Why Automations are Key to Business Success

You sign a new client and now have to send out all your onboarding paperwork:

• Your contract
• A welcome packet
• A questionnaire
• A request for passwords and log-in information

So much goes into starting a new client off on the right foot! Depending on your intake process, you could have several more pieces to the puzzle. And then there’s the actual project, ongoing communications, off-boarding, etc.

I talk to a lot of business owners who do this all by hand—create the documents and send them out individually for every client. I used to do that too, until I discovered the joy of automations.

Putting regular administrative tasks on autopilot not only saves you a boatload of time, it also makes you look more professional. And it also vastly improves the client experience.

Imagine receiving just one email from a new team member. An email that gave you a list of to-do items that she needed to get your project on track. Not only would you be impressed with the efficiency, but you also wouldn’t have the inbox clutter that comes with separate emails for all of these tasks and requests.

One place to really focus your automations is in your bookkeeping. It takes some time to set up, but it’s much more efficient and you’re much less likely to miss an invoice—or a paycheck.

Here’s how to do it:

• Set up rules in our QuickBooks Online program (or other bookkeeping program). While it might take a few hours to set it up the first time, you’ll never have to code, categorize or upload your bank transactions again. My point? A few hours of up-front time will save you many, many hours in the long haul.
• If you’re working with a long-term client, set up recurring invoices. If the invoice is the same each month, you can create a template invoice and have QBO or PayPal send it out each month (and you don’t even have to think about it).
• Automate your bill pay. Similar to your recurring invoices, you can set up your online banking to automatically pay your bills so you don’t need to worry about them. Basically, you don’t have to ever pay a bill late because your bank already knows when to pay (to whom and how much).
• Set up your payroll to run virtually on its own with Gusto or another payroll service. Whether you have a team or it’s just you, your corporate set-up could lend itself well to using a payroll service to ensure you’re paid on time, every time.

Think about other areas where you could automate business systems. Virtually anything that you do in your business on a recurring basis could be automated—you just need to find the right process and the right tools to help! If you’re a CPA, I can help you tweak your bookkeeping systems and processes for a more efficient workflow. That’s part of the consulting services I offer.