by Steve | Apr 29, 2010 | File Sharing, General Information
Making the decision to store your client files online is one of the best ways to ensure their safety. Hard copies of files can become lost or damaged, creating a problem for efficient retrieval, should the need arise.
A general retention policy is to keep all current and former client files for ten years. This can add up to quite a bit of paperwork if your client decides to leave after several years of work. Instead of having to stand and make photo copies of all of their paperwork, wouldn’t it be easier to copy a few files online, zip them up and send them along to your client? Absolutely.
By storing your client’s files online, you’ll have the convenience of categorizing by the client’s last name, and then subcategorizing by year. Everything will be easy to locate when referencing certain years, receipts, or other necessary data. Sounds pretty elementary, but many accountants and bookkeepers who work independently make the mistake of becoming overwhelmed with file storage issues.
Just because you’ve struck out in business for yourself and possess awesome accounting skills, doesn’t necessarily mean that you are the most organized business person. If you’ve caught yourself storing client files on your computer’s hard drive (or even worse; your desktop), you are well on your way to a filing dilemma. All it really takes is one busy tax season and you’ve got a potential mess on your hands. You can take care of this before it becomes a problem, with an online storage system.
Large Files
Another reason to store your files online is the fact that many of the pdf’s you’ll be dealing with, such as scanned copies of receipts, take up a lot of space on your computer. Storing large files online is a quick and easy process with My Docs Online. There’s no limit to the files you can store and it’s a simple drag and drop process. Plus, your files will be safe, neatly organized, and easily retrievable by yourself, your client, or your coworkers when necessary.
Now that pdf and scanned copies kept online are accepted by the IRS, more offices are becoming paperless.
What to Keep Readily Available
Just because you are going to get organized, doesn’t mean that you are going to become a filing cabinet for your client. Be sure to set up a policy with each new client, and have it in writing. The policy should state how long you will keep your client’s files, how often they can request information without an additional charge, and what administrative fee you will charge to pull archived files. Generally, you’ll need to have the most recent year available to your client at all times, and possibly the prior two years. After that, the rest is considered to be archived.
Be sure you are aware of the laws in your particular area. A good resource for information on document retention is the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).
Also keep an accurate archived document list. This will greatly simplify your duties and make your files accessible at all times. Archiving files online is a simple solution to the unnecessary legal complications of destroying records.
by Steve | Apr 15, 2010 | File Sharing, General Information
One vital element of business start ups that is often forgotten until the last minute is the subject of file storage and file sharing. With proper planning in this area, your business will operate more efficiently and you will appear more professional when dealing with new clients. There’s nothing that screams, “I’m brand new to this business” more than having to set up your file sharing account almost as an afterthought.
What Kind of Businesses Need File Sharing?
With more and more businesses operating online, almost every industry can use online file storage. If you work with large or sensitive files, you definitely need a way to upload large files and move them from your workspace to your client.
When you set up an account with My Docs Online, you’ll be able to upload any type of file, including word processing documents, music files, videos, spreadsheets, photographs and presentations.
The ability to store these types of files in an organized way, online, will also free your computer space and allow it to operate at top performance. You won’t have to worry about bogging down your system or transferring to an external hard drive. Your files are secure, accessible 24/7 and can be accessed by clients, coworkers or anyone else that you choose.
Legal Files: Client files can be stored securely and each file can be password protected, so that only certain Law Firms or clients can access certain files. This is perfect for the legal secretary or assistant who works for more than one law firm.
Medical Files: Doctors needing to discuss a patient condition can easily access x-rays, medical history, drug reactions, and more. Complete client files can be kept securely online. Gone are the days of sending for medical records and waiting days or weeks for them to arrive. Patients with a quickly progressing illness need to be treated as soon as possible. My Docs Online makes that possible.
Advertising Agencies: Large files used for print advertising, billboards, logos, and marketing pieces can quickly eat up your hard drive space. Large files can be uploaded to your My Docs Online account and accessed by your printer, the local newspaper and area magazines can pull ads from your account, and clients can access their files for proofing purposes. See how easy it all can become?
