Making QuickBooks Quicker - Accountency · 2020. 1. 23. · 4. Organizing Your Data in QuickBooks...

Making QuickBooks Quicker

Tips for Efficiency and Effectiveness

Presented by:Edgar Rollins, CPAAccountency, LLC

410.964.2913

Hosted by:Paychex

Luke Berry410.581.7700

Ext 28076

Accountency, LLC 2

About Edgar & Accountency, LLC

EdgarPracticing accountant since 1986.

President, Accountency, LLC

Certified Public Accountant

QuickBooks Certified Pro Advisor (2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 2010)

Chairman, Local Practitioners Resource Committee of the Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants.

Accountency, LLCPeer-reviewed accounting firm providing the following services:

Accounting

Bookkeeping, Compilations, Reviews, Financial statement audits

Tax preparation

Business returns for sole-proprietors, partnerships, LLC’s in all states

Individual tax returns for businesses owners and others.

QuickBooks

QuickBooks cleanup (monthly, quarterly, annually)

QuickBooks set-up

Business advising

• Paychex, Inc. is a payroll and human resourceservice company serving approximately600,000 businesses in the US.

• Paychex provides payroll processing, retirementservices, insurance, and a fully outsourcedhuman resource solution

• The company is headquartered in Penfield,New York and has more than 100+ locationsacross the country and has 12,000 employees.

Contents1. Program Basics

2. Getting Started

3. Starting a New Company File

4. Organizing Your Data in QuickBooks

5. Refining the Chart of Accounts

6. Classes

7. Jobs

8. Lists

9. Items

10. Customer Database

11. Document Storage

12. Entering Bills

13. Paying Bills

14. Receiving Payments

15. QuickBooks Data Files

16. Add-In’s

17. Tracking Time

18. Multi-User

19. QuickBooks Reports

20. Year-End

21. Preferences

22. Customizing QuickBooks

23. Tracking Cash Expenses

24. Budgets

25. Other Tips

QuickBooks

Program Basics

Are You Using the Right Edition?

Online Pro Premier Accountant

Simultaneous Users 5 3 5 5

Balance SheetTracking Yes Yes

Working in 2QuickBooksFiles

Yes

Search for Transactions Yes

Client data Review Yes Yes Yes

QuickBooks 2013 Editions

Buying tips: Amazon.com normally has the best price.Don't be afraid of online downloads. If you need to reinstall,

you can.

On line Pro Premier Accountant

Price $39/mo $199 $249 $399

QuickBooks EditionsPremier Edition

Contractor

Accountant

Manufacturing & Wholesale

Non-profit

Professional Services

Retail

Accountant Edition

Includes all premier editions

(Shows File/Toggle to Another edition)

Online

Tip: Everyone I know HATES the online version

If you need to share your file online, there are better ways.

Enterprise

Too expensive

Don't get it unless you absolutely need the Enterprise features like more concurrent users.

Mac

I tried it. Too many limitations, missing features & quirks.

Simple Start

Too stripped down to be of much use.

Tip:

The enterprise editions of QuickBooks are appropriate if you need 10,000 to 100,000:- Customers- Vendors- Employees- Inventory items

QuickBooks 2013

Customer and vendor records are more flexible and thorough. You can attach to-do's to them, assign multiple contacts and store more contact options, like Facebook addresses and Twitter handles.

QuickBooks

Getting Started

The Home Screen

Title Bar is the bar at the topMenu Bar is under the title bar

Task Bar

Icon Bar is in the middleNavigation bar is on the bottomBar is a is at the bottom

The Home Screen is arranged by function and work flow

VendorsCustomersEmployeesEtc.

Vendors

Customers

Employees

Company

Banking

…and other info

Live Community/Help

Tip:I've found it to be rarely helpful and usually

annoying.

Try Google!

You can disable Live Community

You can customize the Home Page

Starting a New Company File

Tip:

Don't use the QuickBooks sample company filesas your company file! (or as a shortcut to“Create a New Company File.”)

The New Company Interview

Tip:

Create a separate folder to hold each QuickBooks company file.

(one folder per company)

Setting up QuickBooks

Stop and Think. What is my goal?

Tax returnsFinancial management and decision makingOther reporting

Review income & expense accounts

Tip:Best option – have a good CPA or other

qualified person set up an appropriate chart ofaccounts for your business.Otherwise – carefully select only the accounts

that apply to your business (you can add morelater).

Never, ever, ever

enter beginning balances in an account

QuickBooks uses the double-entrysystem of accounting

Every transaction must have two “sides” with equal debits and credits

If you only enter one side, what happens to the other side?

Example of Double-Entry Accounting(How Debits and Credits work)

Assets: Normal balance

(to increase)

Bank, accounts receivable, other current assets, fixed assets, other assets

Debit

Liabilities:

Accounts payable, credit cards, other current liabilities, long term liabilities

Credit

Equity:

Equity Credit

Income:

Income Credit

Cost of Goods Sold:

Cost of goods sold Debit

Expense:

Expense Debit

Example: Cash sale for $100

Bank account is Increased (debited) for $100

Income is Credited (increased) for $100

In double-entry accounting, all transactions must have equal debits and credits.

