Does Microsoft's Small Business Accounting Add Up? SBA Gets It Right Jamie Bsales
When Microsoft announced in 2004 that it was releasing an accounting software package aimed at small business owners, industry watchers were unimpressed. After all, the software giant had tried to break into that market several times in the preceding decade and failed each time.
But with Microsoft Small Business Accounting (SBA), the company had done its homework. First, it studied the industry leader, Intuit QuickBooks, and its customers to glean that product's key strengths and weaknesses. Then, as software engineers designed the product, integration with the company's ubiquitous Office applications was a key goal.
After SBA was built, Microsoft conducted not only a private beta-testing program, but also a lengthy "public beta" trial that encouraged real-world potential customers to use the program (bugs and all) and provide feedback. That led to the release of Microsoft Small Business Accounting 2006 in September of last year, to generally glowing reviews by press and customers alike.
Dashboard View: Microsoft Small Business Accounting 2006 lets you see at a glance what tasks need to be accomplished on a given day, and how the business is faring. (Click for larger image).
SBA Gets It Right
Designed for businesses with up to 25 employees, SBA's greatest asset is its seamless integration with Microsoft Office apps. If you've used Outlook, you'll be familiar with SBA's interface. Indeed, that's what first attracted Rob Gorski, owner of JBG General Contractors, LLC. He had tried using QuickBooks Pro 2004 as well as the Premier Contractor Edition to keep the accounting straight for his businesses (in addition to the contracting enterprise, he also runs a PC repair company and a digital imaging service).
"Neither product worked the way I needed it to," says Gorski of the Intuit offerings. He found the QuickBooks interface too cluttered and complicated for his liking. So he signed on to be an early beta tester of SBA. "The user interface was familiar," he says. "It has a similar look as Outlook."
The second draw for Gorski was how well SBA works with Office. "It was seamless," he reports. "I ported my data over from Excel, and was up and running in an hour." He also likes that SBA comes with Microsoft Business Contact Manager to interface with his existing Outlook contact database. Gorski also appreciates that he can design his own documents (invoices, proposals, and the like) in Microsoft Word and port them to SBA, rather than having to tackle a forms designer applet.
Another aspect of SBA that won him over from QuickBooks is that he can buy one version and have it work for all types of businesses, be it a service-based business, a retail business, or something completely different. "During setup, you just choose one, and the program pulls up a customized bill of accounts tailored to that type of business," Gorski notes.
That said, SBA isn't the perfect solution — at least not yet. The one thing he's still waiting for is electronic integration with his regional bank. While SBA can import information directly from most major banks across the country, its supported list still isn't as extensive as QuickBooks. "But I haven't found anything that's a deal-breaker," Gorski says of SBA's shortcomings.
