QuickBooks handles billable expenses capably, but it’s critical that you understand the process thoroughly before proceeding.

Billing for inventory parts is easy. Pick the items from a list and specify a quantity. Poof. Done.

Billing for costs, time or mileage is a little more complex. QuickBooks has built-in tools to help you do this, but it’s a bit of a process.

To simplify your workflow, do this groundwork first:

• Go to Edit | Preferences | Time & Expenses | Company Preferences. Click the Yes button under Time tracking and indicate your choices under Invoicing options. If you plan to mark up some costs and want a default number, enter a percentage and account (these can be changed on individual invoices).

Step 1: As you do with other QuickBooks processes, make sure that your Preferences are set correctly.

• Add any billing items necessary by clicking Lists | Item List and then Item | New in the lower left corner.
• If you plan to bill for mileage, go to Lists | Customer & Vendor Profile List | Vehicle List and enter information about every business vehicle.

Invoicing for Services

If you’re a service-oriented company, you bill for time frequently. This is easy. You’re probably already familiar with the Enter Time entry in the Employees menu. Whether you make individual time entries or complete a timesheet, it’s critical that you make the correct selections for each Customer: Job, Service Item and Payroll Item field, and check the Billable box.

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

Step 2: QuickBooks lets you know when there are time and costs to be billed for each customer.

You can let QuickBooks enter the time totals now, or add them later by clicking the Add Time/Costs button. Either way, the Choose Billable Time and Costs window opens. Add a checkmark next to each entry that should be billed, and click Options… to indicate whether you want one line for each time entry or would rather combine all similar service item types.

Step 3: QuickBooks wants to know which entries should be invoiced.

More Complexity

If you’re done with billable expenses for this invoice, click OK. 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 percentage 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 – when it was incurred — at Company | Enter Vehicle Mileage. Then select any Items that you purchased for the customer. Your records should be correct – assuming that you were conscientious about assigning expenses to customers and jobs.

Step 4: It’s easy to pull billable expenses into invoices if they’re documented carefully.

Turning expenses into invoices and then into income can be complicated. Let us know if we can help. We are your partner in building a successful business.

QuickBooks Tip

Here’s a cool little keyboard shortcut. 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.

QuickBooks News

As of May 31, 2012, Intuit is discontinuing support for QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Simple Start 2009, QuickBooks for Mac 2009 and QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions 9. You can continue to use these solutions, of course, but live technical support and add-on services like payroll, credit card processing, online banking and bill-pay will not be accessible. Talk to us about upgrading if you’re using any of these products or services.

March 2012

Portable Productivity: Smartphones Do Invoices, Expenses, Time Billing

These three web-based apps – accessible via your smartphone — provide mobile access to QuickBooks data.

Accounting in the cloud is closer than you might think. In fact, it’s here, in some cases. QuickBooks Online, of course, is entirely cloud-based, but it does not yet offer all of the features found in Intuit’s top-of-the-line products, Premier and Enterprise.

In the meantime, Intuit itself, as well as third-party developers, have built online apps that fill in some of the gaps. These add-on solutions exist on websites, but they can collect data and synchronize it with desktop QuickBooks. So can that iPhone or Android that’s sitting on your desk right now.

Many Mobile Applications

To find these apps, go to the Intuit App Center and click on All Apps. There are dozens of them, arranged by category (Billing and Invoicing, Customer Management, Inventory Management, Apps by Intuit, etc.).

Your first stop should be at Intuit’s QuickBooks Connect (this is the name of the online application that you’d use on a remote PC or laptop; the name of the smartphone app is QuickBooks Mobile). This app gives you easy access to your customer and sales data when you’re away from your office.

Figure 1: QuickBooks Mobile, shown here on the Android operating system, gives you sales tools when you’re away from desktop QuickBooks.

Remote Sales Tools

Whether you’re working in web-based QuickBooks Connect or on a smartphone, your data and transaction options are similar. QuickBooks Connect has a few more features, like an Item List and Customer Center, but both let you:

• Access multiple company files
• View, add, and edit customers, estimates, invoices, and sales receipts, using QuickBooks’ custom templates
• E-mail these forms to customers

QuickBooks Mobile and QuickBooks Connect use the Intuit Sync Manager – located on the desktop where QuickBooks is installed — to keep data current everywhere. That computer must be running for syncs to work.

Figure 2: You can create and e-mail invoices from QuickBooks Mobile.

Prices start at $9.95/month for one user; a 30-day free trial is available.

Manage Travel Expenses

Concur Breeze grabs the data you need (customers, employees, jobs, etc.) from QuickBooks to record expenses on the road. You can enter charges directly into a form or snap a picture with your phone – it’ll be attached to your expense report. These charges are then sent to a report template that thoroughly documents the charge, letting you specify variables like the trip purpose, travel policy type, project and client. The status of your approval and payment are also included here.

You can send travel itineraries from your free TripIt Pro account and credit card charges directly to an existing expense report to accelerate the process. And once an expense report is approved, money can be moved automatically from the designated company bank account to an employee’s account. $8 per month per user; free 30-day trial.

Bookkeeper Training – Your Bookkeeper IMPROVED!

• Do you think that you need a full time Bookkeeper on staff?  Let Bookkeepers On Demand evaluate your needs, and then hire/train your new Bookkeeper, or train an existing employee to correctly step into the position.
• We set up standard procedures and controls tailored to your needs for your bookkeeper to follow.
• Our Accounting Manager reconciles all accounts and checks records monthly to assure your Bookkeeper remains accurate and consistent.
• Bookkeepers On Demand helps to gives you confidence that your records are correct and that your employee has not compromised any information.
• Your books are ready to take to your accountant for tax preparation at yearend.

Bookkeepers On Demand takes the stress out of the daily management of your business.  We provide meticulously screened and trained bookkeepers to make sure your books are always in order.  No more wondering if you’ve remembered to pay a bill or if you’ve forgotten to invoice someone.

Bookkeepers On Demand will improve:

• Cash Flow
• Receivable Collections
• Payable Accuracy
• Expense Management
• Personnel Management
• Inventory Control
• File retrieval as it applies to your accounting (physical or computer)
• Reliability of reports from your software
• Control over your time

Bookkeepers On Demand will set up a customized “standard procedure” for all your bookkeeping functions and assign a bookkeeper to work with you on a regular basis.  If at any time that person is not available, another equally trained person will be there at the scheduled time.

With your bookkeeping functions running seamlessly and with accurate numbers at your disposal, you will be free to focus on strengthening and building your business.  And maybe give yourself a little free time!