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Category: Accounting Basics & Insights

Manufacturing Overhead: How to Calculate Labor Cost by Job

Manufacturing Overhead Costs To calculate Manufacturing Overhead by Job, be sure to include both manufacturing direct labor costs and manufacturing overhead labor costs. How To Calculate Labor Cost One key in calculating the labor cost portion of your manufacturing overhead is understanding the difference between manufacturing direct labor costs and manufacturing overhead labor. Which of …

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Labor Profit Tip #3: Your Gross Profit Numbers May Be Misleading

Labor Burden Information Tip #3: To See Accurate Job-Cost Reports, Assign Labor Burden Costs to Each Job. If you’re looking for ways to make your company more profitable, getting a handle on your fully burdened labor costs is a critical place to start because it can show you how to: Estimate labor costs more accurately, Price jobs to …

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Top Accounting Blogs

The accounting blogs listed below are some of the most reputable and informative online. I wanted to create a quality resource for people seeking any additional accounting advice, so below, you’ll find what I believe to be some of the top accounting blogs. As an endorsement, I’ve created a badge for them to display so …

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A Tale of 4 Companies: Gross Profit & Job Cost (Part IV)

Communicating the Schedule Keeps Job Costs on Target to Hit Gross Profit Goals

Targeting Gross Profits: How Estimators and Project Managers Focus on Goals & Job Costs at Paul’s Perfect Projects If you haven’t already read them, you’ll probably want to visit Part I, Part II, and Part III of this “Tale of 4 Companies: A Job Cost & Gross Profit Drama” before beginning the following “Part IV”. As we …

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Bulletproof Accounting and Long Term Business Survival

Diane Gilson and Daryl Urbanski-Bulletproof Accounting

Bulletproof Accounting for Long Term Business Survival Diane and host of The Best Business Podcast, Daryl Urbanski, reveal proven “success habits” that small and medium-sized business owners can use to leapfrog the competition and thrive. Why this matters to you: In this podcast, Diane delivers some simple (and high-value) startup and accounting system tips that …

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QuickBooks Chart of Accounts – One Simple Way To Improve Your Reports

Bookkeeper needs help with Chart of Accounts

Your QuickBooks Chart of Accounts is the foundation for your critical company reports. What unfortunate events can occur when it isn’t set up in the best possible way? Your QuickBooks Chart Of Accounts How you set up your Chart of Accounts in QuickBooks is one of the most important decisions you can make. It determines whether …

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How to Use QuickBooks More Effectively: 10 Tips

How to use QuickBooks Most Effectively

How to use QuickBooks most effectively can be a challenge. But, to help you, here are a series of QuickBooks “how-to” tips from BuildYourNumbers.com! How To Use QuickBooks Do you use QuickBooks to manage your accounting? For years, mid-sized and small-business owners have found QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online, and Enterprise Solutions to be the most …

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12 Benefits of Running a More Profitable Company

Want your company to be more profitable? Almost all business owners are constantly working to make their company more profitable. And that’s a good thing, right? It probably is, as long as you achieve it morally and ethically. But is it worth it? Here Are 12 Benefits of Running a More Profitable Company These benefits …

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Setting Up Payroll Schedules in QuickBooks

QuickBooks Payroll and Payroll Schedules

One of your early tasks as a payroll administrator or when you convert to QuickBooks Payroll will be to establish payroll schedules in QuickBooks for your employees. Here’s how. Setting Up Payroll Schedules in QuickBooks Payroll administration can be complex and time-consuming. It requires precision and tremendous attention to detail. Because your employees are counting …

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QuickBooks for Contractors – Using Items for Job Costing

This post about QuickBooks’ Items is excerpted from our more extensive training video that’s included in our Construction Accounting & Management Program (CAMP). QuickBooks Items: Automating Job Costing for Construction Companies QuickBooks Items enable construction companies to automatically track and report on the financial detail underlying what’s REALLY going on within the financial side of …

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How Cloud Hosting Really Works With Quickbooks Desktop

Real life Cloud Tech with Diane and Jake

QuickBooks Desktop Cloud Hosting Jake Reeves (Director of Sales at Summit) joins Diane as she does a live (and “real-life”) demonstration of how cloud hosting REALLY works for QuickBooks desktop! Why this matters to you: See how you can set up your own cloud hosting “desktop.” Get answers about how cloud hosting can work for YOUR …

