Are you looking for UK bookkeeping software that can help you ace e-invoicing? Join the club. UK companies across sectors are keen to find bookkeeping software that can ensure that
- You never forget an invoice
- You never miss a submission deadline
- Invoices are completely error-free
- Invoices are standardized
- Tracking is not a herculean chore and nightmare
- Follow up is easier
We’re going to be very blunt and say that if the UK bookkeeping software you are considering or using does not check all of the above boxes, it isn’t up to standard. There is a wide choice of bookkeeping brands on the market in the UK – the existence of a good volume of suppliers breeds healthy competition and creates industry norms that become standards for all players to adhere to. The above points comprise basic requirements that any bookkeeping software should be able to bring to the table.
Most UK bookkeeping software also comes with receipt scanning that eliminates manual data entry by automatically extracting data from uploaded documents. This is a given, across almost all the brands out there.
In addition here are 4 tips for choosing the most suitable UK bookkeeping software for your needs:
Tip #1: Customisable and automated invoicing is a must-have
You must behave a few templates at your disposal to choose from, and even if there is only one format (that works for your type of e-invoicing) you must at least be able to insert your logo or letterhead, registered address, and website, and any other key details that you like to include on your invoices.
Templates allow you to standardize invoices and automate the invoicing process. It is also essential for your UK bookkeeping software to have the ability to extract details from emails and other documents (like a purchase order) to automatically create invoices.
Tip #2: Client dashboard and data insights dashboard could be a useful value addition
Some UK bookkeeping software options like Dext give you a client dashboard that communicates with both you and your client. It offers you reminders to submit e-invoices and reminds them to pay. It also alerts you when they do pay (so you can pop in with a quick thank you) or when invoices become overdue (so you can follow up in addition to reminders sent via the client dashboard).
A dashboard that also shows you KPIs that are relevant to you, can be useful when you want to have a quick at-a-glance resource that tells you about KPIs like accounts payable and receivable, inventory, and cash flow.
Tip #3: UK tax support should be available
Your UK bookkeeping software should need no prompts and human intervention when it comes to correctly add taxes to invoices.
The best types of UK bookkeeping software will go a step further and even tell you how upcoming taxes will potentially impact your profitability, giving you lead time to troubleshoot.
Tip #4: User interface and usability is important
Look for a clean interface that lets you focus on the job at hand. You may be tempted to opt for free software (instead of paying GBP 20 per month) but all those ads will interfere with your focus and eat into your time, costing you far more than you saved by damaging productivity.
Moreover, UK bookkeeping software that is given out free still has to make up for costs somewhere. So there’s no doing away with the ads.
Usability is impacted too because most of the actual useful features are usually retained behind a paywall.
You might want to, however, opt for a free trial of a paid UK bookkeeping software to test its usefulness.
