QuickBooks Tip #2

Simplify your Chart of Accounts. The most important list in your accounting system is your Chart of Accounts. You track your flow of money through this list of accounts which includes where your income comes from, where you put it, what your expenses are for, and what you use to pay them. QuickBooks' EasyStep Interview walks you through setting up your accounts. The system also offers sample business templates that already have accounts set up for you. You can later delete or add any accounts that were initially setup in this interview to make it match your income and expenses better. Keep your chart of accounts simple! Too many accounts result in messy reports that are hard to read and analyze. Also, use descriptions for your account id's, not numbers. If you assign account numbers for each account, you will have to memorize the numbers for fast data entry. It is much easier to type in the name of the account when entering transactions. This is a key timesaver! Accountants love to assign numbers to the Chart of Accounts, but it's much easier to give them names. QuickBooks makes is easy with industry specific Chart of Account names.