1. Integrate Your Task and Project Management
For many accountants, one of the biggest time drainers is simply spending too much time managing day-to-day tasks and big-picture projects. Say, for example, you assign someone on your accounting team an inventory or expenses task through a 3rd-party project management software like Asana or Trello. You have to jump back and forth between that platform and your accounting software to update those accounting tasks. This is incredibly inefficient and can lower productivity. However, using bookkeeping practice management software like Keeper lets you handle task management and project management from a single location. That way you can organize workflows in one place.


2. Streamline Client Communication
Like anyone in financial services, ongoing communication with all your business clients is extremely important to the success of an accounting practice. But there comes a point when you have to ask, “How much time is wasted because of inefficient client communication?” For many in the accounting industry, the number is uncomfortably high. Fortunately, we’re at a point where accounting automation can facilitate clear communication to ensure clients get the service they need without harming operational efficiency. Take, for instance, a custom-branded client portal.



3. Automate W-9 Collection and Follow-up
Here’s the scenario. Your outsourced accounting firm sends out W-9s to client vendors so you can report their financial records to the IRS. However, you encounter vendors who either don’t care or don’t respond to your accounting team. This is one of the most hated parts of an accountant or bookkeeper’s job and can put a serious strain on productivity. If you’ve ever found yourself in this situation, you’ll be happy to know that there’s now a way to automate W-9 gathering, as well as follow-up, which can save you a ton of time when you’re running accounting services. With bookkeeping workflow software, the platform will automatically determine which vendors have reached the 1099 threshold by analyzing financial transactions.

4. Automate Financial Reporting
Producing accurate financial reporting on things like cash flow, assets, and expenses is critical to your finance team providing clients with high-level insights to guide their financial management decisions. However, generating and sharing this information with clients — especially in a way that’s easy for them to understand — is often easier said than done. And when you get “too much in the weeds” with a financial report, it can shave hours off your week. But this too is an area that can largely be automated for greater accounting efficiency. For instance, with Keeper, you can easily connect to your client’s ledger with just four clicks.
