Business Discussions

Strive mightily for high ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars, but don’t forget that your feet are necessarily on the earth.        Theodore Roosevelt, 1900   This quote came to mind when I was recently reading an article about encouraging customers to leave positive online reviews.   The article is a great guide to setting up online reviews (and some of the most important things to keep in mind when you do!) but it all comes down to the same thing - dream big, but work hard to make those dreams come true.     With immediate access to Yelp, Google reviews, online app store reviews, Facebook, and others, customers have a ton of information about you and your business before they ever click on your website or walk through your front door - and in a recent survey, 93% of them said that online reviews make a difference in their buying decisions.      So how about you, what has your experience been with online review site

Hello fellow QB'ers! I've just started a bookkeeping business in Portland, OR and thought I'd stop by and introduce myself :) I'm relatively new to QB although I've been in accounting and finance for about 25 years. I've worked for public, private, and international corporations with my most recent role as Finance Director for a software company. Unfortunately the unthinkable happened this past spring: the business was acquired and all finance functions were moved to the new headquarters on the east coast. Prior to the acquisition, I had always hoped to start a bookkeeping business at some point in my career so I would definitely say that this is a natural progression for me (albeit about 5-10 years ahead of the "game plan".. yikes!!).  My expertise lies in revenue recognition, cash flow forecasting, budgeting, variance analysis, multi state sales tax, payroll, and also other misc items such as benefits administration, international sales tax/VAT and just about anything else you c

Excuse me, do you know how much a polar bear weighs? .... Enough to break the ice!     Okay, that was kind of silly. But, it may be worth a try when you're working to build your network. If you're anything like me, you might be a little shy. If you're at an event and looking to connect with other business owners, it's important to make a positive, memorable impression. Business cards are helpful, but you want others to be able to match a face to the name.   I'd love to hear your stories about how you break the ice. Do you have a unique conversation starter that never fails? Do you share your business "elevator pitch?" Let's hear it!   Additionally, if you haven't been to any events to network in person lately, you're always welcome to connect with others here in the Business Discussions page!

I am purchasing flights and lodging with my credit card points.  How do I enter this transaction to show the expense to the jobs?  I do not want to leave these out on my job costing and for billing purposes! 

After 6 weeks I am starting to think I made a mistake in choosing QB Online for my business, I hope I am wrong as I have put a lot of time and effort to get this up and running. My company sells products to two markets - the public and then also to resellers / dealers. As such, there is a pricing structure whereby the reseller gets a discount. (Problem no.1 - QB does not allow line item discounts)I have almost 2000 products (Problem no.2 - QB has a limit of 1000 when importing - ergo double the work to change prices)My country uses VAT (Problem no. 3 - QB does not allow the change of the word TAX displayed on invoices / quotes) I have to display my VAT number on all sales documents (Problem No. 4 - QB adds in "Tax Registration" before the number)Some products have different discounted amounts (Problem no1 part 2 - i can use the discount field at the bottome which will apply only one % to the entire quote)Some of these issues are overcome when creating my own templates and importing, th

I have a client with whom I am beginning to help clean up her books. Her p&L shows a huge loss because it looks like she might have been tracking inventory incorrectly. She has a dress shop where she buys sample dresses, customers come in, and then she orders them a dress. She currently has two different types of inventory assets: store inventory (assuming these are the samples) and customer inventory (assuming this is when she is waiting for customers to pick up their dresses). It all seems a little overly complicated, and because most of these dresses are one offs, it seems like this opens her up for many mistakes. I want to advise her not to use inventory items for her products. My ultimate goal is to simplify her workflow so she can more directly be in control of her books. MAYBE for her "samples" that she can convert to cogs if she sells them off the rack. I just don't see the necessity for any of this to show up on the balance sheet? She also has many items tha

I think it’s safe to say that we all work hard for what we have. Day in and day out. Maybe 9:00-5:00, or 8:00-6:00, or maybe even sun-up to sun-down. With all of this hard work, it’s important to have goals set in place. If you don’t have a particular goal or achievement you’d like to meet, one can easily become burned out. You may even start thinking, “What’s the point?” As a small business owner, you certainly don’t want that. I don’t want that for you either, so, I’m sharing some points in an article I read about ways to prevent this burnout feeling:   Create three clear, objective goals for the year. Grab a notebook or planner, pencil, and maybe even a cup of coffee. Sit down and write down as many goals you can think of. These may be specifically for your business, but it’s ok if they’re personal goals too. Once you have a nice list, start prioritizing. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to create a system and rank the importance of these goals 1-10. You may even want to start a th

Whether it's in golf, business, or nearly any other facet of life, we're always on the lookout for tips to make things easier. Often these tidbits speak to us in ways that words aren't usually able to convey.  All that being said, I hope you'll take a moment and share with the Community the best business tip you've ever heard.   One that has always resonated with me is from Napoleon Hill, “Do not wait: the time will never be 'just right'. Start where you stand, and work whatever tools you may have at your command and better tools will be found as you go along.”   I'm looking forward to the sharing and learning!

