KISS

Keep It Simple Sweetheart

KISS, besides being one of America’s most easily recognized rock bands, is one of accountants’ favorite phrases to use. Originally a design principle used by the US Navy, the acronym stood for Keep It Simple Stupid (we at Calculating Destiny like to use the more toned-down version, Keep It Simple Sweetheart). The idea behind this principle was this: when designing a new system, the goal is to keep it as simple as possible, and any unnecessary complexities should be avoided. So why do accountants (arguably some of the least creative and design-oriented people out there 😂) love this phrase so much?

Well, that’s the thing, accountants tend to be analytical, so we like to streamline and automate as much of our workflow as possible. Spending less time doing data entry frees us up to have more time doing data analysis. It also lowers the likelihood of human error. The more data we have entered, the more patterns we can see emerge. We can let you know if your new marketing initiative is actually bringing in more clients, or better predict and plan for cash-flow fluctuations. 

Allowing you to automate and simplify data entry also allows you to spend more time focusing on your business. 

Our Top Three Tips to Simplify your Quickbooks Experience

Did you know that Quickbooks has numerous keyboard shortcuts that make entering and viewing data quicker? You can access the full list of keyboard shortcuts here. We suggest printing out this page and hanging it up next to your computer. Pick 3-5 shortcuts to practice a week and actively work on incorporating them every time you use Quickbooks. Soon it will become second nature and you will be wondering how you ever used Quickbooks without keyboard shortcuts before. 

If you are looking for ways to speed up your time in Quickbooks even more, try automating tasks. Do you have a monthly subscription that costs the same amount each month? Create a recurring bill. This will both save you time and ensure you never forget to enter it, avoiding late payment penalties. To find out how to do this, click here.

Is your Accounts Receivable Report getting a bit too long, but you can’t find the time to individually reach out to your clients and follow up on payment? Set up automatic payment reminders. You have multiple options when it comes to this. A reminder can be automatically sent if a bill reaches x amount of days past due. You can also get ahead of the game and send a friendly reminder to your clients that they have an upcoming due date, helping to prevent late payments all together. Both these options allow you to customize the message that gets sent to the client. We suggest making it friendly. Use your own tone of voice so that the message isn’t too formal to avoid sounding like a debt-collector, but keep it generic enough that you can automate Quickbooks to send the same message to any client without you having to edit the content each time. To find out how to set up automatic payment reminders and automatic statements, click here,

More Tips

If you find these tips helpful we have some great news K.I.S.S. will now be a featured column on our monthly newsletter. If you are not already subscribed to our newsletter you’re missing out! You can quickly subscribe using the link here. We understand how annoying spam emails are so we only send one email a month!

Have you discovered any tips and shortcuts in Quickbooks that you like to use for your business? Let us know and we’ll feature them in our next newsletter!

Calculating Destiny, LLC Can Help

At Calculating Destiny, LLC, our team of knowledgeable and experienced professionals is dedicated to helping your business identify and prevent fraud. 

In light of COVID-19, we are not currently seeing any clients in person. We have implemented strict policies and procedures to keep you and our team safe. We now offer contactless pickup or dropoff at a secured and monitored hatch. In addition, our office is equipped with all the latest technology that allows us to virtually communicate and remotely work with a client on their books. 

To learn more about how we can help to put your business back on track for financial success, schedule a free consultation by visiting us online or calling us at 215-674-3430 today!