The above transaction has:Debits: $100Credits: $100

Organizing your data in QuickBooks

Setting up QuickBooks

Stop and Think. (Again.)What is my goal?

Tax returnsFinancial management and decision makingOther reporting

Entering:- Checks- Deposits- Invoices

All are Fun!

The Real power of QuickBooks

(like all databases)

is the reports that show your data in different ways.

QuickBooks gives us multiple ways to organize our data:

Chart of accounts

Classes

Items

Refining the Chart of

Accounts

Reporting Considerations

Some standard reporting needs:Income tax returnsFinancial statements for banksFinancial statements for owners/investorsReports for regulatorsReports for management to run the businessBusiness planningReports for analysis

Tip:

Assume you will be audited.You will probably be correct.

Examples of Accounts Needed:

Income tax returns

Penalties (not deductible)Federal income taxes (not deductible)State income taxes (deductible)Travel (deductible)Meals (50% deductible)

Examples of Accounts Needed (cont'd)

Sales tax returns

Sales by type (product vs service)Sales by stateThink: ITEMS

1099 – MiscW-2 labor1099 labor

Other special needs

Reports by business locationReports by line of businessReports by partnerThink: CLASSES

What accounts are needed for yourtax return?

Depends on:Your IndustryYour Entity type

Schedule C Sole-proprietor/single-member LLCForm 1120S S-CorporationForm 1120 CorporationForm 1065 Partnership/multi-member LLC

Schedule C is used by sole proprietors and single-member LLCs

Sample accounts:

• Sales• Advertising• Insurance (other than

health)• Interest

• Mortgage• Other

• Legal and professional• Office expenses• Repairs and

maintenance

Form 1065 is used by partnerships and multi-member LLCs

Sample accounts:

• Sales• Salaries• Guaranteed

payments to partners

• Taxes and licenses• Interest• Other

Tip:

Don't create more accounts than you really needDo split up accounts with large balances (could help avoid an audit)Look for other ways to get your information rather than creating new accountsThink: ITEMS!Think: CLASSES!

Tip:Many people choose entities that limit their

liabilityThat limitation will be compromised if you mix

business and personal expensesKeep business & personal separate!

QuickBooks Account types

BankAccounts receivableCurrent assetsFixed assetsAccounts payableCurrent liabilities

Credit cardsEquityIncomeCost of goods soldExpenseLong term liabilities

QuickBooks Account typesAssets: Normal balance

(to increase)Bank, accounts receivable, other current assets, fixed assets, other assets

Debit

Liabilities:Accounts payable, credit cards, other current liabilities, long term liabilities

Credit

Equity:Equity CreditIncome:Income CreditCost of Goods Sold:Cost of goods sold DebitExpense:Expense Debit

Account Numbering

Examples of numbering schemes:

1001000100001000 - MD

Suggested Account Numbering

1000 Assets2000 Liabilities3000 Equity4000 Revenues5000 Costs of sales6000 Expenses9000 Other income9500 Other expenses

Account Types - Bank

1100 – 1199Example:

1110 - Checking1120 – Savings1130 – Petty cash1140 - PayPal1190 - CDs

Checking Accounts with Multiple Check Sequences

If you use different sequences of checks in youraccount (Manual checks, payroll checks, checksprinted from QuickBooks) you can create sub-checking accounts to hold them.

When reconciling, reconcile the parent (main)account.

GAAP

Accounting principles generally accepted in the United StatesVaries by industry

Account Ordering Basics

GAAP generally requires listing accounts from most current to least current.

Example: • Checking (demand deposit)• Certificate of Deposit (time deposit

w/restricted availability)• Loan to owner

GAAP: Accounting principles generally accepted in the United States

Varies by industry

“Current”

A current asset is an asset and can either be converted to cash or used to pay current liabilities within 12 months.

Current liabilities are all liabilities of the business that are expected to be settled with 12 months.

Account Types – A/R

1200 – 1299

Example:1210 – Accounts receivable1290 – Allowance for doubtful accounts*

* Required by GAAP

Account Types – Other Current Assets

1300 – 1699

Example:1300 – Inventory1400 – Prepaid expenses1500 – Deferred income taxes1600 – Other current assets

Account Types – Fixed Assets

1700 – 1799Example:

1710 – Office equipment1720 – Furniture & fixtures1730 – Machinery1740 – Vehicles1750 – Leasehold improvements1760 – Land1790 – Accumulated depreciation

General IRS Rule – Fixed Assets

All fixed assets over $100.00

(Yes it's crazy. Don't blame me.)

Internal Revenue bulletin 2012-14, V, D De-minimis rule

Tip:

The depreciable cost of a fixed asset is:The cost of the assetSales taxDeliveryInstallation by sellerInstallation by your staffAccessories required to put the asset into useInspections.

Tip:

Fixed Asset or RepairPut vs. Keep Test

If the expenditure is to put the asset into useable condition, it is a FIXED ASSET.

If the expenditure is to keep the asset in working order, it is a REPAIR.

Put vs. Keep Test Example

You buy a truck that is up on blocks with no tires.The depreciable cost of the vehicle is the cost of the

vehicle and the cost of the tires.When you need to replace the tires, that is a repair.

