Could this happen in your state too?

Lately states are looking in all directions for revenue because they have lost so many Federal dollars. I read an article from Bloomberg Businessweek  (February 19 edition) about a program in Italy that they have been using to increase tax dollars. Could it be long before you see it here as well?

It seems Italy's police have been stopping people who have very high end cars.  They aren't really concerned if they had a traffic violation- no- what they want is your registration with name and address.  They feed this back to the government to find out if the owners have declared enough income to justify their lifestyle and its been reaping rewards.  What next?  Hope they don't check out my Rolex- it was a gift!

Now you know, there are some pretty nice cars traveling our byways...

so I'm just saying its possible here as well..  

$17.6 billion...wow

I was quite amazed when reading an article today in Bloomberg Businessweek that $17.6 billion is expected to be spent on Valentines Day this year.  Yesterday I heard a quote that the average $ per person breaks out to $119.  My husband thought that was high, but I reminded him that many get engaged on this day- so the diamonds are pushing us all up the totem pole.  

I have been truly blessed to have loved ones who care enough about me to send me beautiful flowers, cards, chocolates and dinner last night (before the crowds).

There are many small businesses that depend on these type of events to bring a large portion of their yearly income- and for those companies who work so hard to bring us this happiness, I truly commend them and hope that their take of the $17.6 billion is everything they need to continue.  It's been hard for some of these smaller companies in the last few years- so think local when you are purchasing candy for your love one, please use the local florist, spa's, restaurants, etc.   They need our business.

New IRS mileage rate

The new mileage rate has been published for 2012 by the IRS .  The amount will be 55.5 starting January 1.    If you use QuickBooks, why not track your expenses for mileage this year in the program? Here is how:

First, set up a 'dummy' customer called "Terrys Mileage" (insert your name) for yourself unless you will be  job costing per client.

Go to the Company file and open the 'Enter Vehicle Mileage' window. Open the Mileage rates window at the top, enter 0101/2012 and put in the new rate.  Your all set now.

When you drive, keep your records and come back to QuickBooks either every week, or once a month.

Open the Enter Vehicle Mileage, enter your vehicle (add new will show the first time) and continue with the form.  You don't have to put in the odometer reading if you would rather not- you can put in the dates and the total miles driven and then tie it to "Terrys Mileage" for the customer (unless of course you really would like to enter per client... Add any notes and click Save and Close.

When you are ready to run your report, go to the Report Center under Jobs, Time and Mileage and run your report for Mileage Summary or Detail,etc.  for the dates you would like.   It will tally all your entries per vehicle for you there. This is a great tool for year end tax - no more having to add up columns trying to figure out what you did all year! 

On our way to The Sleeter Group Conference

There is just something great about going off to a trade conference.  First, you know there are like minded individuals there looking to find the same thing you are on a search for.  Vendors are lining up to give you free stuff and tell you how great your lives are going to be if you purchase their products. Peers want to discuss the nitty gritty of your profession in hopes we can all improve. The hotel we are at this year is brand new- so I'm looking forward to a comfy bed and a bit of luxury. Viva Las Vegas.... here I come. Did I mention the shopping, that we are going to see "Love" by Cirque de Soleil while there and play a little routlette as well?

Kidding aside, conferences are hard work, long hours, long plane trips and lots of listening. I love the atmosphere and look forward to coming back with new ideas for my clients, and readers as well.  If you are looking for a solution- send me a note and I will look for you.   In particular, I'm looking for a good bar code reader so I will be dropping in to WASP, and I want to meet the principles of our portal company, Cloud9 as well. Also checking into Xero- I think that might be the new 'real deal'.

Update on Sunday, December 18, 2011 at 01:32PM by Terry

The conference was good- we learned about several new products from vendors, and listened in on alot of marketing information and of course, the "cloud' was a big subject still.  Also learned what was new in the QB 2012 program.   It's always great speaking with peers and getting ideas on how others work.

There was a panel on what the future five year forcast was, and they seem to agree- its all about " mobile". So we best get ourselves marching to that tune it seems.

As soon as we got back from the conference Quicksilver Business Solutions took on a new client , PowerPlay Mobile LLC,  which does coupons and surveys to your mobile phone- so it really hit home.  We are looking forward to working with them and learning more about what to expect in a society that is moving more towards mobile every day.  How will this effect your company?   Will you use a mobile device to take credit card payments on the fly, use the icloud from your phone to reach your notes, hook up to all your social networks? 

Are you nimble, like jack?

I read an article in Accounting Today that was very interesting titled The agile CPA Firm, by Rebecca Ryan.  I realized as I  read it, the information could really apply to many types of companies, so I would like to give you the jist of it here..

Agile firms are....  more profitable -because they are obsessed with the client experience, and the ability to turn their knowledge into a value added propostion for their  clients. 

Agile firms are...nimble- they can adapt quickly to market changes because of tighter reponse cycles. They regularly round up and discuss information gleaned from clients to find out what they want.

Agile firms are.. lean- they aren't bogged down with unnecessary overhead, staff structures and regularly 'cheap out' on perks. They don't pay the most, but their employees are loyal because they feel they have a say in the business. They run like a bootstrapping start up from day one forward.

Agile firms are... obessed with improvement and innovation- they mine the processes and markets for new ideas. They use the lean process to eliminate waste and tools like analytics to weigh everything they do.

Agile firms are.. IT adoptees- they are already on FB, Linked In, and are finding niche softwares that others don't pay attention to. They are the front end of new happenings, not the followers.

Agile firms are... open and transparent- clients can see their information and measure progress, they have a commitment that information should be shared. They trust both employees and clients.

Agile firms are... value-added, not time centric- they offer flat fee pricing when possible, and see themselves as a partner in their clients business, not just a vendor.

You can read the whole article here...