QuickBooks is one of the most popular software products and has been used by thousands of businesses to automate their accounting operations. There used to be a time when companies refused to look beyond QuickBooks. This has changed now. Companies are now looking at cloud financial services as an option and are ready to ditch QuickBooks.

Why is it that companies are willing to ditch an accounting tool that was used to be their prime choice? What do cloud financial services offer as an alternative to QuickBooks? The article looks at the answers to these questions.

Companies grow out of QuickBooks

QuickBooks is a product meant for small and medium businesses. It is not convenient for companies as they start to grow.

A small company would find QuickBooks an easy and cost-effective financial tool. As the company starts to grow, the limitations of QuickBooks become apparent. How so?

Well, companies go through many changes. Mergers, expansions, and acquisitions are common in the world of business. QuickBooks does not provide the platform to manage these. This is the prime reason why companies start moving to other services.

Benefits of the Cloud

Cloud services are popular not only for financial operations but for many other processes too. A cloud-based solution is convenient for companies who can access the system at any time from anywhere. It offers robust security while eliminating the need for servers and expensive hardware.

Real-time financial activities have become a reality thanks to cloud services. It offers big benefits to the top management who have information at their fingertips. They can use this to make decisions quickly.

The overall costs are reduced and efficiency is increased. This is why companies are moving to cloud financial services like Netsuite by Oracle.

The problems of QuickBooks

QuickBooks is ideal for a small company with budget constraints. Larger companies start facing many problems due to the limitations of QuickBooks. Some of the issues companies face with QuickBooks include:

• Reporting is weak: QuickBooks does not have a strong reporting system. Today’s software offers a user-friendly dashboard where users get to see everything in one place. Users no longer want spreadsheets; instead, they look for tools to offer them business intelligence support. This is where QuickBooks lacks.
• License limitation: QuickBooks has a license limitation of 30 seats or 30 users at the same time. With increased workloads, this limitation does not suit most companies who look for alternatives.
• GAAP needs: If your business needs to be GAAP-compliant, then QuickBooks can’t help you. Its features of being able to delete transactions will affect your GAAP compliance.
• Forced move to online: QuickBooks forces its users to move the online version of the software. Most customers have not liked this forced migration and have ditched the software and moved on.
• Managing multiple locations is tough: In QuickBooks, multiple locations require multiple databases. This is not convenient, which is why businesses move to the cloud, where everything can be managed using a single database.
• Support problems: Users have found the support offered by QuickBooks to be weak. Cloud-based services are more proactive and user-friendly, which is why they are winning over QuickBooks users.

The need for ERP

As companies grow, they have new requirements to cater to. Mere accounting is not sufficient. They need systems for billing and order management.

They need to be able to manage their fixed assets and inventory. Procurement, revenue management, and warehouse management are other systems needed. Businesses now need a full-fledged ERP and software like QuickBooks is not sufficient. A cloud-based ERP caters to all the needs of businesses and is more effective.

Managing data is crucial

Data is the new oil and is a valuable asset. It is important to be able to manage data effectively. This is a problem area with QuickBooks.

While QuickBooks is fine for small businesses, data handling becomes painful as the company grows. Users have reported that once they cross 32,000 transactions or have more than 10,000 customers or vendors, then the system becomes slow. Cloud solutions don’t have this problem and can handle any load of data.

An ERP requires data to be entered only once and the same data is used across systems. With QuickBooks, you may need to re-enter data for other systems, which can be a pain.

Automation is the need

The need of the hour for businesses is automation. The focus is more on core processes, innovating, and trying to be more customer-centric.

Automation frees people of routine tasks and allows them to focus on customers’ needs and achieving the goals of the business. QuickBooks offers very basic automation features that do not meet the needs of a business.

Lack of automation slows down business processes. It can also lead to errors that can be costly and lead to customer dissatisfaction and operational problems. Cloud-based financial services solve this problem. It offers automation at different levels that can save time and money.

Cloud services offer multiple benefits

The reason for switching to cloud financial services is the benefits it offers. The range of benefits offered explains why companies are ditching QuickBooks and adopting cloud-based solutions for financial services.

1. The solution is scalable and as a business grows, new features can be added in line with the business’s changing needs.
2. It helps in reducing errors thanks to automation. This can help save money and time for the business. The time saved can be spent on core processes.
3. Financial visibility is improved when cloud solutions are used. A business gets information easily and can get it in the form of its choice.
4. Cloud solutions offer business intelligence reports that can be used to make business predictions. This is very valuable for a business that can use this information to make informed decisions.
5. Top management needs to get a bird’s eye view of the finances of the company. Getting this from QuickBooks is not easy. A cloud-based solution offers this feature. This is very convenient for businesses.
6. It is estimated that a business can bring in savings of up to 30% by using a cloud-based service.

Conclusion

QuickBooks is a powerful solution for small and early-stage businesses. However, as the need for complex financial management increases, businesses will inevitably need the solutions offering comprehensive features. Oracle Netsuite is one of such solutions, that will take your financial management to the cloud, making use of all the upsides it offers to users and adopters.  You can learn more by downloading the Whitepaper from NetSuite by Oracle, Empowering Companies to Reach Beyond the Limitations of Quickbooks.