Are you still using slow, manual, old-fashioned accounting processes? Using spreadsheets, paper export reports, and lots of data entry? Or have accounting software and not use it’s automation features?

Those days are behind us. We have the technology to make accounting faster, more accurate, and far more productive. It shouldn’t be a grind to get your ledger in order, and it shouldn’t take a week to close the books.

If you’ve come to this realisation already, but haven’t yet chosen a good accounting automation tool to help you get there, now is the time to revisit.

Automation software is here to help

Automated processes make some of us feel a little uneasy. You’ve heard tell of the coming robot takeover, where jobs will be replaced and experience won’t matter anymore. Admittedly, it’s cause for concern.

But the automation tools we’ve seen don’t replace your accountants, they liberate them. Your experts will have more time to actually use that experience they’ve developed to give advice and offer strategic insights.

Today, they spend hours every month simply copy/pasting or re-formatting spreadsheets. Tomorrow, they could be redesigning your finance structure, or finding smart ways to save the business time and money.

Most importantly, those manual tasks aren’t making anybody happy. They’re costing the business money (in people-power and damaging errors), and they drive accountants crazy.

This is exactly why software was created. It’s time to use it.

Why use accounting automation software?

1. Save time

The main reason most users turn to automation is to take slow, repetitive tasks off their own plates. Which of course gives you extra time for more important (and more interesting) work.

2. Be more productive

Put that extra time on your hands to use. Work to add value to the rest of the business, rather than simply staying busy with less impactful (but necessary) tasks.

3. Get more accurate data

Humans are wonderful, but we’re also prone to making mistakes. The more documents and data points you process, the more likely you are to slip errors in without noticing.

Software, on the other hand, is designed to repeat tasks endlessly in exactly the same way. So mistakes are far less common. There’s a wide variety of business process automation software on the market, so you’ll need to spend time researching the right tool for your needs.

4. Retrieve information instantly

With cloud-based software, and digital Accounting automation tools mean that any documents or data you need is available to you/accountant whenever you need, wherever you are.

No need to rummage through filing cabinets or look through old books.

5. Use secure file storage

We’re all a little wary of data leaks and hacks these days. But the truth is that digital file storage is far safer than moving stacks of paper from one place to the next.

It’s also safer than storing data on a personal computer. You also won’t have to send email scans (or credit card details) to people anymore; they can just log in and see for themselves – provided they have security clearance. Secure file uploads like these are a huge win.

6. Work from anywhere

Use cloud based software and work from anywhere.  Finance teams and external accountants can access the right files and dashboards from anywhere thanks to features like privileged access management.

Clearly, remote-friendly work is now a necessity. And the same goes for your bookkeeping!

7. Integrate easily with other tools

Another classic issue that slows down the closing process is copying data from one spreadsheet to another – from one ledger to the next.

Good accounting automation tools will speak to your other tools and remove the need to copy/paste for hours each month.

8. Upskill yourself

This last one is a benefit to the finance team member or small business CEO themselves.

Automation tools are fast becoming a must-have for modern businesses. By learning to work with these new tools, you prepare yourself for the future of accounting.

What to look for in great automation software

• Digital solutions to tedious problems. This is the main goal. You want to replace the most boring, manual aspects of your work with quick, digital alternatives.
• Cloud-based. You should be able to work from anywhere, and so should your clients and colleagues.
• Easy to use. Accounting involves enough complicated concepts. Your software should help, not hurt. And usually, the more comprehensive the tool, the more training it requires to use well. So don’t jump straight into the top-of-the-line option if you’re not ready to dedicate some time to it.
• Client-friendly. Great tools also let you share reports and reminders easily with your clients and colleagues.
• Excellent reviews. Check your favourite review site and make sure that other users are having the experience you want yourself! We’ve included rankings and reviews from a few of these to save you time.

Great accounting automation systems

Xero – top choice for small businesses and their accountants

Xero is one of the most popular platforms for small businesses and accountants. It makes business financial data available to all relevant parties, including external accountants and advisors.

The big draw is that Xero provides a robust and comprehensive platform for accountants, with an interface that non-financial staff can understand and use confidently. Financial controllers and accountants don’t have to recreate reports and records for the rest of the business to consume; clients simply log into the platform and get the information they need.

Even as a “plug and play” solution, Xero packs all the horsepower and features that most small businesses will ever need.

MYOB / Reckon / QuickBooks

These programs are built to be accessible for non-finance professionals running their own businesses, and to collaborate easily with external accounting advisors.

Programs integrates natively with most of the major payments providers, including Square, PayPal, and Stripe. So ecommerce and retail businesses don’t have to manually keep track of payments coming into their accounts. They’ll all appear in data feeds automatically.

The platforms also have invoicing and receipt tracking tools to help automate those common nuisances.

Contact Avance today on 1300 620 345 if you want to automate your accounting processes or review your current software practices.