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Sage Instant Accounts 2013 launched today

Sage Instant Accounts 2013 has now been launched. It is perfect for new and small businesses. Sage Instant Accounts is the market-leading bookkeeping package that puts you in control of everyday essentials like cash flow and VAT. It also gives you the confidence to make more informed business decisions without being too complicated and without the need to have a bookkeeping qualification.

Some of the fantastic new features that larger companies already enjoy in Sage 50 Accounts 2013 have been extended into Sage Instant with this new version.

Sage Instant Accounts 2013

What’s New?

Quicker and easier to do everyday tasks

• Save time by creating quotes and invoices from your product list

• Record cash sales to speed up selling your stock

Improved VAT, month end and year end processing

• Clear and logical screens guide you through the VAT process

• Logical approach to month and year end

Easy to get set up and running

• Set up your software to match your business structure, quickly, easily and in one place

• Customise your company details

New Report Browser

• Detailed descriptions of each report, telling you what’s included

• A preview of each report so you can check that it’s the right one before you open or run it

• The ability to filter reports, so you only see the ones that you’re interested in

Easier to email your customers

• Save time, postage costs and promote quick payments by using email

• Choose your settings and layout and apply to all future email documents

• Save time, send invoices, statements and letters to your customers quickly and easily

Easier to export information to Microsoft Excel

• Export data directly, without having to spend time manipulating spreadsheets to match things up. Clear and up-to-date help when you need it

• Brand new look and feel to Sage Help – easy to find in just one click from any screen

They’ve also updated over 1,000 buttons and labels in Sage Instant Accounts 2013, removing abbreviations and making sure the words used are consistent and easy to understand.

Want to take a closer look?

If you would like to see a demonstration of Sage Instant Accounts 2013, please get in touch with Silicon Bullet. We offer competitive prices on upgrades as well as new software – and can provide refresher courses to get you up and running using all the new features.

2013: 01/14
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage Instant Accounts
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Understanding Sage Transaction Numbers

In Sage 50 and Sage Instant Accounts, every time you update an invoice, make or receive and payment, make a journal entry or do anything which impacts the nominal ledger, Sage creates new transaction records, and numbers them sequentially starting from 1. This is called the Audit Trail and can be viewed by clicking Company >Financials.

The Sage Financials Window

Historically these transaction numbers were not static. If you decided to clear your audit trail after the year end, Sage would delete any transactions which had been completely finished with (see my post on Spring Cleaning your Accounts Software for more information). The system would then create new opening balances and rebuild the audit trail starting with 1, and all the transactions would be renumbered.

The problem is that many companies, when doing their bookkeeping ,would use this transaction number as a unique ID to identify invoices or journals – which meant that tracing historical data after clearing the audit trail could prove difficult.

Why does my Sage Audit Trail have Missing Transaction Numbers?

Sage Support used to get calls about these numbers changing quite regularly, so they have now changed the system so that once a transaction is entered and allocated a number, it will always keep this number. This means that if you have done a Clear Audit Trail you will now have missing transaction numbers which represent those transactions from previous years which have met the criteria to be cleared down.

This change, however, was not well publicised, so now Sage users query why there are missing transaction numbers!

For more advice and tips on using Sage 50 and Sage Instant accounts then take a look at the posts tagged with ‘Sage Tips‘

2012: 08/23
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Logging Back into Sage after a problem

Sage User name already in use

I have had the same enquiry twice this week from customers. Something has happened on their computer which has meant they had to exit Sage using Task Manager rather than closing the program fully, then on trying to log back in, they have had a ‘User name already in use’ message which threatens data problems.

This can be quite worrying if you do not expect the message: after all, data checks and corruption are the biggest source of worry for many Sage 50 and Sage Instant account users, especially those who have ever had to send their data off for repair.

When you log out of Sage normally, your name is taken off the current list of logged-in users, which can be seen in the User List in the View Menu. This is the case even in single-user systems where you don’t type a user name in to log in, and the Sage Manager Password is hidden from view: the default username is always Manager with no password unless you have changed the system yourself.