Tip: Splitting the cost of multiple assets

Example: You go to Best Buy and buy a computer for $1,000 and a

printer for $250.Your 2 items ($1,000 & $250 = $1,250) will cost $1,325 at

checkout (sales tax!)When entering the check or credit card charge, enter a split

transaction and show each item (computer and printer) on a separate line.

DO NOT include a separate line for sales tax.

The cost of the computer should be $1,060.The cost of the printer should be $265.

This split is easy. In a more complicated transaction with multiple items or additional charges like delivery, just make an approximate allocation of the costs to the individual assets.

Don't worry about the split if it's close and the total comes out tomatch the bill.

Tip:

Income statement accounts hold a balance for thecurrent year only.

(Income statement accounts close to retainedearning at year-end. The beginning balance atthe start of the new year is $0.)

Balance sheet accounts never close. They contain a running balance from “the beginning.”

Some balance sheet accounts will contain “zillions” of transactions. (ex: Bank, A/R, A/P)

Many balance sheet accounts are infrequently used. (ex: Vehicles, notes payable)

When possible, minimize the activity in the seldom used balance sheet accounts.

That will make it easier for you when you are reviewing account balances.

Example:

You have a contractor build a bathroom for your office for $10,000 payable in 4 installments.

Instead of using the check writing screen and posting the 4 checks individually to “Leasehold Improvement,” enter a bill from the contractor for the full amount. (You can change the bill amount later if it changes.)

Now you can look in the history for Leasehold Improvements and see the one entry showing $10,000 for the cost of the bathroom.

Opening Balances

Never enter an opening balance for:

AccountsCustomersVendorsInventory items

Never let QuickBooks make an adjustment when a bank reconciliation doesn't balance.

Account Types – Other Assets

1800 – 1999Example:

1800 – Non-current notes receivable1900 – Non-current assets – other

Examples of other assets:Franchise rightsNon-compete agreementsGoodwillPatentsAccumulated amortization

Account Types – Accounts Payable

2200 – 2249Example:

2210 – Accounts payable.

(Note: There is rarely a need to have more than 1 A/R account)

Account Types – Credit Card

2250 – 2299

Example:2250 – American Express2260 – Visa, Bank of America

Account Types – Other Current Liabilities

2300 – 2799Example:

2300 – Accrued expenses2400 – Payroll payables2500 – Income taxes payable2600 – Deferred income taxes2700 – Other current payables

Account Types – Long-Term Liabilities

2800 – 2999

Example:

2800 – Non-current notes2900 – Non-current other

Account Types – Equity

3000 - 3999Equity Accounts for

CorporationsCommon stock

Preferred stock

Additional paid-in capital

Distributions

Tax distributions

Retained earnings

Member's equity – Edgar

Beginning equity

Investments

Distributions

Earnings

Equity Accounts for Partnerships, LLC's, Sole-Proprietorship’s

Accounts in Blue on the previous slide should be zeroed out (“closed”) every year on the first day of the next year.

They should show only the current year activity.

For corporations, close to retained earnings.

For other entities, close to the beginning equity account

Account Types – Retained Earnings

Not an appropriate account for non-corporations, but QuickBooks leaves you no other choice.

Account Types – Revenues (Income)

4000 – 4999

Example:4010 – Sales

Rarely is more than 1 sales account needed.Think: ITEMS

Account Types – Costs of Sales

5000 – 5999“Costs of sales” or “Costs of goods sold”

Direct costs attributable to the production of the goods or services.

Costs of SalesPurchases (physical product that is

part of the sale)

Costs of labor

Other costs:

SubcontractorsDirect rentDirect utilities

Costs of Goods SoldPurchases

Costs of labor

Other costs:

Factory rentFactory utilitiesSubcontractorsWarehousingTransportation-in

Account Types – Expenses

6000 – 8999Example:

6100 – Labor costs6500 – Occupancy7000 – Variable expenses7500 – General business expenses8000 – Discretionary8500 – Owner's compensation

Expenses6100 - Labor Costs

WagesPayroll taxesEmployee benefitsPayroll service fees

6500 - Occupancy

Rent

Utilities

Repairs (to office)

Condo fees

Office cleaning

7000 - Variable Expenses

Expenses that vary depending on level of production or sales volume.

8500 - Owner's Compensation

Salary

Commissions

Benefits (medical, retirement, etc).

8000 - Discretionary

TravelMealsEntertainmentContributionsBusiness gifts

7500 - General Business Expenses

“Everything else”

Account Types – Other Income

9000 – 9499

Example:Interest incomePurchase discounts (optional)Gains on sales of assets

Account Types – Other Expenses

9500 – 9999

Example:Interest expenseLosses on sales of assetsDepreciation

Tip:

Most lists allow you to group items into Parent-Child groups.

Sub Accounts

- Check (or uncheck) subaccount of _________box- Pick parent account

Collapse/Expand Financial Statements

Collapse – “hides” sub-accounts and shows the total of the sub accounts in the parent account.

Expand – shows all accounts and sub accounts.