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The Ultimate Showdown (Part 1): Types of Financial Services

Ultimate Showdown: Types of Financial Services

This Ultimate Showdown (part 1) video gives you insights into the types of financial services available to you as a company owner. When you hear the term “ultimate showdown“, it might not (at first) conjure images of the types of financial services needed by construction companies and their owners. That’s why Diane and Mita have …

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The Ultimate Showdown (Part 2): Financial Services Cost Comparisons

Watch this “Financial Services Cost Comparisons” video (to easily discover what an in-house bookkeeper truly costs…) Diane and Mita continue their Ultimate Showdown discussion in part 2 of this “Financial Services Cost Comparisons” webinar.  Note: For the best view of the webinar, select “Full screen” mode (the “X” in the player bar). You can also …

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Business Overhead Expenses

Business Overhead calculator + graph

Calculating overhead can be tricky, but QuickBooks can help you calculate and monitor your business overhead expenses more efficiently and effectively. Business Overhead Expenses: What They Are and How To Calculate Them Have you ever wondered exactly WHAT business overhead expenses really ARE? Do you know what YOUR business overhead expenses are? Or how to …

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Paying QuickBooks Bills with a Credit Card or Vendor Credits

Use Credit Card to Pay Bills in QuickBooks

Paying your QuickBooks Bills can be easier (even pain-free!) – when you use your software to its fullest capacity. QuickBooks Pay Bills with a Credit Card Company owners and bookkeepers often use credit cards to pay QuickBooks bills. Those who appreciate the convenience of purchasing items or paying bills using credit cards often ask how …

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How to Use QuickBooks Job Costing Features to Achieve Your Gross Profit Goals

Job Costing In QuickBooks QuickBooks is designed to help you plan, measure, and monitor company and job results. You can even use QuickBooks Job Costing Features to Achieve Your Gross Profit Goals! Use its management reporting tools to immediately SEE operating and financial results. Proactively correct problems – before they spin out of control – …

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Top 7 Reasons Business Owners Call a QuickBooks ProAdvisor

ProAdvisor Advice Signpost

Why You Need A QuickBooks ProAdvisor Based on 20+ years of being a QuickBooks ProAdvisor, here are the top 7 reasons businesses contact me for assistance. See if any of these scenarios sound like what you may be facing in your company… As a business owner, you learn through trial and error what makes your …

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Labor Costs Profit Tip #4: How You Can Stop Overruns in Labor Costs

Labor Costs Are a Risky Part of Your Business. Make an Immediate Impact on Your Bottom Line by Heading off Costly Labor Over-runs Before They Get Out of Hand. 7 Ways to Reduce Labor Costs Know and use your true, fully burdened labor costs when estimating. Increase estimating accuracy by using costs based on specific employees (or averages …

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How to Squeeze More Profits Out of Every Construction Job With Job Costing

How to squeeze more profits out of every job

Job Costing – The Difference Between Profitable Construction Companies and Those Who Struggle Unfortunately, in my 25+ years of experience working with construction business owners, one thing has become painfully clear to me. There are two types of construction business owners: Those who are using job costing reports and using them well and Those who …

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Markup Calculator & Gross Profit Guide (+ Quick Conversion Charts)

In this article, I’ll explain gross profit percentage and markup, AND I’ll give you 2 free “Quick Conversion Charts” to print and carry with you to quickly calculate markup and gross profit percentage. To succeed in business, it’s important to understand two key concepts: gross profit (margin) and markup. Let’s start with some definitions. What …

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Gross Profit Percentage: How To Calculate It and What It Tells You

Percentage of Completion as Efficiency indicator

Knowing how to calculate and interpret your Gross Profit percentage (margin) helps keep your profits high and your costs low. Learn how today… What is Gross Profit Percentage? Gross Profit percentage is a measure of profitability that shows your percentage of earnings AFTER you subtract the cost of “producing” those products or services. However, that …

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Job Costing Increases Profits

Use job costing to dramatically increase profits

What is Job Costing? Job costing, also known by some as job order costing, is an accounting method used to track the costs associated with a specific job or project. This method is typically used in industries where goods or services are produced based on a specific customer order, and each order or job has …

