I can’t wait for tax season to end so I can play with technology. Yes, I am a geek girl at heart. From the day I was introduced to the magic of Lotus 1-2-3 a million years ago at the University of Washington (Slash File Retrieve!) followed by BASIC programming (which I aced while crocheting potholders during the lectures) I have loved and appreciated the beauty of software and technology when it serves us well. My husband will find this ironic, as I am helpless when it comes to turning on the TV (which remote do I use?) and if he dies before me I shall never see another episode of anything.
But programs and apps that help me in my business and that help my clients in theirs are irresistible, because the really good ones actually do make life easier, funner, and more lucrative. Here are a few of my favorites. As of now. For I am a Fickle Geek Girl with zero loyalty when something better comes along.
Xero accounting software. Xero is cloud based software that works from bank feeds and rules designed so that there is, well, zero data entry. The company has heart, and is full of great people who actually answer their phones and want to help you. Plus they are based in New Zealand so their training videos are fun to watch, mate.
QBO accounting software. Intuit, the parent company, is about 1000 times bigger than Xero, with the deep pockets to spend on product development. Which makes me wonder what’s taking them so long to come out with a really excellent product. It is much, much better than it was a few years ago, and for some clients it is a better choice than Xero. For instance, if you are contractor and want to track job costs by customer, QBO does that better than Xero. (I debated whether to leave QBO on my list of favorite things. I guess I am giving it a chance.)
Gusto payroll service. Payroll is the one area where my clients get in trouble more than any other. Navigating state and federal withholding, depositing, reporting, and filing requirements is not something most small business owners are any good at – nor should they be! Gusto is friendly, and they really know what they are doing. (Which is not the case for all payroll service companies, believe it or not.)
iScanner. Holy cow what a fabulous app! It converts any image into a pdf and lets you edit, sign, add pages, forward, file, lock the document, and more. And to think that just a few years ago my husband used to pack a flatbed scanner into his suitcase when we were traveling, just in case…
Hubdoc. One central place for all your bank statements, receipts, bills, etc. And not only does Hubdoc store the documents, it magically converts receipts to transactions that you can then push right over to your accounting program (like Xero). Once Hubdoc is set up, it fetches documents automatically, so you don’t have to be logging in to your bank and other sites for downloading statements and looking up check images, as you try to remember where your money went.
MileIQ. No more spiral bound notebooks rattling around in the car for recording the mileage at the beginning and end of your business travel so you can accurately report your business mileage to your accountant. You DO have such a notebook, don’t you? I thought not. And now you don’t need one. Just install this app and it will track your mileage for you.
Meistertask. Project and task management with a team for absolutely free! (Though I love it so much I am going to upgrade to the paid Business version just because I want to support these German Meister guys.) They also make a mindmapping tool called MindMeister that is intuitive and easy to use, if you like that sort of tool for thinking.
Workflowy. Make lists, not war. Another great free tool for the listmakers in the room. I tend to use this for linear brainstorming. Is that a thing?
Evernote. Of course. This is where I file all my web clippings, take notes from meetings, and generally organize all my “stuff.” I upgraded to the paid version a few years ago, but I honestly can’t remember why. Probably because I wanted to support the developers.
That’s enough for now. Though I should probably make some sort of full disclosure statement. If you sign up for Xero, QBO, Gusto, or Hubdoc through me I get a teeny commission. But in exchange, you get my help setting it up. That seems fair, doesn’t it?