AccountantsWorld — Accounting Relief

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From the June/July Review of Small Business Accounting Systems

AccountantsWorld has offered the web-based Accounting Relief system for some time now, but as the system was continually developed over the past few years it has evolved into the first truly “unified” accounting system that offers an interface for both the professional accounting firm and one for each of their clients. This means that the program belongs to the accounting firm and contains practice management functions and tools for write-up and multiple client capabilities, but it also has a client accounting side to it that offers all of the traditional functions of a small business accounting program. This enables them to perform daily transactions, manage payables and receivables, and access reports, but these tasks are performed directly on the same program that the accountant will use when performing his or her professional services. This method totally eliminates data transfer during write-up but, more importantly, also keeps all of the data under the control of the professional accounting firm at all times. The client access option is offered as an add-on to the accountant’s version of the web-based system. The accounting firm can pay $995 per year or $99 per month to enable as many of their clients to have this small business accounting system (and then bill them each as desired), or for smaller practices, it can be charged per client at $99 per year. The system can support clients with multiple business entities.

Ease of Use/Basic Functionality -- 5 Stars
The web-based system is accessed through the client’s web browser. A key point to add to the basic definition of the program is that, while the accountant and client are technically working on the same system, the accountant has tight control over what parts of the program each individual client and user can access or even see. The two sides of the program also have very different interfaces — the accountant side is designed for providing full-service accounting to multiple clients, while the client side is much “softer,” with a friendly interface designed for use by small business users who are less knowledgeable about accounting. It’s easier to visualize if you imagine a bicycle tire rim with spokes heading out from the center. The center is the accounting firm, and at the end of each of the spokes is a client. Each client can see and communicate only with the accounting firm, but they are all part of the same system. The interface opens to a workflow window called the Activity Center, which provides an easy-to-follow and intuitively designed collection of icons for the system’s primary functions. It also provides links to key areas across the top of the screen, including Company, Banking, Sales, Expense, Write-Up, Trial Balance, Reports, Financials, Utilities and Integration. As noted, the accountant can set access rights and have certain functions and menu items not even appear (like Trial Balance, Write-Up and other items), while the interface is also very customizable by the user. Within the major function areas, additional icons are available to get directly to specific tasks. Data-entry screens are easy to use, with lists for quickly selecting items, customers, vendors, accounts and other data. At-a-glance customer and vendor lists are not offered, but within the Clients and Vendors sections, users can view and select a client from a pull-down list. Tools for recording payments, performing purchasing tasks and reporting are all easily accessible. Dozens of template charts of accounts are available during initial client setup.

Core Accounting/ Security Functions -- 4 Stars
Although the client-side user interface is very user friendly, the back-end of the program is still the same as that used by the accounting firm, so Accounting Relief offers strong GL, AP, AR modules that use traditional double-entry methods and maintain a full-time audit trail. Once again, the accounting firm has complete control over what functions and features the client can see and use. The system also includes basic inventory capabilities, along with contact management functions. Payroll functions are available through the separate Payroll Relief AC product, which integrates with the professional’s side of Accounting Relief. Since all of the data is always under the control of the accountant, who can access and make correcting entries at any time, the integrity of the client’s data is protected more so than most traditional accounting systems. And because the program is web-based, both authorized users and the professional accountant can access it from any location with Internet access. AccountantsWorld has recently added an Accountant-Client messaging function to the program, which can be used by the accountant to send alerts or directly communicate with the client.

Reporting & Management Functions -- 4.5 Stars
Accounting Relief also provides Dashboards that provide graphical and numerical overviews of key business areas, which can be determined by the user depending upon the access rights granted to them by the accountant. These can show period sales comparisons, account balances, expense analyses, and AR or AP items, along with a Reminders section that notifies users of pending tasks. The program’s Reports center offers a quick view of available output, including options for reporting various data on customers, receivables, vendors, payables, employees, GL and account information, along with a trial balance report that has drilldown access. Small business management has access to full financials that include balance sheets, income statements and cash flow statements. The accounting professional can also utilize a reporting feature that provides for three different sets of financial statements formatted for various recipients, including the client, the firm or external entities like financial institutions. These financial sets also include cover sheets, table of contents, a customizable letter and foot notes. Balance sheets and income statements can also include drilldown capabilities when viewed within the system. Since the program is web-based, there is no need for the client or accountant to perform updates or other IT functions.

Import/Export/ Integration -- 4 Stars
While the system provides the same basic SMB accounting functions as most other systems, one of the key points that sets Accounting Relief apart from those is its “unified” nature — because both client and accountant are technically working within the same system, all of the data is always in the accountant’s system, which gets rid of the hassle of transferring or importing files for write-up, trial balance and other functions. The system integrates seamlessly with the vendor’s payroll system and other professional accounting programs, and can import data from QuickBooks and Peachtree.

Help & Support Options -- 4.5 Stars
The client interface for Accounting Relief is very user-friendly and intuitively designed, providing smart selection lists for data entry, along with a comprehensive Help utility that includes “How Do I” mini-guides, screen-specific assistance and a tutorial. AccountantsWorld also offers an online Resources Center, webinars and client-designed multimedia presentations.