24th November, 2020
New browser-based AccountRight features have helped Jeff Hoffard of Ascent Solutions streamline services for his clients in an increasingly mobile world.
Flexibility is becoming more a top priority for organisations as of late, and it’s no surprise that technology is at the forefront of this push.
For bookkeeper and business tech advisor Jeff Hoffard, new tech innovations have been an essential way to nurture clients.
In fact, it’s how he established Ascent Solutions in 2017.
“I was working in the same building as a few not-for-profit organisations who were all experiencing the same problems and needed my help,” Jeff said.
Recognising common pain points among these organisations, Jeff’s remedy was a simple one: “I set up a company and took them all on as clients.”
These not-for-profits were by no means up-and-comers – with each client posting revenue over $1 million annually, their needs were extensive.
Impressively, Jeff fostered these needs while employing just two full-time resources: himself and a bookkeeper – with a little help from technology.
His secret to accounting success?
“Implementing smart IT solutions and utilising software better – like MYOB – to process payroll rather than paying another external company.”
It seems natural for someone with an IT background to leverage technology, and it’s evidently paid off – Jeff believes that AccountRight has so far had a direct hand in “helping clients reduce costs by thousands of dollars.”
Part of Jeff’s move to embrace new tech has seen him trialling access to AccountRight via a web browser.
With it he hoped to tick boxes that other software programs have so far failed to.
Many of these frustrations stemmed from software-related receipt management and spending sign-off, issues which Jeff is pleased to state have been addressed in AccountRight’s browser add-on.
“We tried third party add-ons like receipt-bank, but it hasn’t been satisfactory.”
Not everyone has the time, patience or desire to wrap their heads around software, but Jeff has found that the browser setup makes the experience a lot simpler for everyone.
Despite the AccountRight browser add-on having the same banking, sales, purchases and payroll functionality, Jeff finds that clients find the browser much simpler to navigate than its desktop counterpart.
This makes it a no-nonsense solution for businesses looking to simplify accounting for their clients.
“I struggled with getting any of my clients to use the desktop version.
“Now that I have them in the browser, I can offload more things to them. We do most of the accounting and book-keeping for them, they mostly just submit coded receipts.”
Reporting has similarly been streamlined, providing cash management reporting, consolidated reports and custom report pack creation at a glance.
“This is one area where the browser is now better than the desktop version,” Jeff said.
“The reports in excel are better, the summary or detailed version is a good move. Lastly, the PDFs modern look is just fantastic.”
Connectivity is a crucial part of the advisor-client relationship and Jeff believes the AccountRight browser has made this even simpler.
“The fact that I can keep working in AccountRight while I can give a staff member in a client’s business access to invoicing in the browsing is just essential and fantastic.”
“The ability to add documents to all expenses now is super helpful.”
An emphasis on mobility means it’s even easier for financial advisors and clients to access up-to-date financial information wherever they may be, whether it be via computer, mobile phone or tablet.
Much of this is due to the introduction of a brand new insights-driven dashboard, and Jeff agrees that the user-friendliness is a game changer – particularly for clients.
“I have all clients using the browser for what they have access to and I use AccountRight and jump into the browser for reports,” he said.
“My clients love it, especially the fact that outstanding invoices are front-and-centre.”
Jeff believes it’s a feature clients never knew they were missing, and now they’re hesitant to use anything but the browser add-on.
“They use it exclusively and have found it great to use.”
Ready for a more flexible way of working? The new AccountRight Browser experience lets you work the same way across your existing AccountRight and Essentials clients, from anywhere and on any internet-enabled device. Upgrade your AccountRight experience today.