According to PartnerCompete, Quickbooks online has had a surge of growth in Q4 of FY10 in
spite of multiple outages in the service. This doesn’t surprise me for the most part. In a recession,
people are forced to start over and try for their dreams of owning a business. But with this, also
comes growth of businesses and outgrowing Quickbooks online is fairly easy to do.

I’m sure you have run across a few comparisons of QuickBooks vs. Microsoft Dynamics® GP, so
the first thing you should know is that QuickBooks Online currently does not provide purchase
orders or inventory tracking. Reports and graphs are available, but not as many as in QuickBooks
desktop-based. Report customization also is somewhat limited in QuickBooks Online. So if you’ve
already determined you’ve outgrown QuickBooks, you have definitely outgrown QuickBooks
Online.

Here are a few more negatives of QuickBooks Online for your review:
• Difficult Implementation: Data cannot be imported from or exported to the desktop-based
  version of QuickBooks into QuickBooks Online Basic.
• Slow Functionality: Heavy internet traffic may slow down service response time, and servers
  may be down, preventing access to company data and company data cannot be accessed if
  the user’s internet connection is down.
• High Risk: While every reasonable precaution has been taken to protect the privacy of
  company data, there is always the possibility that a malicious hacker could break through
  Intuit’s security configuration and access accounting data.

Microsoft Dynamics GP, on the other hand, easily scales to the needs of growing organizations.
The Rapid Migration Tool in Microsoft Dynamics GP efficiently migrates your legacy QuickBooks
data in just a few clicks. Microsoft Dynamics GP also makes it easy to gain insight into all aspects
of your business and increase efficiency across the organization, and it has a proven and
innovative platform for continued growth.

Microsoft calls the move from QuickBooks to Dynamics GP “A smart move for your growing
business.” And they back that up with several testimonials from former users of QuickBooks who
have chosen Dynamics GP as a more cohesive and comprehensive business management
solution.
Here’s what they say:
“QuickBooks has basic accounting functions, but what Microsoft Dynamics GP offers is the ability
to stay on one product for the entire lifecycle of the company. It grows with your business. If
you’re going to stay a small mom-and-pop operation, something like QuickBooks might work well,
but if you intend to grow the business, the last thing you want is to have to convert to another
accounting package later on.”
Jeff Skeen, CFO
Titan Fitness Holdings
________________________________________________________________________________
“As soon as we installed QuickBooks, we knew it was not the right solution – it was inexpensive,
and it enabled simple reporting – but to support the sophisticated project management and
accounting required by our business, we knew we would need to turn to Microsoft Dynamics GP.”
Kenneth Boothe, Jr., Program Manager
Erie Shipbuilding
_____________________________________________________________________________________
“Running a growing, multi-departmental organization in QuickBooks became unmanageable. Each
time we added a line of business, we had to create a new QuickBooks instance. It made recording
intercompany transactions and bank reconciliations extremely difficult. One of the strengths of
Microsoft Dynamics GP 10 is that it allows us to maintain separate ledgers for each of these
business units.”
Lee Horton, Director of IT
Current LP
_____________________________________________________________________________________
“QuickBooks is an excellent financial solution for a small company. But, as our company grew in
size and volume, we had to create multiple QuickBooks files to maintain operations – and none of
these files could be linked together. This left us unable of practicing traditional accounting
procedures, and it complicated any type of reporting, whether managerial or financial.”
Scott Nesbitt, Chief Accounting Officer
Choice Energy
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
“A huge difference between QuickBooks and Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 is transactional
integrity. We have seven people in our accounting department, plus a Director of Finance. We
need the ability to go back and follow an audit trail for any transaction, so a system that has
transactional integrity is critical.”

There’s a lot more information comparing Quickbooks to Our Cloud ERP Offering in our resource centers Here and Here!

QuickBooks is one of the most popular small business accounting systems on the market. There
is no denying the success of the product with over 3.5 million users. For the money, QuickBooks
provides good value and a reasonable assortment of features to meet the needs of most small
businesses and startups. However, it does have limitations that prevent the accounting software
from meeting the needs of many mid-size companies and organizations. SMB Suite
has helped many companies that were using QuickBooks and looking for a new accounting
software. Some of the specific challenges these companies faced were:

1. User Count Limitations
2. Need for Enhanced Internal Controls
3. Lack of Integration Between other Software
4. Inability to Customize for Specific Needs

If this sounds familiar, read on to learn more clues it’s time to get serious about cloud ERP

1. You Are Growing and Need a Scalable Solution
Depending on the version of QuickBooks you are using, you could be limited to under twentyfive
simultaneous users with the Online Edition. Performance could still be an issue. Microsoft
Dynamics GP can scale to over 1,000 concurrent users. Performance scales are based on
reliable performance of Microsoft SQL Server database engine.

