CMA Daily News

Google to run in Intuit small business software

 

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Intuit Inc. will feature several of Google Inc.'s products, including search and advertising, in its QuickBooks accounting software aimed at small businesses, the companies said on Wednesday.

The deal between the two Silicon Valley-based companies marks the latest in a string of business partnerships where hardware and software makers have agreed to feature Google software.

Google is racing with Internet rivals Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc. to win prominent placement within major computer products to fend off efforts by rivals efforts to strike similarly exclusive deals.

The partnership also promises to help small business customers attract new clients. It helps Google get more small businesses to buy ads and use Google services while allowing Intuit users to get more out of their QuickBooks software.

As part of that effort to make QuickBooks more attractive and help users list their products on the Web, Intuit also said on Wednesday it paid $60 million for San Francisco-based StepUp, which helps businesses reach local customers.

In a statement, Intuit and Google said they had agreed to a strategic alliance aimed at helping millions of small businesses promote themselves online with several Google services built into most QuickBooks 2007 products.

QuickBooks will encourage users to market themselves online by listing their businesses on Google Maps, creating and managing advertising campaigns with Google AdWords and posting their products for sale using its Google Base free Web listing service for publishing the equivalent of online classified ads.

QuickBooks 2007 will be available in coming months.

Intuit also plans to embed Google Desktop search into QuickBooks 2007 so users will be able to quickly find customer, retailer or financial information stored inside QuickBooks or on their desktop.

(Additional reporting by Eric Auchard in New York)

Copyright © 2006 Reuters, All Rights Reserved.

Microsoft Releases Free Accounting Software

In an effort to capitalize on the growing number of eBay businesses, Microsoft began offering a new version of its small-business accounting software on Tuesday.

 

A pre-release beta version of Microsoft Office Accounting, formerly called Small Business Accounting, is now available for free download on Microsoft's website. The latest version offers new features designed to help small companies do business on the Web.

 

Like its previous version, the beta software offers accounting tools to manage and track inventory, print checks, pay bills, and create invoices. However, the beta version has added tools that integrate the software with eBay, PayPal, and Equifax.

 

The software facilitates eBay sales by allowing business owners to select products from their inventories, list items for sale, and view the status of listings from within the accounting application. Online shopkeepers can also download the results of sales transactions and related fees directly from eBay into the software.

 

Because the software can be configured to work with PayPal business accounts, businesses can use online invoicing and accept payment via e-mail or direct credit-card payments. In addition, users can monitor the credit-worthiness of their customers and vendors using Equifax from within the accounting software.

 

The new version of Office Accounting also supports multi-currency accounting and allows users to customize the layout and labels on accounting forms.

Source INC. Magazine

Online Spreadsheets

The Web Worker Daily blog highlights several online spreadsheet programs, with Excel like capabilities. Most of these services are free and great for sharing data with others in an online format. For decentralized offices you could use online spreadsheets to communicate with other offices, and to allow more than one person to work on an active spreadsheet.

Click through to read about the online spreadsheets available.

Post your comments on the best use of online spreadsheets by clicking the word Comments below.

Microsoft Shares Your Pain - VIDEO

Do you ever wonder what happens when your software crashes and you "Send an Error Report" to Microsoft? This video, actually created by Microsoft, will show you how Microsoft Programmers are sharing your pain. Get your speakers ready, its a funny few minutes.

Via: VideoSift

SearchSystems.net - Access Billions of Public Records

Website searchsystems.net provides access to over 37,000 public records databases. "The original, largest, most up-to-date and reliable directory of public records on the Internet. Online since 1997, SearchSystems.net continues to be by far the best resource of business information, corporate filings, property records, deeds, mortgages, criminal and civil court filings, inmates, offenders, births, deaths, marriages, unclaimed property, professional licenses, and much more."

I have demonstrated Search Systems many times in the Internet as a Credit Tool Seminars. It is an awesome service for those who have the time to search for the information.

If you do not have the time to perfom the searches, you can contact CMA's Credit Information Services Department (818-972-5300) and have us do the searches for you ($$) and fax or email you the results.

Internally, we do not use Search Systems.net - we use aggregator services that search multiple databases at once.

 

Get On Track T-Shirts & Goodies

The Get On Track T-Shirts and Goodies Store is ready for you to shop till you drop.

Everything is for sale at cost - we are delivering the bottom line price to you.

Stock up on t-shirts to wear at the conference, mugs and tile coasters to use at the office.

We would love to see you at the Conference in one of these hot t-shirts. Get On Track by looking fine!

Visit the store by clicking here.

Can your Customers pay on the web?

Results of a five month study in the Consumer Collection arena by Online Resources Corp."showed the effectiveness of the collections web site in reaching delinquent account holders who were unreachable by phone, particularly for late stage accounts, which are past due between 90-180 days. In addition, late stage account holders who were offered and accessed the web site paid at a higher rate than those who were not offered the web site, and they required less phone contact.

The results were gleaned from a five-month control group assessment of account holders who were offered and accessed a web site to resolve their delinquent accounts over those who were not offered an online method."

What works for consumers will also work for business transactions, although it is usually not adopted as fast by the business marketplace. Does your company already have an web based payment option for customers? If not, CMA partner, American Check Management can help you with their new E-Bill Payment System. Contact ACM at 800-759-6786, don't forget to ask for your CMA discount.

This Is Broken.com

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20 minute Google video of Seth Godin at Gel 2006 Conference. Seth is a author of some of the most influential marketing books. There are some very funny bits on the video, but the message is serious for all of us. Are there areas of your customers credit experience that are broken? What can you do to fix them? Please comment below by clicking comments.

Some Technology is Not all its meant to be...

Windows Vista Speech Recognition Demo Gone Awry - video blog posting from Google Video

Financial Statement Analysis I New Online Course Format

Approved for the National Association of Credit Management Certification Program

CMA is pleased to announce this exciting new course format! We launched a beta test version of this online course in March 2006. Nine out of the ten students successfully passed the final exam and received NACM certification credit for the course. The class will start Tuesday, September 26, 2006, and will be held each week from 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm. There are 6 lectures and one week for the online midterm exam. There is a training session scheduled for Monday, September 25, 2006 - details will be sent with course confirmation. Space is limited to the first 20 students registered so sign up today.

Financial Statement Analysis I Online Course
Here's What You Get:

• Weekly live lectures online with the instructor using CMA's popular Webinar presentation format
• 24/7 access to online classroom where you can find all course materials, get and post assignments, and interact with the instructor between lectures
• Online forums where you work with classmates on team projects and case studies
• Online Midterm Exam
• Course Text is Provided
• NACM Certification credit toward the Credit Business Associate (CBA) Designation

Download the Course Flyer and Registration