Tip:

Consider using Accounts/sub accounts to help see the “big picture.”

Example:6100 – Labor Costs (parent account)6110 – Wages (sub account)6120 – Commissions(sub account)6130 – Payroll taxes (sub account)

When collapsed, only Labor Costs will appear on the Profit & Loss statement (showing the total of the parent and all sub accounts).

Tip:In the previous example6100 – Labor costs6110 – Wages6120 – Commissions6130 – Payroll taxesWhen entering a transaction, if you select the parent account it

will show on the Profit & Loss statement as follows6100 – Labor costs6110 – Wages6120 – Commissions6230 – Payroll taxes6100 – Labor costs – other

Tip:Don't rename or delete the system accounts that

QuickBooks automatically creates:Retained earningsSales tax payableCost of goods soldEstimatesInventory AssetsPayroll liabilitiesPayroll expensesPurchase ordersUndeposited funds

Classes

Classes

Classes provide a way to group Profit & Loss transactions by:

DepartmentOfficeLocationPartnerAnything else you want to track.

You can print the P & L by class (in separate columns)Better than cluttering the Chart of Accounts.

P & L by Class

You might use classes to, for example, separate transactions that relate to different departments or locations or types of business.

A construction company might want to track classes using New Construction, Remodel, and Overhead.

Your customer types might help you isolate groups by characteristics like Industry or Geographical Location.

Tip:For amounts that can't be efficiently split among classes,

create a class to hold those entries and allocate periodically by journal entry.

Example 1: If you have 2 partners and want to allocate income and expense items between them, create 4 classes as follows:

Example 2: If you have 2 properties and want to allocate income and expense items between them, create 3 classes as follows:

Partner Partner Allocate Allocate

1 2 Equally By Sales

Property Property

1 2 Allocate

Creating Classes

Go to Edit | Preferences | Accounting | Company Preferences.

Make sure that Use class tracking is checked. If you want to be prompted for a class designation

in transactions, check that box, too.

Class Reports

QuickBooks comes with two reports specially designed for tracking class-based transactions:

Profit & Loss by Class and Balance Sheet by Class

(both can be found in the Reports menu, under Company & Financial).

Of course, you can filter other reports to include a class column. You can also create a QuickReport for individual classes.

You can filter by class in QuickBooks reports.

Jobs

Job Preferences

Create The Job Type

Create the Job

Open the Customer Center.

Right-click on a customer who needs a job tracked and select Add Job

Job Reports

You'll learn how each job is doing in terms of things like:

• Profitability • The accuracy of your estimates • Time and mileage • Unbilled costs • Job status

Lists

Customers & Jobs

Jobs are a “sub-account” of Customers

Example:Customer- Job 1- Job 2- Job 3

Tip:

You can only create invoices for Customers or Jobs

Vendors

Everyone you pay

Except payment to employees for payrollFor non-payroll payments to employees, set

them up as vendors with a unique name.

Tip:

You can only track A/P or issue 1099's to Vendors.

Other Names List

Optional – You can just use one of the other name lists

- customers- vendors- employees

Tip:

You can move other names to:- customers- vendors- employees

YOU CANNOT UNDO THE CHANGE OR CHANGE OTHER NAME TYPES.

Tip:

Some people use the other names for one-time use (ex: a vendor you will only every use once or very infrequently).

It usually works better to just make the payee a vendor and mark it as “inactive.”

Inactive Items

Tip:Some lists give you the option to show inactive

entries.If “ABC Company” is inactive, by default it will not

show up when using the drop-down list on the enter-check screen.

If you type “ABC Company” QuickBooks will give you the option to: - Use it this time (keep inactive)- make it active

Tip:

Creative use of lists are a good way to tweak QuickBooks.

For ExampleIf you don't use sales reps but want to track sales by

referral source, you could set up the sources as sales reps.

Working with Lists

You can:AddModifyDeleteMergeMark in active

Tip:

Merging List Entries1) Edit the item2) Change the name to be the EXACT as another

item3) QuickBooks will ask you if you want to merge

the items

Price Levels List

You may find that you have to offer a standard discount to one or more customers, use the price level feature, so that you don’t have to remember to include a discount item on each invoice:

QuickBooks Pro users can only establish Fixed % price levels, which are applied globally to all products. QuickBooks Premier users also have the option to create Per Item discounts, where you can selectively discount only certain items.

Price levels allow you to apply automatic discounts to everything a

customer purchases.

ITEMS

Your Company in High Definition

Are You Defining Items in QuickBooks Correctly?

Obviously, you're using QuickBooks because you buy and/or sell products and/or services

You get that information from the reports that you so painstakingly customize and create.

But their accuracy depends in large part on how carefully you define each item.

This can be a laborious process, but it's a critical part of QuickBooks' foundation.

Items are Important in QuickBooks

Any line item on a purchase order, invoice or estimate must be set up as an item.Items make data entry on sales & purchase forms more efficient.

Items Allow You to Track Non-Financial Information in

QuickBooks

QuantitiesHoursEtc.

Items allow you to keep highly detailed information and still keep a simple (understandable) Chart of

Accounts

Example:You can have 10,000 items that you track sales of, but

on the financial statements they can all be grouped as “Product Sales” or “Service Sales.”