Sage User List

If your computer stops responding and you have to close Sage using the Task Manager, or if you have a power cut and your machine suddenly turns off, your name remains on this list. In this case, you are faced with the user already in use message when you try to go back into Sage. You should click the Close Session button and you will then be logged in to Sage as usual. If you know you were logged into Sage on that machine and there is a reason why you had to exit suddenly then you should not get data problems. I would recommend, though, that you always do a data check in Sage after any such occurrence, just in case there is an underlying data issue causing your problems.

The warning is there to stop a second user in a multi-user environment from trying to log in with the same name that is being used on another machine. If you do this, the first user will be kicked off the system, and if they are in a data entry screen they will lose whatever is in the current window. If you try to log on to a second machine and get the warning, and there is a risk of logging someone out on another machine then you should click Cancel and log in with an alternative username.

For more hints and tips about Good Housekeeping in Sage, and advice about the Sage Manager Password then see my previous blog posts. And don’t panic when you have had a problem and need to log back into Sage: just follow the simple instructions above and you will be back doing your bookkeeping in no time at all.

2012: 07/16
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage Accounts – End of Life

Sage have confirmed that from 30 April 2014 they will no longer support customers using Sage 50 V2009 or Sage Instant V15. This does not mean that you can’t continue to use this software, but it does mean that you will no longer be able to have Sage Cover, and you may not be able to directly upgrade to the latest version automatically.

If you use these versions and would prefer the security of working with a currently supported Sage product after the end of life date, Sage have a couple of special offers available until 30th June 2012.

Please call Alison on 01604 420057 for pricing and details.

Remember, Silicon Bullet can often offer additional discounts on upgrades, so it is always worth calling for a quote. We will always at least match Sage Direct Sales prices but can offer a local service and really get to know your business and help apply your needs to the software.

For more information on Sage’ s Software Lifecycle policy, please get in touch.

2012: 06/25
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Good Advice – You must give to receive

I am a regular contributor to UK Business Forums, and quite often respond to queries, mostly to people who are having problems with their Sage software or bookkeeping, and then move on and forget about it.

I was really surprised and pleased this weekend to get a thank you message for a post I wrote in 2009, answering a query about the difference between using Sage batch invoicing options or creating order, invoices and purchase orders in Sage. The reply I made came up in a Google search 3 years later, in May 2012, and my advice has now helped another Sage user.

I have had direct queries for work as a result of the contributions I have made to the forums on this site before, the answers given seem to rank high in Google searches, meaning you get noticed, and with good contact details in your signature line you can benefit from the advice directly.

So, is there a subject you know a lot about? Find a suitable forum and see if you can help people too – you never know when you may benefit in the future. And remember, if you have a question too, you might just find the help you need.

You can see the thread and the advice given by looking at the forum thread.

2012: 05/09
CATEGORY: General
Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage 50 Add-On – Adept Sage 50 Code Changer

This is the start of a series of blog posts to highlight Sage Add-On products which have proved particularly popular with Silicon Bullet’s clients.

Have you ever been in the situation where you have mis-typed a product code, or a sales or purchase ledger account code, but you have not realised until after you have saved your first transactions to the account? You are then stuck with this incorrect code, or even if you edit transactions to move them to a new corrected code, you still can’t delete the incorrect code due to there being transactions showing on the account, even if these are deleted.

This is something I have encountered in many places where I have given Sage training, and when I take on a new bookkeeping client there can quite often be a mismatch of codes due to companies changing names, or product descriptions changing slightly, which just make the accounts look a bit messy.

The Adept Sage 50 Product and Account Code Changer is a simple add-on which allows you to edit account codes, product codes or even fixed asset codes (although almost none of my clients seem to use this last option). The beauty of it is that the transaction or stock history is fully retained and is moved seamlessly to the newly named code.

The Add-On has a CSV input facility for people who want to change a large number of codes in one go. This is particularly useful for companies who, with the benefit of hindsight, have decided that they could have designed a better coding structure for their products.

The program also has a test mode (untick the Update box) which allows you to see what the program will do without actually making the changes. This mode is available in the trial as well so you can see fully what effect the changes will have before you go ahead with them.

If this add-on appeals to you then please request a free trial of the software. It works with Sage 50 versions 8 to 18 (2012) and also with Sage Instant and Instant Plus V15 to V17. I also have the software installed on a demonstration machine so you can see how it works before deciding if you want to purchase it.