  Are you filing a 1099 form this year? Whether or not you like to go running at 6pm, you may need one. The 1099 form is used to report wage information to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), most commonly for non-employee wages. However, it also serves other purposes.    Want to take a closer look and learn more?  Find everything you need to know about the 1099, including where to find it & how to e-file it in our 2019 year-end guide.  

Life is constantly throwing us curve-balls, and these may come more often when you’re trying to start your own business. With that, some mistakes are inevitable, but keeping those to a minimum is of course ideal. I read a list of common startup mistakes business owners make and pointers on how to avoid them. The list was compiled by a group of entrepreneurs, who’ve experienced the roller coaster that business ownership can be. Here’s what they had to say regarding startup mistakes:   Believing everyone’s advice. Our natural instincts and intuition exist for a reason. I think paying close attention to your “gut-feeling” is excellent advice when it comes to decision making. Additionally, people will feel free to share their advice and opinions. As a business owner, you have to take [most] advice from others with a grain of salt, and truly follow your own intuition.   Not putting in the ‘work after the work.’ As an entrepreneur, the work doesn’t end when your business hours

Hello everyone!   I thought it would be interesting to hear from members of the Community on when they felt that their business had become a success.  Perhaps it was the first customer, or maybe the 10,000th, that provided the achievement. Maybe it was a long journey, or a short one, before the moment arrived.    Whatever the story may be, I hope you'll take a few moments to share it!  We all could use a bit of inspiration during this busy time of year.

            “Look everywhere you can to cut a little bit from your expenses. It will all add up to a meaningful sum." –Suze Orman   I read an article just the other day that discussed practices for businesses to save money. The four practices featured in the write up are all practical and helpful. I’m listing them for you below:   Low-cost Advertising: We all know the internet has so much to offer and answers to everything. Your advertising needs can be met there as well. You may even want to consider setting up a public relations team for your business to get this job done.   Protection from catastrophes: As the old saying goes, “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” That’s why it’s a good idea to be prepared. Having insurance for your company is an extra layer of protection in the case of an emergency. Funds to repair or replace don’t come out of your pocket or the company’s.   Sponsors for Events: I’m a firm believer in

  Hi everyone!     January is synonymous with resolutions, from fitness to launching a business.  For those with the latter goal, it can often be overwhelming to get a company off the drawing board.     With that in mind, what advice would you give to a friend who was starting a business?         The inspiration for this topic came from a recent conversation that I had with a good friend. They have decided that 2020 is the year for launching their business.  Their dream is to turn their hobby into a successful company.  It's as exciting as it is frightening for them.      Our conversation focused on the importance of being as prepared as possible before the launch.  We agreed that any available free time should be utilized for research and laying the groundwork.  It reminded me of an old college professor who would often say, "fail to prepare, prepare to fail."   &nb

Many of us have a question that did have bothered: How to Backup Email from Gmail account locally? While Google has a strong track record of managing data, the fact remains that accounts could be hacked, and the possibility does exist that someone could get locked out of a Gmail account.Many of us have years of mission-critical business and personal history in our Gmail archives, and it's a good idea to have a plan for making regular backups.I use SysTools Gmail Backup on my own tenant that backup all my Gmail account mailbox into multiple file formats such as PST/MBOX/EML/EMLX/MSG.What you all do to backup Gmail account.

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Hello, I'm new to QB online. We are launching a coffee company in the next few months selling on Amazon via FBA and our website hosted by Shopify. I'm trying to find the best solution to integrate the three of these platforms in the most effiecient way possible. We are looking to elimate manual data entry and keep accurate records with a trusted/proven/tested solution.  Here are a few solutions I found on both the Shopify and Quickbooks App stores that appear to possibly do what we are looking for. Does anyone have any experience with these? Do you reccomend one over the other, or know of any other solutions we should be looking at? Thank you very much for any help or direction you can provide! Unify: https://openid.intuit.com/unify Agiliron: https://openid.intuit.com/agiliron Cloud Cart Connector: https://openid.intuit.com/cloud-cart Regards,Nick

Here we are, it’s officially 2020 at last. If you’ve been following along in this forum for the last couple of weeks, you’ve taken the time to celebrate your greatest achievements and set SMART goals for the first half of 2020.    Do you remember when we said, “Setting, sharing, and regularly reporting on your goals makes you 33% more likely to achieve them?”   It’s time to share!      But, why is sharing such an important step? According to psychologist Elizabeth Lombardo, author of the book Better Than Perfect: 7 Steps to Crush Your Inner Critic and Create a Life You Love, accountability is a major factor.    When no one is around to say anything about an incomplete task, Lombardo says, it’s easy to push it to the next day and the next week, and so on.    On the opposite side of the same coin, however, sharing stokes motivation, improves clarity, and even creates valuable social connections with others who are dedicated to reaching t

I'm trying to open my business file and my quickbooks is giving me a "warning: no admin" anyone else have this problem? How did you fix it?

