Are you using Xero to help run your business? Perhaps it has replaced everything you did on your old accounts system. But are you making the most of Xero?
More automation
Lots of manual data entry is a thing of the past with Xero. If you’re not already doing so, ask us about uploading your bills and receipts using Receipt Bank.
As well as automating your data entry, Xero can take the legwork out of credit control. Let Xero send routine invoice reminders. This will free up your time to make calls and review your cashflow.
Regularly billing customers? Whether it’s monthly or annually, for fixed or variable amounts, use the repeating invoice feature. You won’t have to worry about forgetting to raise an invoice. You can choose to automatically send your invoice (ideal if the value is fixed), or create a draft.
Go one step further if you invoice customers regularly, and ask them to set up a Direct Debit with GoCardless for Xero. Again, it doesn’t matter if you invoice the same or different amounts each time. Nor are you stuck with a monthly schedule – payments are collected when they are due. As an added bonus, your bank reconciliation activities are reduced, as payments are automatically reconciled on Xero through a GoCardless clearing account.
Slice up your data
If your business operates from one location, providing one product / service, this may not apply to you. However for most businesses, it’s vital to slice up, or as Xero calls it, ‘track’ your data. By splitting sales and costs you can quickly see what’s working or not. For example, a salesperson may be hitting targets, but bringing in unprofitable work. A product may be underperforming. Or performance may be dropping at a specific location.
Discover the app
Xero has continued to develop the mobile app, so it’s even easier now to raise a quote or invoice on the go. Staff can also access payslips and book holiday through the Xero Me app. An expenses and Projects app complete the suite.
Report on and visualise your data
Xero contains a full reporting suite. Our team can also develop custom reports to provide the information you need for your business. Perhaps you track particular types of work? A custom report can pull this data out for you to monitor.
Sometimes we all need a nudge to stay focused on our business performance. There’s no easier way to do this than to include KPIs on your Xero Dashboard. Set performance graphs as favourites to see them on your Dashboard. Start with Gross Profit and Net Profit, then add any other measures you use in your organisation.
You’ll see a snapshot of your cash in and out on your Dashboard. Click on each bar in the chart for a detailed breakdown. If you’re planning bill payments, add a ‘Planned Date’ to build up a Schedule of Planned Payments in Xero. You can carry out a similar exercise and add ‘Expected Date’ against invoices. Ask us about creating a cashflow forecast based on this data.
Xero App Marketplace
Finally, you can access a whole marketplace of connected apps. So if you’re looking for anything from staff rotas to inventory to job management, there’s an app to suit.
What would you like Xero to do for you? Let us know.
About us
At Wessex Commercial Solutions, all our clients use Xero to help run their business. We find ways to make accounting processes easier, and provide helpful management reports, information and advice.
