Keep Your Books Up to Date with QuickBooks Online

Updated on October 21, 2020 by David Korpel

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All of the clients we work with are on QuickBooks Online. They handle the books themselves on a day-to-day basis. QBO has significantly improved in the last 10 years. They’ve made it easy to stay on top of your numbers, regardless of the size of your company or your level of accounting knowledge. 

There are desktop and mobile apps that even allow you to do your bookkeeping wherever you are. So, there are no more excuses! 

How to Get Started with QuickBooks 

The first thing to do is connect your business bank accounts and credit cards. Then, the program downloads the transactions for you. Next, you will categorize, in QuickBooks, what each transaction was.  

For example, you should categorize $100 income as money you deposited into your bank account is income from a client or a reimbursement from another vendor. Or if that $100 charged on the credit card was for office supplies or more custom pop sockets, it should be labeled appropriately. While they’re both deductible business expenses, it does make a difference when you’re comparing your monthly and yearly spending in the office supplies and advertising categories.  

When You Should Update Bookkeeping Records 

Remember, it’s easier to categorize transactions a day or so after they happen, when your memory of the transaction is still fresh. Putting it off until you can sit down one chilly, January morning to do an entire year’s worth of bookkeeping is a cozy idea, but is a scary reality. 

As an accountant, that’s nightmare fuel. Bookkeeping needs to be done regularly and often. This is the best way to ensure that your records stay accurate and continue to be useful for your business. 

The other option is to hire a bookkeeper to do the work for you. This option is perfectly okay, but you should make sure that you’re setting frequent meetings with your bookkeeper to discuss the business and review the financials. The most important part of this goal is actually to spend time learning to understand your numbers and what they mean. 

About The Author

David Korpel

After graduating from college, David jumped right into public accounting, where he first met Mike. This experience established a well-rounded technical foundation. He gained a wealth of experience traveling the country performing audits, reviews, compilations, and tax engagements before joining up with Mike again as ENGAGE’s first employee.

As Chief Operating Officer, Dave is in charge of keeping our client relationships as fun, informative, educational, and productive as possible. He aims to be supportive, informative, proactive, and trustworthy. Whether wearing his bookkeeping, tax, forensic accounting, or social media hat, his focus consistently remains on adding value for our clients. He is inspired by the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit of clients. His passion for helping small business owners make sense of their numbers and remove any stress and anxiety related to their financials and taxes is second only to the love for his family.

Dave’s wife, Laura, son Lincoln, and daughter Luna are his motivation every day to grow, learn, and love what he does. They live in Skippack, PA and can often be found hiking on another new trail in the area or walking into town for a bite to eat. And boy, are they a hungry bunch!