By Anonymous July 07, 2011
Review ...read more
For a minute, let’s set the dogged recession woes to one side and think a little sunnier. Is your office a ghost town on Fridays? By the time it hits PM Friday, is the only thing you can hear crickets? Yes, it’s summer time in New England. Record heat plus end over end beautiful days makes it tough to concentrate and a challenge to keep work flow on track. The kids are out of school and scheduling clients and staff can be a game of connect the dots. Here at DMC, we are big proponents of scheduled time-off coupled with full and balanced work hours. For this summer’s vacations, we tried our hardest to prepare back in the spring to ensure that we would have a productive and organized season. Over time, we’ve come up with tactics to combat Patti’s and Bob’s long overdue summer vacations. Vacation time can stagger project work to a complete halt, and tasks that usually take one week can start to drag. So we made it a task to keep us profitable in the heat. This summer, keeping a steady stream of work going can be a challenge. Retail was given a long overdue boost here in MA with the return of the sales tax holiday. It amazes me how scores of people take advantage of buying just about anything to save that 6.25% (which can be a commentary about taxes in general). Those lucky enough to be connected to the economic Recovery Act and are fixing roads should have felt an impact this summer and possibly beyond; it seems there is plenty of highway and local road infrastructure needing repair. Our service firms, on the other hand, were in need of fresh ideas and that required us to put our thinking caps on. The results we are seeing are better than initially expected. And with that thought, here are some tips to keep up profits despite the ‘evil’ recession cloud: Seriously consider moving towards a flat fee, a change order and day rates. Why: It places better definition and budgets clients. Budgets cash flow your firm needs to adhere to. Allows for change order. Simplifies billing. Tighten up on policies. Why: Service firms need to hop on board and follow trends. Shorter billing cycles: weekly, on delivery, biweekly. Agreed upon payment schedules on commencement of work 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 or ½ and ½ on delivery. Managing vacation schedules to not erode tight profit margins. Human resource policies require reasonable advance notice on requested vacation time (i.e. 30 days.) Key employees taking similar, back to back time off with other key employees. Cross training so work does not come to halt Advertising and marketing matters. Why: Increase marketing activities as it increases prospects. Web based: Google Ad words, Twitter, LinkedIn, Website, WebStore. Print based ads: this is not obsolete as fewer mail is sent (newsletters, letters, postcards). Networking/social: whether golf, professional memberships, chambers, volunteer. Speaking: seek out or generate opportunities to get in front of your peers. Publications: writing for professional or press coverage on changes to your organization, announce projects. Phone: call your clients, new and old and prospects. Our 2010 summer has been very good this year. Read this month’s issue to check out what we’ve been up to, who we’ve been working with and our plans for the fall. Accounting Never Takes a Vacation By Jenna CaseySummer can be a tough time for many small businesses. It’s warm, the sun is shining, the birds are singing—and all of your employees are going on vacations or requesting time off. Sometimes, it can be a lot of time off, enough where you just can’t sit back and watch the ice cubes melt while they’re gone. Especially with important matters like accounting and bookkeeping; you don’t want those books to start piling up collecting dust. You certainly want to make sure your payroll is met, and all of your bills are paid. So, what are your options?Well, instead of letting “Cousin” Bob do your books (no one invites him to your family picnics anymore, luckily he’s not blood related and he always brought coleslaw anyway) you might consider hiring a professional for a few weeks as needed. Then you know that you’ll get the quality you need from someone you trust. The last thing you want is your nice, clean, organized work that you took forever to get just right to be completely destroyed within moments by someone that doesn’t understand you and your business.We worked with a client this summer that had an employee who needed to take an extended period of time off. Instead of it being a painful experience that created more trouble and confusion, it was a relatively smooth transition. We knew the client, understood their needs, and were able to pick up where their employee left off. A stressful situation was avoided, everyone was able to enjoy the summer, and the employee will soon return to work! The A Team: DMC Converts Data Right By John K. PidgeonA successful accounting software conversion starts with the right team. DMC Accounting + Technology Group is an experienced leader who will guide you through each step of the conversion process. Embracing change is never easy for most clients. However, those who plan their conversions are more likely to experience less pain and gain valuable knowledge from the process. Planning requires attainable goals with realistic steps geared towards proper use and installation of the software. Only an expert like DMC can guide the client through each of these