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How To Calculate Gross Profit Margin and Net Profit Margin

Every business owner needs to know how to calculate their gross profit margin (%) and net profit margin (%). After all, it’s what shows you how much profit you’re making! As a business owner or bookkeeper, the most important numbers you’ll ever need to know may very well be your profit margins. There are two …

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How Cloud Hosting Really Works With Quickbooks Desktop – Transcript

Real life Cloud Tech with Diane and Jake

In this video, you will learn the power of cloud hosting for QuickBooks Desktop and see a demonstration of how easy and effective it is to manage QuickBooks using a cloud hosting service. Why this matters to you: If you are a QuickBooks Desktop user, cloud hosting is a powerful service that enables essential functions …

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A Tale of 4 Companies: A Job Cost & Gross Profit Drama (Part III)

job-cost and gross profit percentage

How Bookkeeping Supports Job-Cost & Gross Profit Measurement at Paul’s Perfect Projects, LLC If you haven’t already read them, you’ll probably want to visit Part I and Part II of this “Tale of 4 Companies: A Job-Cost & Gross Profit Drama” before starting the following “Part III.” In Part III, Paul & Dave have just …

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Job Costing is Critical for Construction Companies – Transcript

Job costing is critical in construction

In this video, Diane Gilson is asked a series of questions about job costing, its importance for construction companies, and how to implement it. Why this is important: Job costing is the foundation of effective construction projects and company management. Without effective job costing systems that provide accurate and detailed job costing information, companies will …

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Job Costing is Critical for Construction Companies

Job costing is critical in construction

Diane and Bracken Anderson (from busybusy) recently had a great interview-style meeting where we explored why job costing is critical for construction companies. Why this matters to you: When you understand what job costing is and how to get started with it, you can then focus on your winning jobs. And that means more profits for …

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Using AI to Reduce Manual Data Entry Costs and Errors

MakersHub - Reduce time spent on accounts payable by 90%

Using MakersHub AI to Reduce Accounting Costs Diane and MakersHub founders Charley Howe and Phong Ngo demonstrate how you can reduce the time your company spends on accounts payable – by 90%! This live demo with Diane, Charley and Phong reveals how you and your company can wave goodbye to detailed manual entry for Bills, Approvals, …

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The Worst Training You Can Buy (And Waste Your Time On)

You Found the Perfect Seminar… It’s the training resource you’ve been looking for to make the changes you want in your company. The main problem – your QuickBooks company file was set up wrong from day one. You’ve been making do, but haven’t been getting the job-costing information you need. Now you’ve found the solution …

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Calculating & Controlling The Cost of Chaos

Calculating and Controlling the Cost of Chaos

From our Better Numbers – Better Business™ management series… Diane and Ken Horst demonstrate real-life examples of how you can spot common (fixable!) profit leaks so your business can become more effective, more efficient, and more profitable. Why this matters to you: You’ll discover an inexpensive, easy-to-use tool that can help you run the same …

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11 Ways to Take the Pain & Suffering Out of Tax Time

How To Solve the Tax Time Nightmare If you’re someone who dreads January, February, March – and beyond – because those months seem to turn into “Franken-tax” time, you may be asking yourself: “How do other companies do it? What would it be like if I was ALL DONE with tax-related chores by the middle …

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Using AI to Reduce Manual Data Entry Costs and Errors – Transcript

MakersHub - Reduce time spent on accounts payable by 90%

In this interview, you will learn about an AI tool that will help companies reduce accounting costs and errors by automating the process of entering bills, approving invoices and making payments. Why this matters to you: In most companies, a large percentage of accounting efforts goes into the tedious and error-prone process of manually entering …

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Streamline Your Business with QuickBooks Inventory Software

Let BuildYourNumbers.com explain why you should use QuickBooks-compatible inventory software to integrate and streamline your systems. Do you have an inventory? If so, how do you keep track of that inventory? Whether you’re already using inventory accounting software or keeping track of your inventory through lists, spreadsheets, or year-end adjustments, I’m about to show you …

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Avoid the Gross Profit Rollercoaster

