By now you already know that using a cloud-based accounting software is a true blessing when it comes to managing your business. Quick and easy invoicing, estimating and expense management, clever projecting, countless add-ons, fully automated reporting are just some of the things an online accounting solution can do – for one business. But what if you own multiple entities and you want to manage all of them from the same account? This is where things get a bit complicated but, thankfully, not unsolvable.
You just have to learn the dos and don’ts of managing multiple businesses from the same account if your accounting software provides this option. But, as some of the following cases will show, you don’t have to panic if you are obliged to use multiple accounts, since these clever programs can still connect your businesses via their integrations.
Having multiple businesses under the same account is anything but impossible thanks to cloud-based accounting solutions. In fact, if you are engaging in similar business activities but have the same clientele and vendors, the accounting software allows you to share the so-called master files. Aside from the shared data, one of the biggest advantages of having your businesses under the same account is the almost seamless interoperability. This means that you can perform actions which have effects on your other businesses, but the software still prepares individual business reports for each company to avoid any confusion, like accidentally entering an expense in a different currency. Another important aspect is that it is only you, the account manager, who will have access to all businesses, thus preventing others from accidentally or deliberately tampering with the data of your other companies.
However, keep in mind that almost all accounting companies treat your businesses separately: in other words, regardless of the same account, if you have multiple companies, you have to multiply the subscription fee with the number of entities.
Like we said before, it is not impossible to manage multiple businesses through the same account. However, there are certain things you have to pay attention to, otherwise you might end up creating a mess.
Support for multiple currencies is crucial, especially if you run businesses in different countries. Simply entering an invoice amount in the wrong currency already impacts the books of your different businesses. Therefore it’s important you pick a solution that makes it easy to enter and manage different currencies.
Thankfully the accounting software knows that it deals with different companies under the same account, therefore it keeps business reports separate from each other. However, it is best to ask the help of an accountant to go through your books, in order to spot deviations and to comply with the different regulations of the countries and states you conduct business in.
This is a real catch 22: keeping different bank accounts for each of your businesses is logical, but maintaining them costs a lot. However, if you have one bank account you might end up mixing them up, because you will not be able to differentiate between bank transactions. Some accounting software will let you tag bank transactions or group them, so that you can create an overview of the transactions related to one business entity or branch specifically.
Each state and each country applies their own tax rates – and you have to keep them separated from each other. Applying the wrong tax rate once can result in faulty tax reports, which is one of the riskiest parts of managing multiple entities through the same bookkeeping account.
Although finding an online accounting solution with the option of multi-business accounting is not easy, it is not impossible – and we have three examples worthy of your consideration.
Xero is a progressive and innovative online accounting solution that enables you to manage your accounts more effectively and make your accounting hassle-free. Some of its features include invoicing and quotes, bank reconciliation, inventory, mobile capability, third-party apps, purchase orders and payroll. The mobile version of the software, Xero Touch, makes it possible to access all your accounting data instantly from wherever you may be. Xero integrates and works well with many other third-party applications (such as advanced solutions for CRM, point-of-sale, e-commerce and more). You have a choice of three pricing plans – Starter, Standard and Premium – all of which have slightly different features and a reduced price for the first six months. Xero also provides a 30-day free trial. Customers enjoy efficient and reliable support from Xero online teams. Xero’s US headquarters is in San Francisco, but this publicly listed company’s products are used in over 180 countries. The company has garnered impressive experience in the area of cloud computing and accounting and has continued to innovate and create new products for the market.
FreshBooks was founded in 2003 in Canada as an invoicing, billing and time tracking software, but over the past years it became a full-fledged online accounting solution ideal for sole proprietors and smaller businesses. With this neat cloud-based software, which underwent a thorough overhaul in 2016, you can easily and quickly create and customize invoices (whether using the desktop account or the Android/iPhone apps), record expenses, plan and realize projects, and track your time. You can integrate a decent amount of third party applications and services, and check reports FreshBooks automatically creates for you. You also have the option to enable fast online payments, set up recurring invoices, and even customize your account. Regardless of your chosen plan, almost all features remain available during and after the 30-day trial period. Furthermore, you also get unlimited customer support with your subscription, which can be as low as $15 per month. So if you need an accounting solution that includes all major functions and you work with a small number of clients and employees/contractors, then FreshBooks is your choice.
When it comes to online accounting solutions there is one company that is considered to be the alpha and omega of all things accounting: Sage, a company founded in 1981 in the UK. Despite its origins, the company’s best-known solution, Sage Business Cloud Accounting, is ideal for businesses based in the U.S. thanks to the fact that it is a powerhouse when it comes to accounting features. With this software on board, accounting becomes a much simpler experience – and not just because it covers all the needs of a striving business, like the easy creation of invoices, quotes and estimates, well-detailed summaries of the business’s performance and automatically created reports. Sage Business Cloud Accounting also boasts an extremely intelligent inventory with real-time tracking, plus it saves newly created items to Google Drive without the need for any third party add-ons – which can still be applied if you want to further automate tasks. And if that’s not enough, Sage Business Cloud Accounting can be purchased for affordable prices or trialed for free for the first 30 days of use.
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