2. Internal Controls Have Become Increasingly Important To you
As your business grows, the owner can’t be involved in every transactions so more internal
controls are needed. Microsoft Dynamics GP has audit trails that provides a record of “who”,
“what”, and “when”.

3. You Need Workflow Tools for More Control and Efficiency
As your company grows, you need to handle documents electronically to save time.
QuickBooks provides no workflow tools. Microsoft Dynamics GP users can monitor and act on
workflow transactions in GP, Outlook, and SharePoint Server.

4. QuickBooks Inventory Functionality is Not as Robust as You Require
For example, QuickBooks does not support serialized inventory, multiple warehouses, bar
coding, or demand forecasting. Microsoft Dynamics GP does have these capabilities.

5. Advanced Warehousing and Distribution Functionality is Required
This is an extension of the inventory limitations found in QuickBooks. There is no autogeneration
of purchase orders when stock falls below pre-established minimum. Within
QuickBooks you are limited to 100 price levels for customers, leading to manual overrides
and errors. Microsoft Dynamics GP supports RMAs, demand forecasting, blanket purchase
orders, lot tracking, and more.

6. You Have Expanded Internationally
QuickBooks cannot mix-and-match international versions, has no language option on user
interface, and it supports only one currency. Microsoft Dynamics GP works around the world
and supports multiple currencies.

7. You Need Better Integration with Microsoft Office and Other Applications
QuickBooks has limited integration with Microsoft Word and Excel. Microsoft Dynamics GP is
fully integrated with Microsoft Office. The user interface is very similar to Outlook. Reporting
and analysis interfaces with Microsoft Excel.

8. You Need Additional Financial and Operational Reports Beyond What QuickBooks Provides
QuickBooks does not handle defined reporting periods. The financial statements out of
QuickBooks are hard-coded and generally cannot be changed. QuickBooks does not
support statistical information or KPIs. Microsoft Dynamics supports Unit Accounts so you can
track units, head counts, square footage, or what you need specific to your business.

9. Your Client Needs More Robust CRM
Typically CRM in small business should include records of all customer interactions. This can
lead to greater customer satisfaction and increased revenue and profitability. QuickBooks
CRM is limited to five users and has no support for sales management or contract
management. Microsoft Dynamics GP has an integration solution – Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

10. You Require Exceptional Functionality at an Affordable Price
QuickBooks cost can be higher than perceived. You have 100% annual upgrade cost in Pro
and Premier editions. Cost of licenses in Enterprise Solutions that may not be needed.

There is a lot of cost in work around if QuickBooks isn’t doing just what you want it to do.
Microsoft Dynamics GP is affordable and has the option to be a hosted solution. You can
also utilize light users for some employees that might not need a full user license purchase.

There’s a lot more information comparing Quickbooks to Our Cloud ERP Offering in our resource centers Here and Here!

Many insurance businesses, government contractors and other organizations with complex reporting
needs find their cloud ERP home with SMB Suite because of
our flexible integration options and the superior customizaton of Dynamics GP. Here’s an example from
and insurance agency that couldn’t manage itself effectively any longer on Quickbooks.

As an insurance agency, they had unique reporting requirements and had to report on a statutory
basis instead of an accrual basis. With QuickBooks, they had to jump through a lot of manual
hoops to make the reporting fit their needs and even then they felt it couldn’t be 100% trusted.
They knew manual processes increased the risk greatly for entry errors.
They also didn’t have the ability do detailed budgets in QuickBooks because the tracking
capabilities didn’t go deep enough. This meant budget allocations were extremely difficult to
manage because they couldn’t see what department needed funds and/or resources at any given
time, making room for a lot of financial miscommunication throughout their organization. In
QuickBooks, they never really had an audit trail because changes weren’t tracked appropriately.
When someone made an adjustment, there was no tracking of who did it, when they changed it, or
even why they made that change. In addition to compliance risk, this escalated confusion across
the company.

One of the biggest pains they experienced was in accounts payable. They have many vendors
they work with across multiple states that require unique tax code requirements and more.
QuickBooks didn’t allow them to consolidate vendors, so each time they had to send a check, they
had to create a new account. This greatly limited their ability to track payments because they had
so many that went out on a regular basis.

