5 reasons why your charity should move to a cloud accounting software

With a lot of balls in the air, the last thing charities want to think about is changing to a cloud-based accounting software aka online accounting software. It is easy to just carry on using the same system that has been used the year before. A minority of the charities may still be okay with this. But for most of those other small charities it is time to pause…… and think……

• Is your age-old accounting software fit for purpose anymore?
• Can you generate accurate reports and information that you need?
• Does it take up a lot of your staff time which could be used more productively somewhere else?
• Does it tell you how much money you have left in each project pot at any given time?
• At year end, does it give your accountants the information they need to produce your accounts?

If the answers to these questions are ‘no’ then its time for your charity to embrace the cloud!

If you haven’t already heard about ‘the cloud’ let me tell you what it means. In simple terms, cloud computing means storing and accessing data or software over the internet instead of your computer’s hard drive. A cloud-based accounting software is a software which sits in the cloud and you login to your software through internet just like you do with emails. As its a software that you can only access over the internet, it is also know as online accounting software.

If I have not convinced you already, here are 5 reasons why your charity should seriously consider moving to cloud-based accounting system.

Time saving

You would not imagine how many of our clients have said that cloud accounting software has changed their work life! They have more time to focus on the impact of the charity in the community.

• Connecting with bank reduces manual data entry
• Create and email invoices from the software straight away
• Automated invoices due reminders to customers gets you paid faster and means that you no longer need to chase them up for payment
• Repetitive transactions can be memorised and automatically posted

These are only a handful of features. But there are many more that are waiting to save you time.

Cheaper that you think

Cloud bookkeeping software are normally available on a monthly subscription which range from £7 per month to £35 based on the package you choose. Most software providers offer discounts and online support to charities. Some accountants use the software themselves and if they are ProAdvisors like we are, they get 15% – 60% discount which we are happy to pass on to our clients! The average price therefore comes to around £10 -£20 per month which is not a barrier for most charities. Especially, given the advantages.

Ready to use information

You are ready to go once all the bookkeeping is done! If set up correctly, a could based accounting software can give you the most accurate information at any given point in time with a few clicks. That financial monitoring report you need to send to the funder can be generated easily. Also, that project income and expenditure summary you need to send to the project manager can be emailed straight from the software. Not only that, you can automatically generate and email that budget v actuals report at the end of each month to the trustees.

Access from anywhere and multiple users

One of the best things about cloud bookkeeping software is that it can be accessed from anywhere. You do not have to be at the desk at that one computer that has a desktop version installed! Your bookkeeper can work remotely and once the work is done you can review the information and reports with your own user login. You might also want to grant limited access to your treasurer you can see the reports from the comfort of their home.

Reduce admin and paperwork

With a host of communications possible through the cloud accounting software evidently there is a reduction is admin and paperwork. You don’t need to print all those invoice and reports. Employee expense claims can also be processed online. Bills and receipts can be attached to expenses and transactions making it unnecessary to print all those supplier invoices. What about authorising purchase invoices and expense claims you may ask? Well, that too can be done online with some software giving the option for an invoice or expense claim to be authorised before payment is released.

So, if you think, your old accounting system is not doing its job and would like our help and advice with choosing a right software for you give us a call! We are here to help! With Making Tax Digital coming up it want be long before you will need one.

I have been an accountant all my life and I cannot find one argument against having a cloud-based accounting software. Well, that’s not true! There is one. You cannot use the cloud if internet is down.