However to prevent you from asking for the trial version and making the changes you want, then not purchasing the full product, the trial version only works with the Fixed Asset codes, just giving you a taste of what the software can do!

2012: 04/23
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Add-Ons
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage Manager Password

Company Preferences -> Parameters

When you first install single user Sage 50 and Instant Accounts Plus and you get straight into the software with no security set up at all. If you wish to create alternative logon ID’s for different users however – even in a single user environment – then you have the choice in Company Preferences->Parameters to switch on Access Rights.

If you tick this box then you will then need to use the default Sage logon name when you log in, even if you have not set up individual user names. Every Sage 50 Accounts and Instant Accounts software has a default logon name of MANAGER with a blank password. This includes the demo data.

Sage 50 User List

The mistake many users make however is to set up user names for staff members with passwords associated with them, but never actually change the MANAGER password to something secure. It also needs to be a memorable password – as you may not use it very often – but selected tasks can ONLY be done from the MANAGER logon – such as the Delete user button on the new View User List page in Sage 50 Accounts 2012. This allows you to remove users from the user list who are no longer logged in to Sage as their computer has crashed or network stopped working. (This replaces the method of deleting the queue.dta file in older versions of Sage).

The option for changing the password is the Settings Menu, but you should make sure you use something you will never forget as retrieving the manager password is not an easy thing to do. For all other users however if they forget their passwords then the MANAGER logon can view these in the Settings->Access Rights area of the program. Even users given Full Access cannot view this when logged in.

So the moral of this blog post is change your Sage MANAGER password to aid security, but don’t forget it as you may need it some day!

For more useful Sage Instant and Sage 50 user tips then check out the Sage Tips tag on this blog.

2012: 03/12
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage Data Check – Budget is Negative

If you are using Sage correctly, you should be running regular Sage Data Checks each time you have been in the system doing any data entry – you are always prompted to do this check each time you close the software – and my previous post on Good Housekeeping in Sage Accounts explains why.

A common query from my clients who are in their 2nd or subsequent year of using Sage accounts is “why am I getting’ the Warning Budget is Negative’ when I do my Sage data check?”

As part of the year end routine you have the option of using your current year actual figures as budgets for your new year, and you can enter a percentage change to be applied globally to these figures at this time. This is not an option which can be skipped.

Sage Year End Options

If you had a negative balance in one of these accounts at the end of the year, which could be perfectly valid, then the budget will also become negative for the following year. This then results in the warning in the Sage Data Check.

If you do not use budgets and want to get rid of this warning, then you can go to the nominal ledger record for the relevant code and manually edit the budgets to zero.

If you have found this blog useful and would like to read other hints and tips for Sage users, then please take a look at other posts tagged with Sage Tips.

2012: 02/19
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage Instant Accounts 2012

What is Sage Instant Accounts?

Sage Instant Accounts is the UK’s most recommended accounts software. It’s simple to use with the right training, and designed to help you manage your money, including VAT, end of year accounts and invoicing and management reports, as quickly and easily as possible.

What’s new in Sage Instant Accounts 2012?

The latest version of Sage Instant Accounts is even more straightforward and easy to use, so businesses can spend more time focusing on their core business.

Here are some of the new features, and their benefits:

NEW - Lock Date

You can set a ‘lock date’, which means you’ll be warned or prevented from posting into periods where the month end has been run and accounts produced, so you are more likely to get your accounts right first time and will experience fewer date errors.

NEW - Quick Search

With the new quick search option, you have the ability to explore large data sets quickly as an alternative to building queries using the current approach. This means that you’ll save precious time and be more efficient when running simple searches from within a ledger. This has proved very popular in Sage 50 2012 since its release last August.

NEW - Quick Print

The new quick print option means you can set default layouts and printers for your invoices, quotations, sales orders and purchase orders. This way, you’ll know they’re always using the correct layouts, and you’re freed up to use your time productively on other business matters.

EASY to upgrade

Making the move to Sage Instant Accounts 2012 is simple. You can seamlessly transfer all of your settings, favourite links and report layouts, making the whole process straightforward and ensuring you can start from where you left off.