Items allow you to track inventory

Items allow non- “accounting types” to enter transactions in

QuickBooks without messing things up.

When the item is selected on an invoice, the transaction is posted to the correct financial statement accounts (assuming you set it up correctly in the Item List).

Items act as “Pointers” to the Financial Statements.

Tip:

All items MUST be assigned to the correctexpense account.

Tip:

Items Sales and Costs should be assigned toincome and expense accounts, not balancesheet accounts.

Item Types

Generally, an item type can't be changed, so it is very important to set it up right the first time.

Service

Do you or your employees do something for clients?

• Training? • Construction labor? • Web design?

This is usually tracked by the hour.

Inventory Part

If you want to maintain detailed records about inventory that contain up-to-date information about value, quantities on hand and cost of goods sold, you must define these items as inventory parts.

Before you start creating individual records, make sure that QuickBooks

is set up for this purpose.

How Detailed Should the Item List Be?

The chart of accounts should be only as detailed as you absolutely need it to be.

The item list should be as detailed as possible.

Inventory Assembly

Sometimes referred to as a Bill of Materials. Do you sell items that actually consist of multiple

individual products, services and/or other charges (though you may also sell the parts separately)?

If you're planning to track the compilations as individual units, then you must define them as assemblies.

Non-Inventory Parts

If you don't track inventory, you can set up items as noninventory parts.

Even if you do track inventory, there may be times when you'll want to use this designation.

For instance, you might sell something to a customer that they asked you to obtain, but you don't plan to stock it. In that case, QuickBooks only records the incoming and outgoing funds.

Other Charges

This is a catch-all category for items like delivery charges or setup fees.

You can't designate a unit or measure here; they're just standard costs.

Groups

Unlike assemblies, these are not recorded as individual inventory units.

Use this designation when you sell a combination of items together frequently but you don't want them tracked as one entity.

DiscountThis is a fixed amount or a percentage that you

subtract from a subtotal or total. Discounts only apply to the previous row of the

invoice or sales receipt. To apply the discount to multiple items, you must

create a Subtotal item.

Payment

Normally, you would use the Receive Payments window to record a payment made.

But if your customer has made a partial or advance payment upfront, use this item to subtract it from the total when you create the invoice or statement.

Sales Tax Item

One sales tax, one rate, one agency.

Sales Tax Group

If a sale requires two or more sales tax items, QuickBooks calculates the total and displays it for the customer, but the items are tracked individually.

Additional Actions The Item menu provides

other options for working with items. You can:

• Edit or delete • Duplicate • Make inactive • Find in transactions and • Customize the list’s

columns.

Item ReportsSales by item summary

QuantityAmount% of salesAverage price

Purchases by item summaryQuantityAmount

Item ProfitabilityCostSalesProfit by item

Change Item PricesCompetitive or other pressures may mean that you need to globally change all

of your prices at once. Fortunately, you can use the Change Item Prices feature to do so:

1. Choose Customers, and then Change Item Prices.

2. As shown in Figure 5, select an Item Type from the list, and then select the items you wish to change, or click the Mark All checkbox.

3. Indicate a percentage or dollar amount to increase prices by. This can be based on the current price or current cost of the item. Enter a positive number to increase the price, or negative number to decrease the price.

4. Click the Adjust button to see the impact of your changes in the New Price column, and then click OK to make the changes permanent.

Timesaver: You can also manually fill-in the New Price column if you prefer to make targeted adjustments to selected items. This is easier than manually opening each item one at a time.

Customer Database

QuickBooks is a database for a variety of customer info.

Edit Customer

Edit Customer – Additional Info

Edit Customer – Payment Info

Edit Customer – Define Fields

Document Storage

Local Document Storage(Requires QuickBooks 2012 or later)

Attach documents from your computer or directly from scanner to records in QuickBooks.Storing documents is freeDocuments are stored on your computer

(Having a good backup is CRITICAL)Manage your documents in the QuickBooks

Doc Center

Attaching a Document

You can attach documents to any QuickBooks record (ex: invoices, customers, checks, estimates)

In the menu bar, click the Attach Button.Attach a document:

From your computerFrom your scannerFrom the QuickBooks Doc CenterBy dragging the document into the attachments window (from your computer or directly from Outlook.

You can attach multiple documents to one record.

Tip:

The connection between your QuickBooks data file and your attached documents will break if you rename or move your QuickBooks data file.

Tip:

When you merge records, the documents remain attached to the new merged record.

Tip:

When condensing data files, QuickBooks keepsdocuments that are attached to deletedtransactions.

Kept as unattached documents in the Doc Center.

Tip:

Attached documents are NOT included in a QuickBooksbackup.

You must MANUALLY backup the \Attach folder usinganother method.

There is no size restriction with AttachedDocuments

There is no restriction on the type of file that canbe attached

There is no limit to the number of files you canattach (per record or in total)

QuickBooks company user permissions determinewhich users have access to attachments.

QuickBooks Doc Center

Entering Bills

Bill Payment Methods

Enter bills Pay bills

Or

Write checks

Tip:

When you pick a method for paying bills (EnterBills then Pay Bills, or Write Checks) STICKWITH IT!

