeeper and other business friends for their recommendations as well.
Announcement: Microsoft Excel 2016 Beginners’ to Advanced courses now available!
At EzyLearn we include all versions of a software program in our training courses. That means when you enrol into Excel you get 2016 — AND — the older Excel courses which include version 2013, 2010, 2007 and even 2003 (if you really need it).
When you enrol in Lifetime Course Accessyou get access to ALL versions and ALL FUTURE VERSIONS as we continually update them — at no extra cost!
Online ratings and reviews have a role to play in buying decisions, but sometimes you just can’t go past traditional word of mouth to find good workers.
ONLINE RATINGS AND REVIEWS ARE a great way to determine whether a business is trustworthy or whether they products and services they provide will suit your needs. TripAdvisor and Yelp have transformed the hospitality and accommodation industry, for example. And Airbnb is doing similar with short-term rentals.
While recently working on a home renovation in Newcastle, I came across a carpenter who had seven employees working for him. Jimmy the Chippy in Belmont has been in business nine years, has no website or online presence — but his business is booming.
How does he do it?
The old fashioned way! He does exceptional work for his customers and clients, who hire him again and again and refer him to friends, relatives, colleagues and so on. He also made a point of networking with local builders and plumbers in the area, who contact him when they have work to do, and refer him to other builders and plumbers as well.
Use word of mouth
If you’re looking locally, and the online ratings and reviews of the businesses you’re trying to decide between aren’t helping, asking a friend, relative or work colleague if they know any of the businesses.
If no one in your social network knows the business, you can also google an online forum like Whirlpool, where members frequently provide fair and balanced opinions of businesses they’ve dealt with — and if they don’t, they’re usually called out for it.
Testimonials are helpful, too
Real estate agents, accountants and many other businesses — EzyLearn included — use testimonials rather than ratings or reviews (except on Facebook), so you shouldn’t discount these just because they’ve been vetted before going online.
At EzyLearn we provide testimonials from our students, which include their full name and location, and why they chose EzyLearn to study in the first place. We ask each student whether it is ok to publish these beforehand. We also offer a money-back guarantee and free samples of our course content, so students know they can trust they’re making the right choice.
Our courses cover how to import from Excel into Xero and visa versa, for purposes such as working out depreciation on a business premises.
THERE ARE MANY UPSIDES to buying a commercial property for your business and if you’re able to buy an industrial unit like a Cubbyhole, it can also be a lot cheaper than renting premises.
Buying outright
If you’re in the financial position to buy your business premises outright, it may seem like a no-brainer to do this instead of getting a mortgage. However, there are some things you need to consider:
You’ll lose liquidity on the assets in your property, which means you won’t be able to tap into any equity in the property, unless you take out an equity loan against the property.
You’re tying all your cash to one asset class, which may limit your ability to make other investments and prevent your business from expanding. This could run counter to your reasons for making the property purchase in the first place.
You’re spreading the payments over many years, which ties you to paying down that asset for the foreseeable future.
You’re paying interest, which although it’s a tax deduction, will significantly inflate the price of the property.
Work out the best way in Excel
Using the data from your Xero accounting software package, Microsoft Excel can help you determine whether your business will be financially better off buying its premises outright or getting a mortgage.
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Xero is a great bookkeeping program for tradies who are on the go and using their phones (or a tablet) all the time. From receipts scanning to creating quotes and invoices, receiving payments and keeping track of project costs.
bookkeepercourse.com.au/produ…
