Start-up software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies, like all start-ups, need an efficient way to handle daily accounting tasks while growing their business. Start-ups tend to grow quickly, and a small business owner often doesn’t have time to build an accounting system. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have one.

Businesses of every size benefit from having an easy and efficient way to handle their early-stage start-up accounting and future bookkeeping tasks. The best solution is to leverage innovative technology that streamlines your bookkeeping processes with an accounting software system that helps eliminate human error, saves time and gets you ready for tax time.

Why You Need Small Business Accounting Software

Many accounting software systems offer very similar accounting functionality, but that doesn’t mean they’re all created equal. The best small business accounting systems offer a complete financial management solution that automates many everyday accounting tasks to save you time and money. If you’re currently using pen and paper or an Excel spreadsheet to manage your SaaS accounting requirements, you’re spending a significant amount of time and effort on tasks that accounting platforms can easily automate.

All types of small businesses benefit from having accounting software, and these benefits almost always outweigh the costs. Saving you the time and frustration of performing manual data entry to manage your books and track your company’s financial performance is a primary benefit of using accounting software.

Benefits

Accounting software offers more robust functionality than pen and paper or simple spreadsheets. It streamlines multiple processes and expedites daily financial transactions. Bookkeeping software also lets you connect other business software systems, such as invoicing software, for enhanced automation of multiple tasks. Small businesses feel more comfortable and confident handling their finances and enjoy instant access to business financials that track cash flows that help when raising capital. Other benefits include the effortless completion of:

  • A new chart of accounts
  • Accounts receivable and accounts payable transactions
  • Automated expense tracking with receipt capture
  • Reconciliation of business bank accounts
  • Professional-looking invoices
  • Unlimited invoices and recurring invoices
  • Invoice reminders to customers
  • Data updates
  • Cash flow analysis
  • Financial forecasting
  • Calculations of payroll taxes
  • High-complexity transactions
  • Business financial statements, such as a balance sheet, profit and loss (P&L) statement and cash flow statement

Reduce Human Errors

Anytime you manually enter your financial information, whether in a physical records book or an Excel spreadsheet, there’s always the possibility of human error. One incorrect number and you may get the wrong idea about the financial state of your business. Convenient bookkeeping software features, such as receipt capture and bank reconciliation, enhance the accuracy of your financial data. When you capture a receipt image, your software automatically records the charges, and if it’s connected to your bank account, any differences between your bank account balance and your books are flagged and rectified.

Best Accounting Software for Start-Up SaaS Companies

Tech start-ups may overlook the importance of setting up a reliable accounting system that grows with their business as they’re busy trying to get off the ground. Setting up accounting software from the outset makes it easier to track your finances now and in the future. Waiting until later means inputting all your bookkeeping data at once, which can be extremely time-consuming and may lead to errors if you didn’t have established document management processes in place, such as set ways of tracking accounts payable, accounts receivable, sales tax collection, etc.

The best SaaS accounting software should provide accuracy and efficiency. A key functionality of the best accounting software is automation tools. SaaS is a fast-paced industry, and automation allows you to focus more time on your business and less on your books. Because your company is growth-minded, your software also must be scalable so it can grow with you as your business expands. Most SaaS companies cater to a wide range of business types, so the best accounting software provides multi-business support to account for that.

Whether you’ve literally just formed your SaaS company or your start-up company has already hit its stride, you need a seamless way to manage your finances. QuickBooks is the most popular bookkeeping platform for small to midsize businesses, including start-up SaaS businesses.

QuickBooks Online for SaaS Accounting Success

Frequently touted as the best overall bookkeeping software for all types of small businesses, QuickBooks Online accounting software packages offer the ideal solution for your SaaS accounting needs. All its accounting features can be accessed from one main dashboard, making bookkeeping tasks more fluid and efficient. It also manages all the vital tasks small businesses need to succeed. For example, QuickBooks Online has features that facilitate receipt capture, payment processing, time tracking, payroll, sales tax calculation and inventory management, among others.

QuickBooks is used by millions of small businesses. Companies that want to download and install the software on a local computer should choose QuickBooks Desktop, but those wanting a cloud-based solution they can access from anywhere should choose online QuickBooks software. The online version lets you easily enter and update your data through a web browser or mobile app and offers a helpful virtual community to help answer your questions.

Using QuickBooks as your SaaS accounting software solution provides an intuitive interface that makes it easy to create and analyze reports on your company’s financial condition. It comes with a free trial and offers four monthly subscription plans, so you can start with a smaller plan, then upgrade to a plan with more advanced features as your business grows. All plans allow integration with third-party apps such as Stripe or PayPal, making it easy to accept online payments. Best of all, the platform seamlessly scales with your business, so it grows as your business grows and eliminates the need to migrate to another accounting platform later.

QuickBooks Online lets you easily generate custom financial reports. It supports fully customizable reports, so you can track your business’s financial condition with weekly, monthly and quarterly reports created with the information already stored in your online books. Plus, the intuitive interface shows you the information you need with minimal fuss to save a lot of time and stress.

Get Expert Accounting Assistance

Starting QuickBooks may seem daunting, and there is a learning curve, but Navitance helps small business owners reap the full benefits of this accounting solution. Our professionally trained bookkeepers are experts in all versions of QuickBooks, including QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online. Navitance Founder Laura Glennon is a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, so she has advanced training and expertise on using QuickBooks to its fullest.

Unlike some accounting firms, we specialize in helping start-up companies, so our finance professionals are especially adept at the bookkeeping needs of these companies. Ensure your company’s financial health stays on track by bundling our QuickBooks bookkeeping services with our interim bookkeeping and CFO services. Contact us at 978-809-3282 to learn how our virtual QuickBooks services can help you maintain more accurate books today.