If you alternate methods, you will end up payingbills twice.

Bill Entry Screen

Benefits of Entering Bills

• Enter bills as they come in • Set reminders for bills due • Pay bills easily • Locate a bill or payment quickly • Enter bills as (or after) you receive items • Link bills to purchase orders • Have instant access to a bill's status

Paying Bills

Paying Bills

At the bottom of the screen, you can set the payment date and type, use any discounts or credits, and make sure the correct payment account is selected.

When you're done, click Pay Selected Bills.

Enter a check mark next to the bills you're paying, and change the amount in the Amt. To Pay field at the end of the row if necessary.

Receiving Payments

Recording Customer Payments (and other receipts)

1) Receive the customer's payment in the Receive Payments screen

2) Repeat for all customer payments received today.3) QuickBooks holds all of the payments in the

Undeposited Funds account.4) In the Make Deposits screen, record all of today's

receipts. (Add any miscellaneous receipts.)5) The total amount in the Make Deposits screen must

total the amount of the bank deposit.

Tip:

If you use QuickBooks invoicing, be sure to use the Receive Payments screen to apply the customer to the invoice.

If you use the Make Deposits screen, QuickBooks won't mark the invoice as paid.

QuickBooks Data Files(for Windows)

.qbw

The primary QuickBooks data file.

.qbw .tlg file

Logs all changes to the company data file sincethe last successful QB backup.

If the connection to the company files is lost,QuickBooks will attempt to use this file torecover the lost data.

You should always backup before moving theQuickBooks data files.

.lgb file

Contains encrypted information about user names and passwords.

It is used when an application like QuickBooks Point of Sale connects automatically with the QuickBooks data file.

.nd

The network data file is a text file that keeps trackof open connections to the QuickBooks data filein multiuser environments.

Tip:

If no Network Data file exists, QuickBooks willautomatically recreate it next time QuickBooksis started.

Tip:

Recreating .nd files can resolve issues when the QuickBooks data file won't open

Common Errors:H 101H 202H 303H 505- 6189- 82

.qbbQuickBooks

backup files.Older copies

can be deleted when no longer needed.

(When you are sure that you have a good, more recent copy.)

.qbmPortable Company FileA compressed version of the company file (for

emailing or exchanging QuickBooks data).Portable company files are more compact than

backup files, so they can be easily emailed asattachments or copied onto another computer.

But they don't contain everything that backups do.They lack, for example, letters, logos,attachments, images and templates. Don't usethis option if changes will be made, since theycan't be merged back into the file.

\Attach folder

The attach folder contains all documents attachedto records in QuickBooks “local documentstorage.”

Accountant's Copy Data Files

QBX -Accountant's copy file – Export File that can besent to your accountant.

QBA - Accountant's copy working file – Created by theaccountant while working on your QuickBooks data.

QBY - Accountant's copy import file – Export file thatyour accountant creates to return their changes back toyou to import into your QuickBooks data file.

Condensing Your QuickBooks Data File

When you condense your QuickBooks data file:

QuickBooks deletes transactions that you select.

Transactions are replaced with your choice of:Summary Journal entryMonthly general journal entriesNo entries

Add-In’s

QuickBooks Contact Sync for Outlook

Free, down-loadable tool that synchronizes QuickBooks data with Outlook.Syncs Customers, Jobs & Vendors with

Outlook Contacts.Helps prevent duplicate and out-of-date

data.Customizable field mappings.

What You Can Synchronize

QuickBooks lets you synchronize three kinds of contact information with Outlook:

1.Customer contact information contained in your Customer & Jobs list

2.Vendor contact information from your Vendor list 3.Contact information on your Other Names list Note: You can’t synchronize employee contact

information.

After you’ve completed the first synchronization, you’ll need to perform a manual sync each time you want to make the databases match.

To do so, click the QuickBooks ContactSync menu in Outlook.

Prevent Winmail.dat file from being sent

This is a “known issue” without Outlook (Exchange server).It has been a known issue for many years.Issue is caused by Outlook/Exchange sending

Rich Text Format (RTF) data to a recipient that cannot receive RTF data.Uncheck Outlook option “Always Send to this

Recipient in Microsoft Exchange Rich-Text Format.”

Tracking Time

Time TrackingSetup QuickBooks for

Time Tracking:

FilePreferencesTime TrackingCompany

preferencesDo you track time:

Yes

Time Tracking allows you to:

Print reports showing time spent by jobAccumulate hours for employee payrollInvoice customers for time spent on jobs

Step 1: Enter Time on Time sheets

Go to:

Enter:• Employee name• Customer:Job• Service Item• Notes• Hours by day – billable?

• Employees• Enter time• Use weekly time sheet

Note: You can also use the Time/Enter Single Activity screen.

Your employees can use the free QuickBooks timer program to enter their own time and export it to you periodically:

• Even if they work remotely

• Even if they don't use QuickBooks

Step 2: Print & Review Time sheets.

• File• Print forms• Print time sheets

Step 3: Invoice for time

• Select Customers• Select Create Invoices• Select the customer:job• Click Add Time/Costs . . . button• Check the time entries to include on this invoice• Print or save the invoice.

