How a modern business uses and embraces technology to save time and make more money.

Have you helped your child or grandchild do their school homework lately? Chances are, they have used some form of app like “Mathematics” or “Reading Eggs”. Schools have fully embraced modern technology. Some schools see technology from a budgetary viewpoint, using apps to save stationery/school book resources. But the majority see technology as a relatively low cost alternative which allows the teachers to free up their time to plan better education for their classes, or to just deliver a better experience than the teachers could do without it.

We believe schools have their logic correct. Embrace technology and free up your time. Work smarter, not harder and don’t reinvent the wheel. A lot of Blackler Smith & Co. clients use technology in their business. Most would never look back. It allows them to spend less time on their book work and have more time with their family, or to work on productive client work.

Conversely, we have also had some clients who are put off by the perceived cost of technology and believe their current systems are better, because they don’t have to pay a monthly fee. Let’s hope we can help open your mind to the use of new technology in your business, like we  have for many of our clients.

What would a modern system look like
The majority of businesses are quite simple. They are either selling a product, selling their time, or both. If you are selling products, chances are that a good accounting system with online technology can keep track of what your customers owe you and what your inventory levels are. You could chase up overdue invoices at the click of a button and send out professional looking statements and invoices all via email in a matter of seconds. Manual GST returns are a thing of the past and for a small business a couple of hours a week on accounts is probably plenty.

If you sell time and are a tradie
As a generalisation the worst offenders with paperwork are tradies. They typically have messy records, manual systems, hate invoicing, and each month’s billing (other than the getting paid bit) is just an annoying chore. Imagine having a system where you take your Smartphone on the job with you. It’s already set up with the tools / product lists you use for each job. All that’s missing is the labour charge.

Today, many businesses are setting simple rules for their staff and themselves, such as:
1. Don’t leave a job without opening your app and doing your timesheet. It’s a two minute task. You can then email the invoice on the spot. Even better, get a device that connects to your phone to accept payment on the spot. What could be easier? No more end of month invoicing. Cash flow is much better, time captured and billed is much higher.

2. Ground rules such as eight hours’ worth of entries per day of timesheets are laid down which then just becomes a new habit.

Other benefits
Chartered accountants also love having access to real-time systems. It allows us to see how you did yesterday, rather than seeing how you performed a year after the event. It allows us to become your business advisers rather than your recorders of history.

An efficient system(s) can save hours per month, in which case it pays for itself. Use your extra time to do five more hours of paid work a month. Finding a system(s) that fits your needs is easy. Online tutorials are usually easy to follow and free trial periods apply to most software.

We would almost guarantee that once you have a new system up and running smoothly you will wish you did it years earlier.

To speak to us about assistance with changing how your business uses technology call Blackler Smith & Co. on 04 555 9090 or send us a message.