Question about tracking records etc.

[generalj]

Well I was wondering if any one would want to go into detail about their record keeping and organization methods.

Basically, How do you store all the records from customers. Do you use a filing cabinet, 3 ring binder etc.? How do you categorize these. by customer name? Date? Type of work?

Do you keep all of one customers records in one place like the work order, receipt, invoice etc, or are these all separately organized?

Also how do you guys keep track of taxes? Do you update each time or day you get money received? How do you do this? Electronically? Manually? Do you use your bank account for this or off of the receipts?

I know an accountant can do this but right now I don't have the funds for one. I hope to get one in 4 or 6 months if the biz goes well.

Any info on this type of filling of any records, documents tracking taxes etc is appreciated.

Also what about keeping track of who has paid and who has not, who needs an invoice sent and who you sent to already etc.

Thanks. Jeremy

 

[hawks5999]

Jeremy,

Bite the bullet and get a bookkeeper to do this stuff for you. You might not need a CPA at this point, but you need somebody that understands record keeping, taxes, etc. at least at a fundamental level. 4 to 6 months from now you have already gone through a quarter or two and if you have quarterly taxes due and mess that up, then you could have fines, etc. that will make your money for a bookkeeper worthwhile. Again, you probably don't need a full fledged CPA but check out your local craigslist or ask around to find somebody who works in A/P or A/R for a company and does small business bookkeeping on the side. In 4 to 6 months if you need to go get an accountant, you will save up front by having all your records decent and in order.

you might be able to barter something with somebody... you do my books and I'll do computer stuff for you for free.

 

[generalj]

Well because I am the only employee right now and work out of home. I don't know if I really want to have a book keeper come in and take care of it all. Even if she/he did I would still need the resources here for him/her. Like file cabinets etc. I was just more curious as to how you all store your records.

I mean I can do it and I could get by but I was just wondering if anyone has a method that works well for them especially when it comes to a time when you need to look up something for taxes, customer complaint/questions etc.

 

[acs]

I have used excell for the last few years to keep all my records.
Not only for banking but as a record of all work done with links to invoices and receipts. Within excell I also work out p&L and the amount of tax that I will have to pay as well as draw downs. and milage claims. It works a treat and at the end of the year the data for the tax man is all to hand with very little extra calculation needed. I have found it much more flexible than some of the accounting software which are geared to much larger operations.

 

[Nathan H]

Hi acs,

Any chance your willing to post a link to your Excel Spread sheet templates?

It would be much appreciated.

 

[acs]

I will clean one up and send you a link via pm.

 

[markiezzi]

Hello,

Can I get a copy of your template also acs? I use quickbooks but am always open to easier ways.

Thanks
Mark

 

[Jory]

I'll take a copy too if you don't mind. I don't know if I could use them, but I like seeing how other people do things.

 

[acs]

Seems like a few are interested, so here is a link to my spreadsheet.

http ** rapidshare.com/files/96175991/Example_accounts.xls.html **


I only run the business at evening and weekends so tend to input data a couple of times a week. The main sheet has income and outgoing and records payment and also the bank account. As I run the business from home i am allowed to claim a certain amount of household expenses against the business.

Other business expenses such as mobile phone and web site costs are also recorded. The mileage I do for the business is recorded on a separate sheet to allow me to claim that back.

I only bank money once a week so I keep a separate record of when I have been paid and when I have banked the money.

The spreadsheet works out my income and cost of goods to give a Gross income. The expenses are then deducted to give net income on which I calculate income tax at 22%. Any cash I take out is shown in "Drawings"

I also use it to record "ongoing work" for which I have not yet produced an invoice. It has worked well for me for the last 4 or 5 years and means the end of year tax return is a doodle. If anyone needs any explanation of any other features just ask

 

[mdshann]

I work in a small computer repair shop in Ohio. We do sales and service, as well as onsite work for both home customers and business with 1 to 100 computers on their network. I guess when I say small I am meaning as compared to big box stores, etc. We have our own store and have been in business since 1990. We use a program called POSitive for Windows that keeps track of everything. It runs on a Win 2003 box and we have about 5 workstations hooked up to it. It allows us to input notes on service orders and also keeps track of inventory and prices. It tracks or costs as far as our inventory goes as well as our sales. It also keeps track of all our customers and all the purchases they have made including any work done on their computers (which includes all the tech's notes). It's a pretty expensive piece of software but if you have the money for it and a small domian with a server and some terminals and need a way for yourself and your employees to track this sort of information it works incredibly well. It lets us quickly look up any past service if a customer comes back with any questions, or if we need to do warranty work it tells us the day the computer was purchased and what was in it. We pretty much scratch the surface of what this software can do... there is so much there that we don't make use of!

 

[tartis]

Spend the money for Quickbooks. It will save you tons of time and money.

 

[ootuoyetahi]

Quickbooks Pro and Commit CRM

Good bookkeeping will save you time and money in the longrun. Two programs i would invest in are quickbooks and commit. Come tax season accounts can easily merge the info from QB to their software. Commit helps you keep detailed records about your clients and the services your provided to them.

 

[generalj]

Good bookkeeping will save you time and money in the longrun. Two programs i would invest in are quickbooks and commit. Come tax season accounts can easily merge the info from QB to their software. Commit helps you keep detailed records about your clients and the services your provided to them.

I use Commit CRM, man that is a really nice program, it is specically tailored for computer repair and IT management.

I am thinking of trying out the free edition of quickbooks, do you think this would be sufficient for me?