These growing pains were essentially time bombs ready to go off if an audit team showed up.
Luckily, our experienced consulting team and Microsoft Dynamics® GP was able to help them out
of this bind with a number of enhanced financial and reporting functionalities:

Unique Reporting: With Management Reporter in Microsoft Dynamics GP, they now have
access to the reporting they need. They can have separate general ledgers that helps create
statutory reports versus the normal accrual reporting. They can also see segmented financial
statements so if they need reports for multiple departments, they can produce a consolidated
statement and drill down into individual departments. It’s set up similar to a reporting tree and
really helps our client gain insight into their business finances to make better decisions as well
as proactively resolve issues before they even start.

Advanced Budgeting: Because of this detailed reporting, they can monitor their current
expenses against their revenue to determine whether they’re going over budget in a
particular department or have an excess of money that can be leveraged elsewhere. These
reporting trees have allowed our client to do proper allocations across departments so
departments are now funded appropriately. Microsoft Dynamics GP also gives them the
flexibility to do multiple budget versions so they’re never really restricted by their accounting
solution.

Tracking: Our client now has complete audit control of their General Ledger. In Microsoft
Dynamics GP, they can make an adjusting journal entry and have complete tracking of who
made the change, when it was altered, and the reason behind it. These tighter audit controls
Insurance Agency Switches from QuickBooks to Microsoft Dynamics GP for Stronger included
in Microsoft Dynamics GP make their accounting system more secure so they can be
confident in their records.

Multiple Vendor Locations: Our client can now manage their accounts payable much more
efficiently and their vendors get paid on time. Accounts Payable in Microsoft Dynamics GP
allows them to consolidate their vendors. If one vendor has multiple addresses, they can
create it under the same master account, making reporting much more accurate and easier to
manage. At any given time, they can see where the payment is based on a payment ID. This
efficiency as greatly improved their cash flow as they can now strategically plan and schedule
payments to meet the needs of their vendors as well as their cash flow needs.
Being in more control has increased their trust factor greatly in their new accounting solution, and
Microsoft Dynamics GP
continues to see them through their unique financial management needs.

There’s a lot more information comparing Quickbooks to Our Cloud ERP Offering in our resource centers Here and Here!

Well, it probably depends on your definition of “big.” Microsoft defines its mid-market as
companies with revenues of $5 to $500 million. $500 million is big. But $5 million
isn’t, and there are a lot of $5 million companies running Microsoft Dynamics GP. And, depending on what
your business objectives are, even smaller organizations find that GP often has a niche to meet their needs.
A good number of our newest accounts at SMB Suitehave been smaller organizations jumping up from Quickbooks.

Whether or not GP is a fit for you also depends on your budget. If you have $600 to spend on software, go with
QuickBooks. Microsoft Dynamics GP is not for you. But if you’re willing to consider the real cost of
software that no longer meets your business needs, you might come to the realization that $600 is
just money wasted if QuickBooks falls short of your requirements.

Here’s an analogy that I just made up on the spur of the moment. Once upon a time, you had only
1 sales rep working for your company. And your phone system had only 1 outbound line. Most of
the time that sufficed. Now there are 4 sales reps working for your company and you still only
have one outbound line. So sure, you can say you have a phone and it doesn’t cost a lot of
money, but at any given time you have 3 sales reps sitting around doing nothing as they wait for a
phone line to free up. It’s pretty obvious from my rather silly example here that this would not be a
good business practice.

Can you really afford to have 3 sales reps twiddling their thumbs? What’s the cost to you in lost
business? Are you in the business of paying people to do nothing?
And do you doubt that my analogy holds water? Let’s look at software now.
Once upon a time, you were a one-person shop. You bought QuickBooks. Maybe it was even
recommended to you by your accountant. It was really, really cheap and easy to use, too. A good
deal.

Now you’re a 10 person company. There’s you (the owner), your son or daughter who just joined
the business, 4 sales reps, a marketing manager, office manager, bookkeeper, and a customer
service rep. Your accounting needs have grown beyond the basics that QuickBooks provides.
Your business is more complex. Maybe you should look at QuickBooks Enterprise. But (and hey,
you had to know there would be a “but”) you’re also continuing to grow. You’re moving into new
markets. Your transaction volume has tripled in the last 5 years. How much longer will any edition
of QuickBooks meet your needs?

So do you spend money moving to QuickBooks Enterprise now only to find out in a year or two
that you’ve outgrown that, too?

It’s time to move up to the next level altogether. Do you actually know what a one or two user
Microsoft Dynamics GP system costs, or have you just heard rumors? And a better question might
be, do you know how much you GET when you purchase Dynamics GP? That’s an easy
question.

