Ruth Perryman And Quickbooks

One of the financial tools available to business owner to help manage their business finances is Quickbooks. Quickbooks has different levels of access for users. The versions that are available are the free version, Simple Start, or the desktop or the online version.

Image courtesy of Intuit/Quickbooks

Whichever one you choose, you would definitely want to read the interview below that I conducted with Ruth Perryman. In the interview below, she shares information that would be very helpful to those researching for financial software to handle their business finances.

If you have a specific question that Ruth can help you with:

• Visit the “Ask the QuickBooks Specialists” section on her blog (http://www.theQBspecialists.com/blog).
• Email: ruth@theQBspecialists.com
• Phone:  800-707-0940
• Twitter: http://twitter.com/ruthperryman
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ruthperryman

Question 1: Please introduce yourself and the key areas of your expertise? How long have you been involved in this area? How easy is it for business owner to use QuickBooks to manage their business? Is it a program that non-financial people can learn quickly?

My name is Ruth Perryman and I’m a Quickbooks proadvisor and Intuit solutions provider. I’ve been involved in QuickBooks, as both a user and a consultant, since 1996. QuickBooks is very easy to use; however, you do need to use it correctly. For instance, if you enter bills you need to pay bills. Instead, many new users skip to write checks or enter the check directly into the register which usually leads to entering your expenses twice. So some basic training is needed. Luckily, QuickBooks comes with built-in training videos as well as some wonderful sample files.

Question 3: What are some of the key areas that a business owner can use Quickbooks to manage? Also, how often should they manage their finances?

Quickbooks can help you manage all things financial. It can tell you who owes you what, which is critically important these days. It can also tell you how much you owe others. Best of all, it can tell you how well your business is doing overall, and even how much your jobs are making. Of course, the information is only as good as the information you enter. So it’s best to enter your information often. At least weekly.

Question 4: Can a business owner use Quickbooks in conjunction to using an accountant? What is the process for handling this process?

Most QuickBooks users work with a CPA or tax preparer. QuickBooks integrates with TurboTax, but business taxes are very complicated and usually require professional help. Most accountants own QuickBooks, so it’s usually as easy as sending them a copy of your file. If you need your accountant to enter changes for you, QuickBooks offers a special accountant’s file which allows their changes to be merged into your existing file.

Question 5: Are there different levels of access to the Quickbooks software? For instance is there a free level, or a minimum pay level, then a more advanced expensive version.

You can get a limited version of Simple Start for free, but I don’t recommend it. One of the best features of QuickBooks is that it looks virtually the same as you move from Pro to Premier to Enterprise, so there’s no need to learn a whole new system. But Simple Start looks significantly different than the other versions. So I recommend starting with Pro. You can almost always find it for less than $100 at Office Depot, Office Max, Staples, Best Buy, or Amazon. One day last December, Staples even offered it for free!

Question 6: How does Quickbooks compare to its competitors such as PeachTree & MS Accounting in regard to business owners being able to quickly understand how to use it or daily business management.

Peachtree and MS Accounting are also easy to learn. However, they don’t have the support infrastructure that QuickBooks has. It’s more difficult finding Peachtree and MS Accounting experts to help you, which usually means they’re also more expensive. In contrast, there are hundreds of thousands of QuickBooks experts. Not to mention that most of your business friends probably use it and would probably be willing to help.