…

NOTE: You cannot install a separate copy of Sage Instant Accounts 2012 on the same PC as Sage 50 Accounts 2012. This is because Sage 50 Accounts 2012 and Sage Instant Accounts 2012 are created from the same code and, therefore, share the same version number.

For hints and tips on using Sage software, take a look at previous posts on the Silicon Bullet blog. For new software or upgrade prices, email alison.mead@siliconbullet.com.

2012: 02/06
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage Instant Accounts
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Sage – How to Manage your VAT part 2

Following on from Sage - How to manage your VAT part 1, here, as promised, is a guide to producing and submitting a VAT return in Sage 50 and Sage Instant Accounts.

I would always you recommend you take a backup of your Sage data before running the VAT return, as once you have hit that Reconcile button there is no going back.

Sage VAT Return

How to calculate your VAT return on Sage

To calculate your return for submission, click into the Company area and then on Manage VAT in the Tasks list at the top left. When you click on the VAT Return icon at the top, you are then faced with an image which looks very much like a VAT return. This asks you to enter the first and last date of the period in the top right. You then click on Calculate at the bottom left. Once calculated, a summary screen will be displayed that states how many transactions have been found for this VAT return, and you may be asked if you want to include unreconciled transactions from the previous period.

If you do your VAT and reconcile it every month then you should say YES to this question. These will normally be corrections or late entries made since you processed the last VAT return. If they are from the previous quarter, you can include them as long as they are not above a certain value. Take a look at the HMRC website for guidance if you are unsure about including these transactions in your return.

Checking and reconciling your VAT return

I always recommend you print the VAT return and the detailed list for your records, to keep in case you ever have a VAT inspection, and to visually check through for any incorrect entries. You can also save a PDF of the reports, which is useful if you need to email the details to someone else in your company. All the figures in this VAT return can also be clicked on and drilled down to the actual transactions if you wish to check any figures.

Once you are happy that the figures are correct, clicking on the Reconcile button will mark all the transactions as VAT reconciled (meaning they cannot be edited in file maintenance – and when you do a clear audit trail in future years they can be deleted). You can click on Close and then Don’t reconcile if you are not ready to go ahead yet and then repeat the above steps once any corrections have been made. Once Reconciled the VAT return will appear in the list with the Submission Status showing, if you have set up the system for e-VAT submissions.

VAT Transfer and EC Sales List

The step many people miss is the VAT Transfer step. This adjusts the current VAT being paid and reclaimed from the Sales and Purchase Tax Control Accounts into the VAT liability account, and should be processed on the last day of the VAT return period.

The EC Sales list is created using the next button along, which should match the figures in box 8 of your VAT return. Car Scale Charges can also be calculated here, as well as Reverse Charge Sales Lists, if relevant. Note that some of these options are only available in Sage 50 Accounts Plus or Accounts Professional.

Submitting your VAT return through Sage

VAT Return Receipt (Figures Removed)

You can submit the return electronically through Sage if you have set up the e-VAT submissions options in Settings ->Company Preferences ->VAT. Highlight the VAT return that needs submitting and click the button. You then need to confirm you have the permissions to submit and the Sage system sends the return securely via the government gateway. A receipt can be printed using the HMRC Receipt button at the top right, if you need to present this to the person who actually pays the bill. This will confirm when payment is required or if you are due a refund; if you have a Direct Debit set up the funds will be taken on the 11th of the month following the return due date. It is worth setting up a Direct Debit to ensure you never forget payment and the funds stay in your account for those extra few days.

Lastly, using the Payment button you can record the details of the bank transfer or direct debit used to pay the VAT.

As I stated in my previous post on Sage how to manage your VAT, you can highlight any previous VAT return and use the View button to see the details or reprint any reports.

Many people are rightly concerned about producing VAT returns, but using the tools provided in Sage they really are quite simple to produce, as long as you take care to enter your bookkeeping details accurately. If you do your own bookkeeping, producing the VAT return as easy as click, click, print, check, submit!

For more practical tips on using Sage 50 and Sage Instant accounts take a look at the Sage Tips tag on the Silicon Bullet Blog.

2012: 01/23
CATEGORY: Sage
Sage 50
Sage Instant Accounts
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