installation and training steps. As issues arise with the conversion, our experience will enable us to provide the most optimal solution to meet the client’s needs.For instance, based on the type of conversion, the process can range from “relatively simple” to “more complicated” and will depend on numerous factors. One important planning factor is the type of data a client needs to covert. Clients can convert all detail from the existing software or, in some cases, can opt to bring just opening balances. Once the client has a better understanding of the type of data they need in the new software, the test conversion phase can begin. This test conversion will allow the client to test the converted data and also allows staff to test all functions of the software. Experience has shown that clients who test and train diligently in this phase will benefit most when it comes time to “go live” on the new software. In conclusion, DMC’s staff will help guide you through what can be a very difficult process for most firms. Proper Planning is the Key to Success By Catherine ChubbuckSometimes it seems to me that everyone is looking for the “Easy Answer” to their problems. In this current age of instant gratification, I am finding very few people are dedicated enough to really work out the solution to their problems. They simply want them fixed now!I have found through many years of hard work that there really are not any easy answers, at least not many that are worthwhile. Skipping steps (often crucial) in order to complete in time and under budget will inevitably bring consequences in the future. It is only from thorough, well thought out planning that indeed one does succeed.Whether it is as simple as planning your vacation, planning a presentation for a possible client, or completing the finished product, every step is as important as the last. All worthwhile ideas and projects are built on a series of stepping stones, and if one is not secure, the whole edifice could crumble. One step that seems to be overlooked is “debriefing.” Why something succeeds or does not succeed is crucial to pursuing your next idea or project. You don’t want to make the same mistakes.We have just gone through another summer season, and most are settling down for the fall. This is the season when most people and animals try to take stock of themselves and provisions for the winter. It is also the time when we should make ourselves open to new ideas and hopes for a brighter economy. This is the time to lay your groundwork for you, your company, and your employees. Careful, detailed planning is the one and only way for us to survive and grow. Don’t wait until the last minute, start now! In the end, you will be glad you did. Happy Anniversary DMC+ 1642! On October 3rd, 2010, DMC will be celebrating our second year in our current location (which you can see on the back of this newsletter!) What we didn’t know until recently, however, was how much history this building and the area in general has. “In earlier times, when farming was still the primary occupation of Brighton’s population, this southeastern corner of the town (called the Aberdeen section, derived from the Aberdeen Land Company) had scant appeal. In 1889, the Brighton Item described that area as one of “vast acres of high, gravel land which have never produced anything for their owners but grass and tax bills.” The prerequisites for high quality residential development in Aberdeen began to emerge only after the Civil War. First came the building of the nearby Chestnut Hill Reservoir, a holding facility for Boston’s water supply, which was constructed between 1866 and 1870. The completed reservoir was a magnificent visual and recreational amenity that added greatly to the physical charms of the neighborhood. What makes the Aberdeen section so unique is the successful integration there of the built environment with the area’s topography. In other neighborhoods, developers laid out a grid of streets before which all obstacles were obliged to give way. In Aberdeen, by contrast, curvilinear roadways wind their way through hilly, wooded, rocky terrain. Here topography and architecture achieved a remarkable degree of integration. Imposing Shingle, Queen Anne, Jacobethan, and Colonial Revival mansions lie perched atop giant pieces of ledge. Especially worthy of note are three magnificent stone mansions at the southern end of the district, all built in 1910 for William H. Munroe, a Brighton businessman and landowner, on a speculative basis. One of these houses, 1642 Commonwealth Avenue is conspicuously sited and handsomely landscaped.” We love being in this beautiful, historic building in such a diverse neighborhood and hope to be serving our clients here for years to come. Thank you to the Brighton-Allston Historical Society for this information. bahistory.org/bahfirst.html ...read more
By DMC Accounting and Technology May 17, 2011
