Accounting may not be the most glamorous of functions for your property, but it’s undoubtedly one of the most vital. Hotel accounting software and integrations have come a long way in recent years, and connecting your property management system doesn’t have to be the pain in the neck it once was.
Later on, we’ll consider what to look out for when choosing accounting software, as well as some of your top options. But let’s not jump the gun. First of all, let’s get one of the big questions out of the way: should you use server-based or cloud-based software?
Cloud-based accounting software vs server-based accounting software
Accounting software, like any software, needs to meet the needs of your property and of those using it – in this case that mythical creature, the accountant. Your size, location, and set-up will help determine the kind of software that you require, and there are plenty of options out there. However, there is one thing we’re sure of: you should be using cloud-based software.
Accounting software that runs off servers faces the same problems that a server-based property management system does. It makes connecting to other software more difficult, it’s harder to update or change, and it means that if there's a power cut or other onsite problem, you’ll be left with zero access.
Cloud management solutions are always available, easily accessible, much faster and quickly scalable according to your needs. They'll help you to ensure the continuity of operations and develop a more responsive organization.
Embracing cloud-based software makes collaboration much easier across departments and with external teams, so whether you have an in-house accountancy or you out-source, everything is connected. It also typically means a more modern user interface and smart automation, eliminating much of the manual input of financial data.
Essentially, if you want to get more out of your business administration and get up-to-date insights into finances at any time, it’s a no brainer. There are a range of different products that are suitable for every size business, from small independent entrepreneurs to multinational chains. Here’s how choosing the right solution can benefit your property.
The eight benefits of cloud-based accounting software
The key benefits of adopting cloud-based accounting software revolve around simplification. That means streamlining daily reporting operations, reducing the amount of manual admin your accountants need to do, and managing any accounting data all in the same place. These are some of the biggest wins you can expect.
1. Save time and boost revenue
A comprehensive accounting management solution can save you time and money. How? By helping accountants to streamline operations, reduce processing time and improve overall efficiency. For instance, if you use Mews, you’ll save precious time by automatically transferring your financial data straight from your property management system to your accounting software via a specially developed integration.
Your time savings don’t stop there: you can forecast and monitor accounting reports as well as accounting comparison reports to help you project and build balance sheets for the end of your financial year. Compare profits (between current and past periods) to model what works best for you.
2. Embrace automation
Make sure your accounting software can integrate with any other features that are essential for the maintenance of the hotel business. There should be room for direct, automated communication with other add-ons if needed. While you’ll want to largely automate the sending of sales invoices, ensure you can step in to take care of the most challenging accounting tasks on a do-it-yourself basis if that’s what you require. By automating the simplest, time-consuming tasks, your team will be able to focus on more creative task-solving, such as improving processes and increasing profitability.
3. Monitor reports and reservations
All good solutions come with a smart reporting feature that will monitor trends, expenses, fluctuations, and purchases. A strong accounting package also sometimes features a reservation package, which means these two processes can be brought to the same place, making them easier to track.
4. Get instant insights from anywhere
A cloud-based accounting system means that you can access your information from anywhere at any time. You’ll have total control over your figures, with a continually updated and organized workflow that doesn’t depend on frequent manual entries. If you’re in a meeting and need to pull figures instantly, or are on a train and want access to financial data for a report, you can access what you need from a laptop, tablet or phone.
5. Customer management tools
If you have proper customer profiles assigned to each account, it lets you do in-depth customer reporting. You can then plan your marketing and messaging to that customer going forward, building your customer loyalty and forecasting what services or experiences are most popular among your guests, for example the bestselling and most profitable items on the kitchen menu.
6. Manage your documents in one place
Clear and user-friendly accounting software ultimately make the job faster and easier, and a key part of this is efficient and easy-to-understand document management. Get full control of your accounting by collecting invoices and accounts in one system. Look for a simple user interface that makes it easy to send invoices and at the same time keep track of which customers have paid.
Plus, stop wasting your time on organizing invoicing when this can be automated for you – as well as receiving and sending e-invoices, additional services include ledger tracking and PDF printing.
7. Keep up with changing legislation
Find a platform that’s constantly evolving at the pace of legislation. This is much easier to do with cloud-based accounting software as they can install any updates to the software directly over the internet, with no need for onsite installations that disrupt and slow you down. This way, you’ll have all the data, documents and requirements that align with Accounting Act.
8. Be more eco-friendly
Why are you still printing reports and dealing with paper receipts? A modern accounting system in combination with a modern hospitality cloud like Mews means you can ditch the paper and go fully digital. Find out more about how to go green here.
The best accounting software for hotels
When you’re making your decision, you’ll want to pick a software that helps you have full control over your accounting, administration and business management to manage all specifics of your business. Find a solution that integrates seamlessly with your PMS, and one that will save you time and money through automation of financial data transfer between the two. Set up and manage all aspects of your business on one screen and on the go.
Historically, the hotel accounting market has been a very fragmented one. However, Omniboost has revolutionized the market by creating a single hub to simplify and integrate hospitality accounting systems, which is a big benefit for hoteliers that were struggling to know where and how to connect to the best solutions.
So what’s out there? There are over 2,500 properties using Mews, most of which connect to accounting software via Mews Marketplace. Here, you can view 45+ accounting integrations that you can connect to – just click on any of them to learn more about their benefits and how it work.
View the best hotel accounting software
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