Here’s a list of all the modules that some with Dynamics GP Business Essentials right
out of the box:
• Analytical Accounting
• Bank Reconciliation
• Country-Specific Functionality
• Encumbrance Management
• Fixed Asset Management
• General Ledger with AFA
• Intercompany Processing
• Inventory Management
• Landed Cost
• Microsoft FRx
• Multicurrency Management
• Office Excel-Based Reports
• Office Smart Tags
• Payables Management
• Purchase Order Processing
• Receivables Management
• Reminders
• Report Writer
• Safe Pay
• Sales Order Processing with Advanced Invoicing
• Security Management
• SmartLists
• SQL Server Reporting Services Reports

For well over 23 years Microsoft Dynamics solutions have delivered the functionality to help over
290,000 businesses worldwide. Dynamics GP has over twice the functionality of QuickBooks
Enterprise and is fully integrated with the tools you already rely on for business intelligence –
Microsoft Office.
Microsoft Dynamics gives your business the ability to tailor the system to fit your needs and to
design the solution to scale with your business as you grow. All of this comes at an affordable
price.
Furthermore Microsoft Dynamics has the tools in place to help those businesses transition from
QuickBooks to Dynamics GP quickly and cost effectively allowing you to focus on your business
and not your business systems.

We’ve worked with firms who have gotten up and running on Dynamics GP from QuickBooks in a few short days using the rapid
implementation tools designed specifically for moving from QuickBooks to Dynamics GP. Your business will have the
tools that will allow you access to information quicker for critical business decisions along with
more than 700 reports for better insight into key metrics.

There’s a lot more information comparing Quickbooks to Our Cloud ERP Offering in our resource centers Here and Here!

Growing businesses often don’t realize how crucial business software is to company expansion.
This is especially true for a company’s accounting department, an area of business in which even
the most subtle increase in productivity can mean an exponential growth in workload. Today, many
small to medium sized companies are using QuickBooks, a valuable accounting system for the
right company. QuickBooks is a solid starting point but many times organizations struggle to
recognize when their business needs have outgrown this simple solution. To help
decipher whether or not your company is ready to transition away from QuickBooks, I have
identified the 5 major signs that indicate that it might be time to consider a scalable ERP solution.

1. Transactions
The number of financial transactions your company handles on a daily basis should be a good
indication of whether QuickBooks is still the right solution for you. For example, if your bookkeeper
handles a few simple daily transactions QuickBooks may be your best option. If your company
requires detailed revenue and expense tracking, a more robust ERP system may be a better fit to
handle your growing needs.

2. Users
If your accounting department consists of 5 or more employees QuickBooks may not be the best fit
for your company. Most versions of QuickBooks tend to become problematic at 5 users. Typically
this much activity causes the database manager to get bogged down resulting in the disconnection
of users from their sessions. If you experience these problems, consider moving to an ERP
solution like Microsoft Dynamics GP. According to a performance benchmark test Dynamics GP
successfully performs at 500 users and millions of transactions, perfect for a growing organization.

3. Accountability
Growing companies need a double-entry accounting system that allows them to comply with
government regulations, industry standards, and corporate quality initiatives. Unfortunately,
QuickBooks is a single-entry accounting system meaning it doesn’t feature “audit controls.” Audit
controls keeps record of every transaction entered into an accounting system so the account
balance can be traced back to the transactions that make up that balance. Dynamics GP, a
double-entry accounting system, ensures transactional integrity by providing an audit trail for
every change or transaction. This compliant ERP solution helps management monitor and protect
company assets from inappropriate use or loss.

4. Data
Eventually QuickBooks users may begin to notice a decline in performance, including a delay in
the solution’s menus and reporting functions. Most companies using QuickBooks tend to notice
such problems when the file size reaches 250 MB or when the total number of transactions
exceeds 32,000. Significant performance problems usually occur when any list (customers,
vendors, employees) exceeds 10,000. An advantage of moving to an ERP system like Microsoft
Dynamics GP is its scalability. This solution is built around Microsoft’s SQL Server database
platform enabling it to house several Terabytes of data without a decrease in performance.

5. Reporting
The simple reports available in QuickBooks may not provide you with an accurate view of your
organization. Oftentimes, QuickBooks users have customer and revenue data in supplemental
systems such as, Excel, and a CRM system. Creating a detailed report that provides you with all
the information you needed requires a lot of time spent manually entering data from one source to
another. So if you discover that valuable employee productivity is being wasted on mindless data
re-entry, it may be time for an ERP solution. Dynamics GP features several ways for management
to gain insight on real-time financial status and operational performance. Reporting tools include
Dashboards, FRx, and Management Reporter plus GP’s ability to integrate with SharePoint
allowing reports and analyses to be shared across an organization.

For more information on how an ERP solution can help your business grow contact SMBSuite.com