When you create invoices, this box will open after you select a customer:

Select the entries should be invoiced.

If there are other costs that you covered, click the Expenses tab to see all transactions that you earmarked for this client on a bill, check or credit card.

You have the option here to mark up the cost by a percent or amount (even if you established this in Preferences), and to specify an account.

Do the same for Mileage, which you would have entered previously at Company | Enter Vehicle Mileage.

Then select any Items that you purchased for the customer

Step 4: Review Time Reports

• Time by name (employee)• Time by job summary• Billed/Unbilled Hours by person (employee) and job

Multi-User

QuickBooks Users

You should set up a user for everyone that uses QuickBooks (even if only one person uses it at a time).

Different user accounts allow you to track what changes are made by whom.

Users can set up different User Preferences.

• You must have one administrator• Your may set up other users with various access privileges• You may set up a user for your accountant (with the type

“External Accountants”)

Users can have Full or Selected accessYou can control access to:

• Sales & A/R• Purchases & A/P• Checking & Credit cards• Inventory• Time tracking• Payroll• Sensitive accounting activities• Sensitive financial reporting• Changing or deleting transactions

QuickBooks lets you specify which areas and functions individual users

can access.

QuickBooks Reports

QuickZoomWhen viewing a report:

Move the cursor over an amountThe normal cursor will change to a magnifying glass cursorDouble-click to view detail for the amount.

You can:

Change the dates on the reportCustomize to change the columns that show Change column widthPrint and/or memorize the report.

Customizing ReportsCustomize button (Modify report will display)

Display

Customize datesAdd/Delete columns shown on the report

Filters

Header/Footer

You can change report title (for example to includefilter information and other options.)

Fonts & Numbers

You may change fonts and other formatting

Company Preferences: Reports

Adjusting Column Widths

Drag the diamond icon between column headings to:• Change the column widths• Hide the column in the report

Memorized Reports

You can give your memorized report any name you want

Memorized Reports

Memorize reports that you will use again in the future.

Print Reports

Export Reports to Excel

You must have Excel installed on your computer to export in Excel format.

Year-End

Closing the Year

Some accounting programs require you toperform a year-end closing procedure that:

• Zeros out all income and expense accounts and adds the net income to retained earnings.

• Prevents you from entering transactions into prior years.

QuickBooks does NOT

This is a great feature, but it does have a downside.

Once formal financial statements have been distributed and/or tax returns have been filed for the year, you can NOT change prior year transactions.*

*Unless you are preparing revised financial statements and/or amended tax returns.

Closing Date Password

You can “prevent” changes to prior years by setting a closing date password.

You should do this after:• All accounts have been reviewed for correctness• Accounts have been reconciled• All year-end accountant's adjusting journal entries

(ex: depreciation) have been made

You may:• Use a secure password to prevent anyone from

changing prior year transactions• Use a non-secure password to allow changes, but

remind yourself/others that they may be causing significant issues that will have to be corrected later.

Note:

When a user attempts to change a prior-yeartransaction, QuickBooks will ask for the closingdate password before allowing the change to besaved.

Note:

Normally, you would select a closing date of12/31/11 when you are sure that 2011 data isfinal.

When I finish making year end adjustments to aclient's file I set a closing date password.

“OUCH”

I use OUCH in all capital letters and remind theclient that if they make a prior year change it willhurt both of us!

Closing Date Exception Report

You can use this report to determine if anyone has made changes to transactions subsequent to you specifying a closing date in the QuickBooks preferences.

To do so, choose Edit, and then Preferences. Next, choose Accounting, and then Company Preferences. Finally, click the Set Date/Password button, and then follow the onscreen prompts.

Now you can choose Reports, Accountant & Taxes, and then Closing Date Exception Report to monitor any changes to closed periods in QuickBooks.

Tax Line Mapping

1099’s

We use FileTaxes.com

Preferences

Customizing QuickBooks Preferences

Change Company/User PreferencesGo to:

• Edit– Preferences . . .

Each Preference option has preferences for:The current user logged in (each user may set their own

“My Preferences”)The current company (company preferences affect all

users)

Accounting

Bills

Calendar

Checking

Desktop View

Finance Charge

General

Integrated Applications

Items & Inventory

Jobs & Estimates

Multiple Currencies

Payments

Payroll & Employees

Reminders

Reports & Graphs

Sales & Customers

Sales Tax

Search

Send Forms

Service Connection

Spelling

Tax: 1099

Time & Expenses

Customizing QuickBooks

Custom Fields

QuickBooks allows you to add your own fields to:

You may add a total of 15 custom fields.

CustomersVendorsEmployeesItems

Customizing Forms

Some forms in QuickBooks allow you tocustomize the form to show or hide certain fieldsand rename how they appear on the form.

You can customize:• Invoices• Credit memos• Cash sales• Estimates• Purchase orders• Statements

Basic Customization

Layout Designer

Additional Customization

Customize Your Icon Bar

Memorized Transactions

Tracking Cash Expenses

Petty Cash - Traditional

• Maintain a cash fund ($100)• Reimburse cash expenditures from the cash

fund.• When funds are low ($10), write a check to

Cash (Petty Cash) and split the expenses ($90) among the appropriate accounts.

