Running payroll is an essential part of managing any business. As an accounting professional, you can leverage its importance by offering full-service payroll to your clients.

If you’re considering offering payroll services to your small business clients, you need the right tools to help you manage this new process. Finding the right payroll software for your clients should be your top priority.

Next: How to Market Your Payroll Services to Clients>>

Client Considerations for Payroll and Accounting Software

Part of managing payroll software as an accountant or bookkeeper is knowing how payroll accounting works. This includes the processes needed to cover all payroll deductions and remittances each pay period come tax season. Therefore, quality payroll and accounting software should be able to handle these calculations and keep you up to date on the current tax rates.

Questions to Consider When Choosing Payroll Software Systems for Your Clients

When weighing your choice of accounting and payroll solutions, you’ll want to ensure you settle on one that can provide you with all the necessary functions and tools you need to run payroll for your clients successfully. Therefore, when shopping around for the best payroll solution, use this list of questions to help you narrow down your options:

• Can the software sync with other financial and time tracking applications?
• What is the basic payroll software’s monthly or yearly cost, and how will it impact your revenue generation and billable hours? (ie base rate, per employee fees, filing fees)
• Can you appoint other users or security levels for client access to the payroll system? Is there a client portal they can use?
• How easy is it to send and receive financial and payroll data between software users and third parties?
• Are there comprehensive tools for financial reporting, tax filing, and payroll deductions and remittances?
• Is it cloud-based software and does it offer automatic data syncing or manual data entry?
• Can you use the software to pay employees with a direct deposit?
• Is there a help desk or other customer support available should you need it?

Benefits of Using QuickBooks Online for Client Payroll Processing

Payroll software automates the payroll process so you can help more clients with this necessary business task. Comprehensive software like QuickBooks Online provides users with a whole slew of tools in one easy-to-navigate interface. Millions of small businesses, professional accountants, and bookkeepers worldwide use this software to manage their finances, making it one of the most popular financial applications on the market to date.

Should you decide to use the QuickBooks platform to conduct your client’s payroll for your accounting practice, you can benefit from the following:

• Improves workflow and productivity: Manage payroll and get more done in less time thanks to automated data uploading and a dashboard where you can find all information in one place. Easily manage all client accounts in one place as it clearly shows how much work is needed per client.
• Decreases the chance of lost data: Keep everything safe in your online accounts. Since everything is online, you won’t lose important documents. The software also automatically backs up onto the cloud, so you won’t lose everything if your computer goes down. And you can access your accounts and financial reports from any device as long as you have your log-in information.
• Makes data entry effortless: Easily connect to your client’s bank accounts and automatically download their transactions and statements nightly so that you can see your client’s financial documents and employee data in real-time.
• Improves accuracy and removes human error: There is less chance for mistakes in the numbers when making payroll tax calculations and using accounting equations as the software does it for you.
• Simplifies tax filings: The software provides updates on the latest tax rates, sales taxes, and tax categories for business expenses, aiding you when it comes time to fill in client tax forms. Streamline the tax process and prepare, review, and e-file income returns and remit payroll taxes for clients, all in one place.
• Provides customer support: A dedicated payroll specialist will help you set up your program with free onboarding and take you through all of the payroll features. Once complete, users will have access to customer and professional support should they ever need help with a software issue or more.
• Easy to use interface: Sign up and start using the software to access an easy-to-navigate dashboard for quick onboarding. Take advantage of the comprehensive ecosystem of tools and applications to obtain everything you need to run your practice.
• Offers seamless integration with other apps: QuickBooks can sync with thousands of other business applications currently on the market, accessed through the dedicated app store. For example, with seamless integration with payroll and time tracking software, you can connect to your client accounts in the blink of an eye.
• Access resources and an active online community: With QuickBooks Support and online events, you’ll have the resources and knowledge you need to keep up to date on the latest accounting news and software updates. Talk to professionals and grow your network.

With these benefits in mind, it makes it easy to see why this accounting software is one of the most trusted tools on the market today – for all types of professionals, self-employed individuals, and small business owners. And with the added capabilities of the best payroll software systems working for your practice, you can efficiently cross-sell your accounting and financial services to new and existing clients.

You can even become certified in QuickBooks to illustrate to clients that you have an in-depth understanding and knowledge of the entire platform.

Becoming a QuickBooks ProAdvisor for Payroll Services

A QuickBooks ProAdvisor is an individual who has taken courses and gained an intimate knowledge of the QuickBooks ecosystem. Earning this certification can help you with your accounting practice as it illustrates to existing and potential clients that you have the skillset needed to manage their finances and payroll successfully.

What makes this qualification even better is that as a QuickBooks ProAdvisor, accountants and bookkeepers can get free QuickBooks Payroll to run their practice! Once certified, take advantage of the free training, networking and directory access, unlimited customer support, and more.

Once you feel secure in your QuickBooks knowledge of the software’s comprehensive toolset, you can run this payroll software system like the professional you are, and start marketing your payroll services to existing and new clients.

By using QuickBooks Online Accountant to manage your client’s books and payroll, their data lives under one roof and stays synced in real-time. Plus, automation and centralized data mean less time spent getting things done and fewer errors in the numbers. Sign up for free today!

Next: How to Market Your Payroll Services to Clients>>