Hello all, new here. Spent some time trying to find the right forum and I believe I've arrived :)
Understandably, the paperwork portion of the business is not the most exciting and most only do it out of necessity. Therefore, I am exploring the best way to keep records to help my man focus on the more enjoyable aspects of the industry...being in the great outdoors. I often ride along with him to the woods and with the time on my hands while he skids and processes I thought it would be beneficial to keep his records accurate and current, however there doesn't seem to be a particular standard to how this is done. I have organized paperwork by job, but I am just curious as to how others manage this end of things. I have found a few internet based sites that have software, but since we are a family owned business and operate more or less locally and on a smaller scale, we are not in need of the magnitude and intricacies that larger companies with employees have to tackle. It would be wonderful if you could share your thoughts, ideas, pitfalls and/or examples you have encountered and what works best in this situation. Our main concern is, taxes, productivity, hauling costs, etc. I would prefer to use something simple like Microsoft Excel to organize this information and have worked up a template, but I don't want to waste time and energy designing something that may not fit the bill, so to speak. Any help would be greatly appreciated as is your time.
Thank you
Welcome to the Forum. I use a simple Excel spreadsheet that I've developed through the years. Main thing is keep all records, and stay on top of getting them entered. My accountant had me break down expenses as much as possible. makes it easier for him, and cheaper for me since some expenses can be deducted at different rates. I also have separate tabs for income, expenses, and one for each job. Start with something simple and alter it as you need. Have fun.
Quick books is a pretty simple way to keep track of all your expenses.
It runs from $199.00 to $299.00 depending on where you buy it.
I use it for my farm and have had great luck with it.
Ive also always made my own excel tables for book keeping. Just an income side and an expense side, with each half broken down into as many columns as needed. You use the math functions to set up which columns are added and subtracted from which. I put each receipt into its correct place and it adjusts everything right then so its easy to see when you need to buy some more iron.
Email the file to my accountant every year
I use the free software on "Wave.com" . It also breaks expenses down into categories like diesel, insurance,vehicle parts, rent,etc...
Quote from: timbco68 on July 14, 2017, 07:58:02 PM
I use the free software on "Wave.com" . It also breaks expenses down into categories like diesel, insurance,vehicle parts, rent,etc...
We also use wave for the farm business.
QuoteI use the free software on "Wave.com"
Do you mean waveapps.com?
I agree with mills, no matter which system you use, staying on top of data entry is crucial.
Your Excel spreadsheet can be a good start. If you find it not meeting your needs, most accounting software can import spreadsheets.
Quote from: clearcut on July 16, 2017, 12:29:29 AM
QuoteI use the free software on "Wave.com"
Do you mean waveapps.com?
I agree with mills, no matter which system you use, staying on top of data entry is crucial.
Your Excel spreadsheet can be a good start. If you find it not meeting your needs, most accounting software can import spreadsheets.
Yes and you are absolutely correct; record everything. We use waveapps for all financial transactions and excel (OneDrive for free) to record all
actions on the farm.
what do you mean you have to keep records :o
I used to be an accountant in a past life, and would like to offer up a few suggestions.
If you have an accountant currently, that does your taxes, it would be productive to ask his/her advice as to the software and account structure. It would be advantageous to only have to enter information in once for all the info you need for management decisions as well as complying with government remittances and reporting and year end tax preparation that will be required. A little up front cost can go a long way to meet the expectations that you have as well as the government folks and your accountant.
Additionally, software does not make a person a bookkeeper, and I have had many clients that got tangled up trying to do their books, only to experience a great deal of frustration. I once used an example to a auto body mechanic, that a computer is like an air compressor and software is like a tool at the end of the hose. Because I purchase an air compressor, air sander and paint gun, doesn't make me a bookkeeper. similar that software wont make a person a bookkeeper.
saying this, I would recommend an evening course in small business bookkeeping. It would serve you greatly and once a person learns the fundamentals, its alarming simple after that.
All the software, I've seen listed work fine, its how its set up to provide you with the info you are looking for that is important.
good luck and enjoy
oops I mean ... it doesn't make me a body man...
Check out stumpgeek.com