Work Groups: Collaborating on a project from four corners of the earth? Not a problem. Files, presentations, videos, images, and just about anything you need can be shared with your My Docs Online account. Large files can be uploaded quickly and efficiently, allowing others to keep up with the progress and collaborate on the project. Files can also be tracked with our unique ‘Follow That File’ feature.
Basically, almost every type of business can benefit from an account with My Docs Online. In today’s ultra fast paced world, documents, images, and presentations need to be there NOW. Your My Docs Online account will make sure that they are!
by Steve | Apr 7, 2010 | General Information
With the IRS tax deadline quickly approaching, I thought a Tax Time Trivia Quiz was in order. Come on, play along with us…You know you want to.
Question #1: Where is the safest place to store your financial documents?
A. Your filing cabinet
B. Your desk drawer
C. On your computer, organized according to date
D. On a secure, online file storage site
Actually, your filing cabinet and your computer are the first two places anyone wanting your social security number or financial records would look. Who is after this information? More people than you might think. From the shifty-looking office temp to the professional computer hack, personal and business information has become a hot commodity.
An eye-opening USA Today article unfolds the story of cyber-thieves who went to great lengths to infect an entire corporation with a virus that would copy computer files and then send the retrieved personal and business data to the hackers. These individuals then sold the information to third party operations.
With tax time right around the corner, information thieves know that a large portion of the working class citizen currently has sensitive financial data readily available, sometimes even right on the desktop of their computer. Pickings are pretty easy this time of year. The stress surrounding tax time causes most taxpayers to lower their guard when it comes to protecting documents. Information thieves are well aware of this fact, and use tax time to access information that isn’t generally available any other time of year.
How to Secure Your Financial Documents
So, how do you guard yourself against identity theft during what seems like ‘open season’ for hackers and thieves? The correct answer is D. By making use of a secure online document storage site, such as My Docs Online, you will be miles ahead of even the most innovative information thief.
The key is to thwarting hackers and thieves is to stay organized. Don’t leave your computer for an hour lunch break with financial documents, social security numbers, banking information, and credit card statements sitting right there on your computer. Get an account with My Docs Online, and then discipline yourself to use it properly. Our personal and business accounts allow you to quickly and easily move even large files and documents over to our secure storage space, protecting your computer from prying eyes.
An account with My Docs Online allows you to set up folders according to month, year, topic, or whatever proves to be most efficient for you. You can even scan and store purchase receipts, mileage records, and anything else you may need for your tax accounting.
It is a great idea to keep digital copies of all of your tax documents, including prior years. Simply scan your paperwork, file the documents online, and never worry about your security again.
Security for the Business Owner
If you are a business owner, you undoubtedly have numerous files and receipts in your possession. The more information you have lying around, the more of a security threat it becomes.
Remember, digital files and copies of receipts ARE accepted by the IRS. With My Docs Online, you can store expense reports, copies of receipts, vendor records, sales tax information, and other PDF and image files. You can basically have an organized library of all your important information, securely stored, and readily accessible 24 hours per day.
Files can then be accessed by your accountant for stress-free, organized tax, preparation. Isn’t that a wonderful phrase? “Stress-free, organized, tax preparation.”
With My Docs Online, say goodbye to filing cabinets…Say hello to security.
Oh, and if you were wondering about the rest of the trivia questions…there was only one. If you chose answer D, you pass with flying colors.
by Steve | Apr 5, 2010 | General Information
As online accounting and bookkeeping services steadily grow in popularity, the need for professional software and tools has grown as well. There are two primary elements that every accountant should have in their toolbox in order to work with optimum efficiency with online clients. With these two foundational elements, your accounting and bookkeeping service will be grounded for online success.
Portals: The online space where you conduct business.