This past October a micro gang from DMC hit the road for Toronto, where Acclivity (formerly MYOB) 15th Annual Partner Conference was held. A standing room only event, our staff learned about new software features and networked with other consulting firms from Canada, UK and the Netherlands. What I can share with my readers is nothing short of excitement, especially in a time where some accounting software manufacturers seem stymied in a flat market with dwindling margins and a lack of ability to change with the times. DMC has had a pretty darn good year considering all the gloom and doom out there. Like Acclivity, we work hard to deliver small clients and businesses exactly what they want. The solutions they add make the software better while minimizing the cost of change to their customer. Acclivity delivers high value in tough times, so the client can see the return on money spent with them quickly. So what did we learn in Toronto? A lot. The Mac application for accounting solutions is rocking it this year, not because of MS Windows virtualization, but from the raw Mac OS written application and foresight to develop for iOS and iPad. We collaborated with both the founders and developers, learned about cool stuff for 2010 and new stuff for 2011. In 2010, Checkout Point of Sale, Enstore and AccountEdge applications launched a jam packed release. Specifically, both Checkout Point of Sale and AccountEdge incorporated synchronization and integration with their branded web store (Enstore). The Enstore component is filled with EASY to use templates. Any user can upload their .jpg files and build a store on the fly, all while managing the accounting on their POS or main accounting package. We eat our dog food here at DMC and I personally chowed on this stuff. See our web page (example on page 2). It has sales and inventory, plus you can swap and share more critical information to keep inventories and accounting in check. Built-in merchant card services meet the newest PCI compliance, simplifying the concerns of small businesses. That being said, if you’re exhausted from re-entering web sales and reconciling inventories and can’t afford a developer, this is a great way to be on the web right away. Plus the learning curve on the accounting is relatively quick. Thinking of moving away from Windows? Here are even more reasons to! 2011 AccountEdge (Mac and Windows) now reaches past the desktop and onto web and mobile platforms to more service based industries than ever. Things we are excited about: Updated Setup Assistants improved AccountEdge Streamlined Transaction Actions and Search Navigation Progress Billing in AccountEdge (Huge for AE industries) Retainers In AccountEdge recurring, replenishment and balance tracking (Big for law firms + other businesses) Integrated TimeTracker on the Web (Huge for most professional service firms, works with payroll costing in AccountEdge) AccountEdge Mobile for the iPhone time slip capture billing (Huge for traveling consultants, engineers and other professional services) Recurring payment processing (Automatic billing and credit card/merchant processing for maintenance billing and other routine contract billing) So, for our Mac and Windows users on Account Edge: if you have not upgraded in a long time, this is the year to do it. I don’t know a software development company that makes this simpler, even in their legacy products. For clients that are stuck on AE legacy software and have always wanted to move to the Mac, AccountEdge is getting closer to solving this for you. It’s modern, is written routinely for the Mac and is portable. A little known fact is that our firm has serviced about 200 AccountEdge Mac and Windows users in the last 14 years. We routinely receive calls both locally and throughout the country to help companies enhance AccountEdge, Checkout Point of Sale and Enstore implementation, training, upgrade and accounting needs. We have waved the Apple accounting flag for years and support and encourage this platform and accounting. DMC Honored at Acclivity Partner ConferenceDoris Cahill, CPA and President of DMC Accounting + Technology, has been awarded Partner of the Year at the 15th Annual Acclivity Partner Conference. Doris was recognized for her dedication to and success in advertising the Acclivity brand and software. DMC is delighted to be recognized from a group of our peers as a valued partner of Acclivity.Held in beautiful Toronto, Canada, this year’s conference was a litany of information regarding new features and updates for AccountEdge 2011, Checkout 4, and their general iOS strategy. From their blog:“…we learned about PCI compliance from our Merchant Accounts Partner, and conference lead sponsor, ACH Direct. Also with us was our friends from Apple Canada, SOFA, developers of Checkout and Enstore, and SurePayroll, our longtime partner who provides our US Full Service Payroll Service.” (http://acclivity.tumblr.com/)We’ll be following all updates on these new developments and are excited to see the outcome![ return to top ] Marketing with Acclivity: Working Together By Jenna CaseyMarketing can be a challenge for a company of any size, and sometimes if you’re small you can feel like you’re going at it alone. How do you make sure you’re delivering relevant content to your target audience? And how do you make sure that your message gets heard? What should I be focusing on, anyway?Acclivity, the developers of AccountEdge, have a great partner system that allows for a win-win situation. It helps, yes, that we love their product and they love the partners that work with them, but that is only half of the equation. They offer us a multitude of tools and resources to help make sure that our promotions, events, workshops, etc. are the best they can be.Here’s why:They have a simple online form that we fill out to tell them what we want to do.We can advertise with them, on their website and through email.We can get a great deal on some really nice postcards to send out to whomever we want.Why go through all this time