Case: How electronic financial management saved me 5 hours a month - customer story

Running a small service business, every hour counts. Especially an hour that I could spend on billing, sales or even just plain free time. In the past, I felt that financial management ate up an inordinate amount of my working week: searching for receipts, approving purchase invoices in various systems, sorting through bank statements and trying to remember to send the necessary reports to the accountant.

This changed when I switched to an electronic financial management software with my accountant. In this article, I share my own experience of this, how the electronic system saved me five hours a month and made everyday life easier than I had expected.

Starting point: too many places, too many steps

Before moving to an electronic system:

• bank statements were in the bank separately
• purchase invoices were sent to email in pdf format
• receipts were waiting to be stacked in the car and in the office
• payroll was done manually
• accounting material had to be sent to the accountant on a monthly basis

Unfinished business seemed to be piling up. Each step required remembering - and remembering took time.

What changed when I switched to an electronic financial management software?

My accountant suggested switching to an electronic financial management software such as Procountor or Netvisor. The decision was made quickly, as the systems offer all your financial management tools in one place, including:

• automatic retrieval of bank statements
• bookkeeping and voucher processing
• preparing and sending sales invoices
• receiving and paying purchase invoices
• VAT returns directly to the tax authorities
• payroll and payroll reports
• income tax returns
• adding receipts with the mobile app
• reconciliations
• reporting

All in the same system. No more logging in to different places or sending files.

1. Automation reduced manual work

The first tangible savings came from automation.
The electronic system:

• propose accounting accounts for account transactions
• create automatic vouchers for recurring transactions
• brings e-invoices directly to the purchase invoice processing
• send reminders for overdue tasks

No more guessing or typing the same things by hand.

Estimated time saved: 2 hours per month.

2. Photographing receipts on your phone changed the game

Collecting receipts used to be the moment I avoided until the last minute. Now I just need to take a picture of the receipt with my phone - it automatically goes to the accountant.

Not any more:

• lost receipts
• wrinkled papers in your wallet
• stacks of receipts in the car door pocket

Estimated time saved: 1 hour per month.

3. All your bills in one place

In the past, invoicing took time because:

• the purchase invoices came in an email
• I did the sales invoices on a different system
• I made the payments from my online bank

Now everything happens directly in the same electronic system.
From there you can:

• prepare sales invoices
• send them
• receive purchase invoices
• pay your shopping bills without online banking
• monitor cash flow

I manage all my financial transactions in one view.

Estimated time saved: 1 hour per month.

4. Cloud computing brought flexibility - even on the train

I am no longer tied to the office for my financial management tasks.
I can take care of them:

• between customers
• at the café
• at
• on the train on the way to meetings

As long as you have internet access, the programme works anywhere. This has been one of the biggest reliefs in a busy day.

Estimated time saved: 1 hour per month.

Total impact: 5 hours of time saved per month

When accounting, invoicing, payroll, reporting and voucher processing can all be done in one place, the workload is significantly reduced. I currently save around 5 hours per month, which I can spend on the things that really matter: sales, customers and developing new services.

Why do I recommend electronic financial management?

If you are a small business owner or a sole trader, I strongly recommend switching to electronic financial management. It makes everyday life easier:

• smoother
• clearer
• less stressful
• more effective

And with the accountant seeing everything in real time, you avoid unnecessary surprises.

Concrete Accounting helped me get up and running - and it was much easier than I thought.