The client portal is an extremely important part of your online business presence. It essentially represents the way you conduct business with your clients. Your portal can be a website, blog, or worksite. It is the place where you provide the information and services your client is in need of. Regardless of what type of portal you choose, it should have a way to seamlessly deliver services and information to your client.
The type of portal you use will have a lot to do with your success level and the new clients you will be able to attract. If you are considering a website or blog, you’ll need to make it professional, attractive, and informative. A consistently updated site with engaging, on-topic content will quickly rank you with the search engines and provide you with a steady stream of new clients. Another option is to create a ‘sticky’ mini web site that works as an online brochure. Personally, I recommend a combination of the two. A fresh, informative blog with a sticky home page will serve as the perfect portal that will attract new clients and provide a way to constantly update repeat visitors and subscribers. WordPress provides an excellent platform where a blog and mini web site can be created and combined for a professional, high-ranking site. A client log-in area can be created right on your home page that will lead current clients to the file upload and storage area.
Online file space: Secure, reliable storage space
Accountants and bookkeepers alike, who service clients online, have to be able to share source documents, upload large Quickbooks files, and share other sensitive information. It is absolutely vital that the online file sharing source has the ability to easily receive and store large files, images, and documents.
Secure file space is definitely the workhorse of the online accountant, as it provides the means to receive source information from the client and provide it in a secure fashion to staff members and those who need to process it. Your online file source must have the ability to store files in an easy to use, organized fashion, and be available 24 hours per day. An account with My Docs Online provides accountants and bookkeepers with the ability to offer their clients a professional upload and storage system. Large files are not a problem with My Docs Online services, and client tech support is available 24/7.
Sign up for an account for as little as $9.95 per month and receive files from your Customer Upload Page in minutes. No contracts to sign. See more pricing options. Sign up for a fifteen day FREE trial Now.
by Steve | Apr 1, 2010 | General Information
Ad-hoc work groups have steadily increased in popularity over the past few years. Ad-hoc groups allow individuals to work on a project as a group that shares responsibilities, assignments, the gathering of information, and other tasks involved. These groups form dynamically to achieve a shared outcome.
Often times, ad-hoc work groups are set up for projects that are too large to be handled individually, but will reach a definite end at some point. These convenient, collaborative work groups are used by organizations, advisory boards, committees, and even Fortune 500 companies. Basically an ad-hoc work group can be set up for any project or task. Some of the popular work groups I’ve seen include editing and writing collaboration, marketing project groups, event planning work groups, medical professionals conducting and gathering research, emergency relief task force groups, and corporate groups working on presentations.
Basic collaboration tools include the use of Email, instant messaging, voicemail and web publishing. As work groups get more involved and the projects more detailed, more sophisticated collaboration tools become necessary.
If you are looking into setting up an effective work group for your industry, here are a few pointers to streamline your efforts.
On wireless computer networks, use ad-hoc mode to directly communicate with other computers. Operating in this mode allows all wireless devices within a specified range to communicate in peer-to-peer fashion without the use of central access points.
Ad-hoc groups that involve individuals spread out in different cities or states can use collaboration software to access and organize tasks while keeping up to date with who is working on which detail in real time. These tools may include the following:
Electronic conferencing – allows for a more interactive way of sharing information. Both teleconferencing and videoconferencing are available, and with today’s technology most providers offer computer to phone access. Electronic meetings are generally set up with an online conference provider that allows participants to phone or log in. Presentations can be viewed and the participants can either speak to each other by phone or chat during and after the presentation.
Data conferencing – allows networked computers to view and collaborate from a common whiteboard. Each user can communicate and add to the board during the discussion.
File and document sharing – With file sharing from My Docs Online an entire work group can easily organize, store, and manage files. Simply drag and drop files and folders into your online system, collaborate with colleagues across the globe, and view files conveniently from your laptop, iPhone, BlackBerry or other mobile device.
Ad-hoc networks make sense when a small group of professionals need to join forces for a common goal. With the right tools and document sharing tools in place, your ad-hoc group can be up and collaborating in minutes.