The Gross Profit Rollercoaster Podcast

In this interview, Diane and Dave Sullivan (host of The Roofer Show podcast) dive into what Diane calls the “Gross Profit Rollercoaster.” They explore why ‘highs and lows’ happen in a business (when the numbers aren’t lining up), and how to avoid those ups and downs. Why this matters to you: As Dave says, “You …

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Avoid the Gross Profit Rollercoaster Transcript

The Gross Profit Rollercoaster Podcast

In this interview, Diane and Dave Sullivan (host of The Roofer Show podcast) dive into what Diane calls the “Gross Profit Rollercoaster.” They explore why ‘highs and lows’ happen in a business (when the numbers aren’t lining up) and how to avoid those ups and downs. Why this matters to you: As Dave says, “You …

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Construction Job Costing

Use construction job costing for more profitable jobs

Yes, you may believe that job costing is a challenging facet of construction accounting! But with the right training and customization, you can easily master QuickBooks to achieve your goals! Why Construction Job Costing Matters Contractors and manufacturers must be able to accurately predict, record, and control the cost of each job. You’ll need to …

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Learn How To Use QuickBooks Online

Are you one of the many small-business owners taking on your own accounting? Let QuickBooks desktop help you like it’s helped millions others. In recent years, many small- and midsize-business owners have been steering away from using trained accountants for their financial needs and, instead, have taken on the responsibility internally – either by doing …

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Labor Profit Tip #5: The Secret to Making Better Hiring Decisions

Labor Burden Information Tip #5: Make Better Hiring Decisions by Thoroughly Understanding Potential Additional Costs Bad hiring decisions can have a devastating effect on your bottom line, so you want as much objective data at your fingertips as possible before you hire. You can use labor burden calculation information as a starting point when it’s …

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7 Reasons To Love QuickBooks Desktop Assisted Payroll

Fast easy payroll with QuickBooks Desktop Assisted Payroll-

QuickBooks Desktop Assisted Payroll is our payroll service of choice at Info Plus Accounting. Because we ‘eat our own (QuickBooks) dogfood,’ we know the quality of this product. And we nearly always recommend Assisted Payroll to our clients. Why do we typically recommend this product to our clients? Here are my top seven reasons: 1. …

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Tale of 4 Companies: A Gross Profit & Job Cost Drama (Part II)

Paul (of Paul’s Perfect Projects, LLC) tackles the gross profit problem by showing Dave his Estimate vs. Actual variance reports. (If you haven’t already read it, you’ll want to visit Part 1 of this “Tale of 4 Companies: A Job Cost & Gross Profit Drama” before jumping into the following “Part II”…) Paul’s Approach to …

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Accounting for Construction

Construction accounting is a unique type of accounting that requires specific financial management tools. Here’s what you need to know. Construction Accounting… As the owner of a remodeling or custom building company, you likely bring a huge list of abilities and talents to your daily work life! From the tangible job skills to the energy …

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Gaining Control Through Job Cost Accounting

Learn how job cost accounting can help small-business owners take control over each job and their profits through cost and profit analysis. As a small-business owner, one of the best ways you can track the real progress of your business is through job cost accounting. In other words, if you keep track of your income …

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Basic Accounting Concepts Explained

Starting or taking over your business’ accounting system can be confusing. So, let’s start by introducing some basic accounting concepts, principles & terms. First, it’s good to ask yourself, “Why is accounting an essential building block in my business?” Most people assume this is true and leave it at that. But in more concrete terms, …

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Top Five Reasons To Use Inventory Software for Your Small Business

Learn how inventory software can help your small business save time and money over the long term. Small-business owners have to keep track of their inventory just like all other businesses, but with fewer resources available to them. You could try to track inventory by keeping a list in a notebook or on a spreadsheet, …

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What Does Financial and Accounting Software Offer a Small Business?

Have you ever wondered how financial & accounting software could benefit your business? Learn to manage your own finances with QuickBooks… Every business faces the challenges associated with accounting. But for mid-sized and small businesses especially, the challenges associated with managing money can mean the difference between success and failure. As a small-business owner, you …

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Be More Successful Day-to-Day Through a Management Accounting System

Learn how to implement a management accounting system – so you can make informed business decisions each day! Did you know there are different types of accountants and accounting viewpoints? Many business owners don’t. There are a handful of different kinds of accounting systems, but the two main kinds are management accounting and financial accounting. …

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