Petty Cash – Register Method

• Create a Bank account in QuickBooks for Petty Cash.

• Enter every transaction in the Register.• This allows you to track the Vendor and date.

Tip:

Use the “check number” to organize your receipts.

Write the “check number” on the receipt and file them in order.

Budgets

To get started, click on:• Company menu. • Select Planning &

Budgeting• Set Up BudgetsIf you’ve already set up a

budget, it will appear and you can edit it or create a new one.

If you haven’t created a budget, the Create a New Budget window opens.

Budgets in QuickBooks are account-based

It’s easy to make a global dollar amount or percentage change to a row.

The Budget vs. Actual report can show variances for any date range

that you choose

The Budget vs. Actual Graph is a great way to convert boring numbers into a visual representation of how

your business is doing.

Multiple Budgets

You can only create one budget per fiscal year for each account, customer or job, and class combination.

You can create budgets for individual customers, for example, and use some of the same accounts found in your overall company budget.

Other (Random) Tips

Most Shortcut Keys are Shown On the Menus

Getting ready to send an invoice but want to check a related transaction from the same job a few months ago? You could use the Find tool, which is a seriously

underused feature that can often answer a question quickly. But that takes a few clicks.

Instead, just hit Ctrl + L, and that Customer/Job screen pops open in the Customer Center.

Click Ctrl + E from that screen to see the Edit Job dialog box.

CTRL+Y on transaction screens will open the Transaction Journal, which shows you the behind-the-scenes debits and credits.

If the Account column is truncated, click and drag the little diamond symbol to the right.

Hit F2 while you're in QuickBooks, and you'll get the Product Information screen.

It'll tell you everything you want to know about your specific copy of QuickBooks, like your release and license number, the file size, number of users logged in, audit trail status and the total number of accounts, customers, employees, etc.

Press Ctrl-W to display the Write Checks windowPress Ctrl-I to display the Invoice window. Within a transaction window, press Ctrl-N to

create a new transaction, or Ctrl-P to print. Ctrl-Q allows you to create a QuickReport on a

selected transaction or list item. Ctrl-J will display the Customer Center, although

for some reason the Vendor and Employee centers don't currently warrant their own keyboard shortcuts.

Register TricksCtrl-R to display the Use Register windowAlt-Down Arrow to display the full listWithin a register, press Ctrl-PgUp to move to the first

previous month in the register, or Ctrl-PgDn to move to the next month in the register.

Ctrl-O to copy an entire transaction within a register, and then press Ctrl-V to paste a duplicate of copy.

Ctrl-E to edit a transaction in the register.Conversely, Ctrl-D allows you to delete transactions.

Ctrl-G for certain transfer transactions to view the register of the corresponding account. QuickBooks doesn't maintain a register for income and expense accounts, but you can use this to follow transfers between bank accounts, for instance.

Ctrl-H on certain transactions to view their transaction history, or Ctrl-Y to display a transaction journal. This is a report that shows you the debits and credits that comprise the transaction.

List Shortcuts

Only two lists have their own shortcuts: Ctrl-A for the Chart of Accounts, and Ctrl-T for the Memorized Transaction List. Use Ctrl-PgUp and Ctrl-PgDn to navigate to the

top or bottom of a list. Ctrl-E to edit a record within a list, or Ctrl-P to

print the entire list. Ctrl-D will delete a list item.

Date Shortcuts

Incremental dates (and check or invoice numbers, too) can be moved up or down by pressing the + and – keys. Laptop users can press the = key, instead of Shift-Equal to access the + sign.

Navigate forward and backward in time by keeping these three words in mind: week, month, and year. Press W to move back one week, or K to move forward one week. Do the same with M or H and Y or R to move forward or back one month or year at a time.

Within a date field, press Alt-Down Arrow to display the calendar without having to click with your mouse.

Other date tricks you may find helpful are pressing [ or ] (the square bracket keys) to move to the same date in the previous or next week, or ; and ' (the semicolon and apostrophe keys) to move to the same date in the previous or next month.

Just press T in a date field to return to today's date.

Sort Bank Rec Data

The Company Snapshot serves as an executive dashboard

Tip:

Be sure to never select the bank account on the expense account line of the Write Checks screen.

(This will cause the amount to go out of and immediately back into the bank account.)

You CAN select another bank account if you are making a transfer to another bank account.

Correcting Customer Payments

To correct an incorrect customer payment that has been included in a deposit:

• Delete the deposit• Correct the incorrect payment received• Create a new deposit

Bad Debts

Go to Receive PaymentsSelect the customerSelect the invoiceClick discount infoEnter the amount to be written-offChoose Bad Debt Expense for the discount account.

Pending Invoices(Back orders, Draft invoices)

Complete the invoice as normal

From the QuickBooks menu, click “Edit” then“Mark invoice as pending.”

To see a list of pending invoices,Go to:

ReportsSales reportsPending sales

QuickZoom

Click on (almost) any number on a report to seethe transaction detail.