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That seems like a robust program for the cost. It looks like it is worth the cost. I don’t know that you would specifically see an increase in your business with it other than showing that you have the knowledge to help your clients with those types of issues. Still worth it in the long run in my opinion.
It probably depends on who offers it and what you are looking for. The trainings I have been to here in PA are usually a recap of the new tax laws each season; both individuals and businesses. I felt as a new preparer that I didn’t know what they were talking about since I didn’t have enough experience yet. I concentrated mainly on 1040’s in my job so as I gained experience, the trainings were a good recap for me on new 1040 laws and the business laws gave me some information in case I needed to know it in relation to an individual’s business.
A seasoned preparer could easily find the information online if they didn’t need to go for any other reason.
Keep in mind they usually fulfill continuing education credits.I’m just a one-woman show but is that something you could automate through a workflow process program such as 17hats or something like that? Some of the workflow programs sync with quickbooks or quicken, allow for time tracking, and can automate things like that. I tend to be detailed on my invoices so at this stage it wouldn’t work for me but maybe since you’re larger you might already have “canned” detail for the invoices that could just be automated and then you could review the time tracking reports for accuracy etc. Not sure if this is what you need but it might help.
My process is simple at the moment so I use Gqueues. That won’t work for you but in my process to find what works, I also looked at 17Hats and dubsado. If you are on Facebook, there is a great group geared around process and task management called The Workflow Wateringhole. They are a wealth of information and can answer your question in addition to any feedback you get here. I liked 17Hats but it was just too much for me at this stage.
I got my first client when they came to the accounting firm where I worked. I had previously pitched Daily Money Management to the firm but they weren’t interested. They had two clients within one year ask about handling their bills and they turned each one down. I asked if they would allow me to work with the clients separately. They found no conflict of interest. Both clients are still with me. The first client was challenging so I had a lot to learn. But each time we were successful, it fueled my passion and “I can do this” confidence.
Update: I really spent time comparing Harvest and Big time. Although the costs were not expensive, I decided I wanted to spend even less just to keep track of my time. I ended up finding Minute7 under the QuickBooks recommended list. Nice basic timekeeping system. I really like it. Very simple to use with a quick seamless import and export with QuickBooks. I had it up and running in 5 minutes including importing my client list and services, inputting my time and exporting that to QuickBooks. It’s $4/month but free for Proadvisor. Very happy woth my final decision.
Janice, I like Big Time also. Seems simple, integrates, and is low-cost. I really just want it for on-the-go tracking. Thanks everyone for your input!
I tried to register as a business but felt the annual fee was steep for what I wanted.
I want to reconsider but not sure how I want to follow up.I see that you are a member of AADMM. Are you asking for clarification of what a DMM Agency is?
Or is there another question you have? Can you clarify?There is a check register template in excel. You could add a column for the “Category/Expense”.
Then if either of you wanted to sort by expense, it would be easy. That’s one simple option.
It really depends on how involved she wants to get with reports, budgeting, cash flow, etc.
If the only thing she wants to do is keep track, the template would work. I use one for my client
then make a new one each year.I actually also use QuickBooks, not Quicken, for another client. I set up a household chart of accounts.
You can teach her how to enter the deposits, expenses, and vendors and that is also simple. That gives her access to other reports also. Of course, you could do either online or desktop depending on what she is comfortable with.
I hope this helps.
Julianne Miller
Pro-office Support
jmiller.prooffice@gmail.com