and effort? Simple. If we succeed, then they succeed. And who doesn’t want that? If more people took this approach to business I think we would all be much better off. Fighting for Non-Profits DMC loves working with a variety of clients, each presents their own unique set of problems and challenges. One sector we especially enjoy working with, is the non-profit, because we believe in organizations that work hard to improve our communities and make a difference in our world. We’re a small company, so we understand how sometimes it can be difficult for the little guys to keep up. Recently, we came to the rescue of a non-profit that was established back in the 1960’s. They fell out of compliance filing with the IRS and their bank and almost lost their non-profit status. For a very reasonable cost we were able to develop the correspondence with the IRS to abate the late penalties that had occurred, which were totaled at more than $40,000 and also rescind more than $35,000 from the bank in assessed additional interest. We set them up for success with all of the associated forms and requirements, and were able to collaborate with the board of directors to create an internal record keeping system going forward. It’s never too late to correct mistakes for the past; sometimes, you can be pleasantly surprised with the outcome! We are very proud to have helped alleviate the burden for this organization, and hope they can continue to focus on making a difference in our community. ...read more
By DMC Accounting and Technology May 17, 2011
Trying to grow your small business is not so easy. Are you relying on dwindling referrals or is that big project over and you're scrambling to find the next one? As simple as it sounds, you may need to ratchet up your marketing activities. Implementing a variety of marketing initiatives not only results in new clients, but enhances work with existing ones. Some colleagues say, "Oh, you’re just lucky Doris." I would say it's not just luck. We work hard, have a good variety of offerings within our specialties and that creates more opportunities. One of the more obvious things if you’re a reader of our newsletter is we communicate frequently. Why not? It’s fun to share what you think works and what doesn’t. We want to make sure our existing clients, key contacts and potential clients hear from us in a variety of ways. We do that because everyone prefers a different medium for messaging. Thankfully I love to write and talk (a bit too much at times!) so we have some luck there. It’s a lot easier to speak about your work if you love what you do, and I really love both accounting and technology. What do we do when talking about that technology and accounting? It’s like honey bunches of oats, a crunchy combination of tidbits that combines for a wholesome cereal. We consider ourselves a niche set of problem solvers for the following: A core portion of our practice is rendering routine bookkeeping within industry sector and software (like AccountEdge, Deltek and Axium). We know our accounting and software. Accounting for outside CPA firms to deliver year ends for tax and audit. We collaborate with firm controllers to affordably wrap up closing entries and develop work papers. Accounting/bookkeeping messes love them and clean them up. IT department not know accounting software? We provide routine backup, restore and patch servicing for the client who shivers over the thought of upgrading accounting software . We upgrade/move and reinstall really old software and I mean old. Our library of tools dates 20 plus years, its deep and wide. On access 95? MYOB 1999? No problem. If you have a data crash we are the place to go to. Custom reports: we understand the accounting and the technology to get them delivered and our fees are competitive. Training and manuals: we educate existing and new clients within our software accounting specialties Consulting for matters on operations: we are rich in advice to catch operational oversights, stay current on payroll tax changes, security compliance, matters of general financial health, and trade knowledge of best practices. DMC has serviced 700 clients in 15 years. Those clients and projects are not a matter of luck; it’s been hard work by staff and many lessons learned. We also reached 7000 contacts in our CRM system so we can remain viable even in the worst of times. Not too long ago I attended a graduation program for The Solstice MFA in Creative Writing of Pine Manor College. The commencement speaker was renowned essayist Phillip Lopate who has been awarded a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, a New York Public Library Center for Scholars and Writers Fellowship and two National Endowment for the Arts grants, amongst other honors. He shared words of wisdom that I hope to give justice to. To meekly paraphrase him (and do forgive me if I got this wrong): "people clip your wings; people tell you no." If you want to express yourself you must simply dig in deep and do it. Don’t give a thought to what others think. Learn to compel yourself despite the naysayers. The naysayers, those who relentlessly bah-humbug you and trip you up to dismantle your wellbeing. Nothing is better for the soul than to have that hope, push on and to give of yourself until it hurts. Actually, what I believe he said more shortly was “screw them.” It made me laugh. We would like to dedicate this issue to Terri A Zeh Jacobson, born 1963 that lost her struggle with cancer this