Easiest Bookkeeping Software?

[sharetheload]

What is the best and easiest software to use for bookkeeping? Do you guys know of any free online bookkeeping courses. I have a client that wants bookkeeping service. What is the average price for bookkeeping?

[jeannedb]

This won't answer your question - I wouldn't do bookkeeping for someone else unless I really had experience or already had training. Bookkeeping doesn't seem like the type of task to learn on-the-job with someone else's books. Would you consider sub-contracting the bookkeeping to another VA (I don't do bookkeeping either btw) and maybe taking back the task when you've had training?

Maybe it's just my own hang-up.

[ChristinaVOS]

I agree with Jeanne.

I'm going to assume you have no experience with bookkeeping based on your request for bookkeeping class information.

I do provide bookkeeping and have for over 10 years. Bookkeeping is not just taking some numbers and plugging them into a spreadsheet or program. You need to understand where things go and why. If you don't then, when a problem arises, you won't be able to fix it the correct way.
If this client also has an Accountant that this information will be forwarded to at tax time, you run into another issue.
If the Accountant is unable to decipher what you have done he/she may be unwilling to make the adjustments themselves or, worse, will charge a hefty fee for doing so.

Please be careful in deciding how to handle this. Messing up someone's financial records can be very costly as well as the many legal issues that can arise.

[tildavirtual]

Another bookkeeper here who just about cries when given a client's books only to find that someone without experience has been at them. The mess, pain and tears is just not worth it.

Honestly, don't do it. You need professional training to be a bookkeeper.

I'm at the stage now where I review them before taking on a new bookkeeping client. If it's too messy I won't take it on. Why? Because I hate having to clean up someone else's mistakes and the client doesn't understand why? Bookkeeping is undervalued by many business owners which is just plain crazy to me.

[Gems Virtual Office]

I have to agree with everyone else. I'm also a bookkeeper and have been for 15 years and I still take refresher courses and learn new things daily. Its not a position you can just jump into.

[Rebecka Melson]

I have to agree with everyone else. I would recommend finding them an experienced bookkeeper rather than trying to do it yourself. You will look better in the clients eyes by admitting that your not qualified to do a job but are willing to find them someone who is than doing the job yourself and risking doing it poorly.

Honestly, just the fact that you asked which software to use tells me that you shouldn't be doing it. Now that's not to say you couldn't learn how to do it, but I wouldn't use my client as a guinea pig.

[Office Goddess]

As another "bookkeeping voice" I will add my agreement that learning bookkeeping is not a quick process. It takes time and education to do it right and, after 11 years, I STILL run into issues I need help with on (rare) occasions.

That being said, if you are interested in learning bookkeeping skills (with the understanding that it takes YEARS of experience before handling someone's books without supervision) I would recommend you take a basic accounting class at the local community college and then purchase a copy of QuickBooks for yourself to begin learning the program. There are QB tutorials under the help menu in QuickBooks. However, the tutorials assume that you have basic bookkeeping knowledge so, unless you already have that knowledge, the tutorials will be confusing.

[sharetheload]

I took a total of 6 Accounting classes in high school and college. I am familiar with bookkeeping I was trying to do a refresh course as well as seeking for a software that is user friendly.

[vainparadise]

I love Quickbooks. Although I worked in the Finance department for quite some time, I didn't realize how difficult doing the books of a business really was. Fortunately I am a quick learner, had an awesome accountant and was able to use my husbands business as the guniea pig

I wouldn't recommend offering it as a service right off the bat. First get familiar with your software and take some tutorials. You seem to have the foundation layed with already having some accounting classes under your belt and wanting to take some refresher courses is great.

[sharetheload]

I love Quickbooks. Although I worked in the Finance department for quite some time, I didn't realize how difficult doing the books of a business really was. Fortunately I am a quick learner, had an awesome accountant and was able to use my husbands business as the guniea pig

I wouldn't recommend offering it as a service right off the bat. First get familiar with your software and take some tutorials. You seem to have the foundation layed with already having some accounting classes under your belt and wanting to take some refresher courses is great.

Thanks Dawn, will do.

[tildavirtual]

You definitely have a good foundation for learning computerised bookkeeping. Not knowing the theory is why many business owners make such terrible mistakes with their books. Good luck!

[EditingEtc]

Bookkeeping gives me a headache. I deal with this daily in my current 9-5 at an accounting office.

I can do it, though it makes me dizzy and I've come to realize that I am really a word person.

It costs A LOT of money to have your accountant restore a Quickbooks file and realize that all entries were incorrectly categorized and none of the numbers tie...it can be a nightmare.

I agree with the other VAs that unless bookkeeping is a specialty of yours, I would steer clear from this service for your clients, or outsource it to another VA.

Good morning all,

I have recently added Bookkeeping as a new service provided on my website. I currently use the ATO's E-Record for my own books and I also have MYOB Basics (free version). I am still undecided whether to purchase QuickBooks or MYOB. Which product do you prefer?

[Donna]

I don't even do my own books anymore. I partnered with a local bookkeeper and recommend her to any clients that need bookkeeping. She handles my books for me too, the only thing I do is send invoices and log payments - she does the rest.

Donna

[lanelt]

Good morning all,

I have recently added Bookkeeping as a new service provided on my website. I currently use the ATO's E-Record for my own books and I also have MYOB Basics (free version). I am still undecided whether to purchase QuickBooks or MYOB. Which product do you prefer?

Personally I prefer QuickBooks. I looked at MYOB once briefly so can't really say much on that. Most of the businesses I encounter use QuickBooks themselves so it's a natural choice for me to just keep them there. QuickBooks is very user friendly and very widely used. A large number of my clients do some aspect of their bookkeeping themselves (pretty much what Donna mentioned above). I'm sure MYOB is a good program. Another thought would be to go with MYOB and target that market as your clients.