The rise of video content on the internet is undeniable. It's easier to digest information through a video and this is primarily why videos are shared 300% more than any other type of content. So why aren't more businesses creating videos?  When polled most business owners said that they weren't savvy enough to create video ads and that video production in general is just a too costly and time consuming process. If it were a couple years ago, I would have even agreed with this mantra. However, there’s no more excuse for not being able to create marketing videos nowadays with the rise in DIY video makers. I personally have used Video Jaguar to create many video ads for my business. It has really helped out with content marketing too, as my brand always has compelling content to share on all my social media accounts. Plus it has built in libraries of royalty-free images and music, which simplifies the entire video creation process. We've been able to create professional videos in un

Hello, EveryoneI'm new to Quick Books and I have a customer who wants me to except more money than I billed him for and then have me forward the extra to another person sounds like a "Scam" to me has anyone else had this happen to them???Thank You, Joey BakerB&B Trowel Trades 

  Wow, we made it through the holidays! With less than a week until we ring in 2020, it’s time to look toward the future, and decide what 2020 and beyond mean for your business.   Did you know? Setting, sharing, and regularly reporting on your goals makes you 33% more likely to achieve them.   Lucky for us, we have a whole network of friends and fellow business owners to help set and hold us accountable for our goals, right here in the QuickBooks Community!     Step 1: Consider your long-term goals.    For most small to medium businesses, long-term goals will reflect what you hope to achieve in the next 3-5 years and should reflect your company’s mission statement.    According to Bill Baren, a business coach, "When you think about why the company is there in the first place, goals take on a whole different meaning. There's more energy behind them. They don't feel forced."   Most long-term goals will fall into the following 4 categorie

There's the old adage that one has to spend money to make money. Perhaps it's in this spirit that some businesses get carried away and overspend on things. This spending can be especially tricky for new companies since resources can quickly get stretched thin.   I recently read an article by the Forbes Finance Council on this topic and wanted to share it here: 14 Unnecessary Startup Expenses Wasting Hard-Earned Money.     As we put 2019 in our rear-view mirror and look to a new decade of opportunities, many of us will be looking at starting or revamping businesses. Given this timing, I felt it would be a good resource and topic to discuss.    Whether you're just getting started, are an established entrepreneur, or somewhere in between, I'd love to hear your thought on this! Maybe there's a suggestion in the article that you wish you knew when starting out. Perhaps there are other lessons on spending that you've learned and want to share.    Somet

If you’re anything like us, you’re looking at the calendar wondering where 2019 went! This year was a whirlwind, and 2020 is bound to start off with a bang.    Before we kick off the new decade, we want to wrap up the year with a nice bow to make sure you roll into the new year feeling ready to accomplish your goals and tackle any challenge that comes your way.    To start: Reflect on your year. Celebrate!   Open a notepad, journal or Word doc. Take a moment to reflect on the great things you accomplished this year, big or small, write them all down. Day by day it can be hard to see how much you’ve really accomplished, but when you have the chance to see everything in front of you, you may be surprised!    Don’t forget to give yourself a pat on the back, or high five the person nearest you. All of these things are worth celebrating. Then, share your favorite wins or accomplishments as a reply to this post so that we can celebrate with you!   For

Hi,  Its late and i cannot for the life of me figure out what the SKU section is for when you set up a service to invoice.  Would appreciate the answer. Thanks in advance.

As a custom software developer, we have integrated custom application software using both Intuits API and the QODBC SQL API, with QuickBooks Enterprise edition for our customers who manufacture, sell and ship products to their customers.   It doesn’t matter if they have a retail storefront with sales being entered directly into QuickBooks, or sales orders entered online via an e-commerce website. In one case, our client enters order sales orders for future delivery dates.  Then, each afternoon they run our custom “Inventory Management and Delivery Routing System” to create a pick list for the next days’ delivery.  The system will print a truck load sheet based on delivery zip code, then using Google Maps, the software will plan an optimized delivery route for each driver.  What used to take 4 hours to prepare can now be completed in 15 minutes.In another case we’ve integrated e-Commerce Templates e-commerce website with QuickBooks.  And most recently we ad