month. We give all of our deepest condolences to her loving family and friends. Terri thrived on individualism and fought till the end. Terri I miss you, D. Free Downloads that Make Your Life Easier by Joseph DumerI've always been in the IT/Software consulting business, and if there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that software can be quite expensive. Sometimes, you just want to get a simple task completed without it costing you an arm, a leg, and half of your day. In the hope of saving you a few dollars, I’ll share a few of my favorite pieces of FREE software that I use every day.LCISOCREATORLCISOCREATOR is a backup utility that creates .ISO backups of your CD’s and DVD’s. Best part? It’s only 14kb in size. That’s my kind of software: built lean with a simple interface. If you haven’t already, download this software, gather up your most expensive media, (AutoCAD, Deltek, Adobe Creative Suite), and back these disks up digitally with LCISOCREATOR. If you scratch or lose your original media, you’ll likely have to pay a fee to replace the disk.Download at: http://www.lucersoft.com/freeware.phpCCLEANERCCLEANER is a great utility that cleans up your hard drive and registry as quickly as possible. Ccleaner will scan for files left behind by Internet Explorer, Firefox, and applications. Feeling like your computer is running slow? Download and run CCLEANER. And while you are there, download and install a product called DEFRAGGLER. Defraggler is a disk defragmentation program that will make exploring for files a little faster and easier.Download at: http://www.piriform.com/ccleanerFILEZILLAFilezilla is an FTP Client. If you frequently transfer files via ftp, then it’s paramount that you download this software. Filezilla has many features including file resuming, file transfer progress, site managers, and side-by-side file/folder views. If you’ve been using Windows or Internet Explorer to transfer files over ftp, then you’ll call me up and thank me for this one.Download at: http://filezilla-project.org/ Knowledge is Power! By Jenna Casey As you’ve probably already figured out, marketing yourself and your services is crucial part of running a successful business. Microsoft wouldn’t be spending over $500 million on advertising alone in 2010 if it wasn’t! Granted, you may not exactly have that type of budget, but there are many different (and much less expensive) ways to obtain new clients and retain the interest of current ones. And best of all, you can create a program that caters to your interests and audience. As great as having slick ads, a killer website, and lots of Twitter followers is, if all you’re doing is blasting your audience with advertisements and promotions, then you’re really not taking full advantage of your marketing efforts. People are bombarded with thousands of messages a day telling them to “buy, buy, buy!’ and “spend, spend, spend!” It’s easy to get lost in a sea of advertising. However, becoming a source of knowledge and a resource in your field will help differentiate you from your competition and ultimately win you more clients. Who are you more likely to buy from: a faceless company that only talks about themselves or trusted friend that offers ways to improve yourself and your business? You want to be that trusted friend, the go-to source for information, insight, and knowledge in your profession. This will be the key to not only drawing people to your website, but to give them incentive to keep coming back. Whether you provide content through audio blogs, business resources, informational articles, or just links to other useful sites, they all draw in traffic and potential clients. These all have minimal costs, the biggest, not surprisingly, being time. Of course, you actually have to WANT to be a resource. It’s not sustainable otherwise if you view it as a burden. You have to love what you do and really want to provide that “above and beyond” service to people. The web isn’t the only way to share industry knowledge. One thing we do at DMC is host user groups on the different accounting software we service. (We actually have one at the end of the month; expect a review in the next newsletter!) Whether in person or online, user groups are a great way to show your community that you are serious about your business. It also really encourages conversation and discussion amongst peers, which can make people feel more comfortable (free food always helps, too!). Secondly, if you’re able to work remotely it’s a creative way to expand your business out of state. Best of all, it’s incredibly inexpensive and easy to put together and produce. You can even record those sessions and post them on your website, further increasing what you have to offer. A little creative thinking can go a long way in your marketing. ...read more
By DMC Accounting and Technology May 17, 2011
If you work with computers at home or in your business, you have probably heard or used Microsoft Office. This program is common in many schools, businesses and homes across the world. It can be used on a PC or a Mac. This one program will allow users to create documents, spreadsheet... ...read more
Microsoft Word is a computer program that allows you to view and create text documents. Computers that run Windows Vista come with Microsoft Word already installed. If you do not like the layout of Microsoft Word, want to replace it with a different word processing program or want to download a differ... ...read more
