Clear Books surveyed their community of accountants to ask what tips they use to save time and get more done. Read what they had to say in this insightful infographic.

1. Top time saving techniques
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In today’s busy world every second counts, and at Clear Books we
want to provide you with all the business applications you need to
make running your business as time-efficient as possible.
We also know that our customers have a huge amount of knowledge in running a business, so
we conducted some research within the Clear Books community to find out what tips and
tricks you use to make the most of your time...
Embrace the cloud
Utilising cloud software means there's no time wasted
provisioning software, hardware, etc. One device + one internet
connection = a whole rack of equipment pre-cloud. Cloud
software also means you can save all your files (documents,
spreadsheets, photos) in one place and access what you need
from any device.
Go mobile
Being able to do those 'two minute' tasks on your iPhone or
iPad when not in the office can be crucial. The Clear Books
mobile app allows you to take a photo of a receipt on your
phone and attach it to an expense claim, meaning there’s one
less thing to remember when you’re back in the office.
Limit email checking
If you’re the type of person who can’t help but check emails,
this can sometimes distract from other tasks. Try limiting
yourself to checking once in the morning, once in the afternoon
and if you're really dedicated, once in the evening! If the
temptation still gets too much, services such as Email Ninja Kit
(http://clr.bo/email-ninja) can help remove clutter and stem the
constant distraction of notifications.
Create templates
If you repeatedly find yourself writing the same email to
different customers, take a moment to create one definitive
template and then just tweak the details as needed. As one of
our clients says, ‘Customers always get standard, professional
emails — and it saves a lot of time!’
Go automatic
Technology is evolving to create more and more shortcuts but
sometimes it’s hard to keep track of what’s new. It’s worth
taking a small amount of time now to research features in your
most-used tools which will save you time later - e.g. in Clear
Books Accounts you’ll find automatic payment reminders,
automated bank feeds and recurring invoices. This TED Talk
(http://clr.bo/time-saving-talk) contains more time-saving tech
tips.
Use a text expander app
Apps such as Breevy (http://clr.bo/breevy) allow you to store
certain long-winded yet frequently used words or phrases as
shorter code. For example instead of manually typing out a
client name containing accents every time, replace it with a set
abbreviation and... voilà.
Eliminate paper
Keeping things digital is not only good for the environment but
also for time management. Tips such as insisting suppliers
submit invoices via PDF, and using Clear Books to issue
paperless bills, quotes and invoices are guaranteed to make life
simpler. Take a look at Wunderlist (http://clr.bo/wunderlist),
where you can create all types of handy digital lists.
Think elephant
When a task is looming it often seems easier to put it off. But
this only enhances the sense of dread as the deadline draws
near and time runs out. One customer recommends tackling
these tasks as though you were eating an elephant. Rather than
being overwhelmed by its size, break it down into ‘elephant
chunks’ and take one bite at a time. This makes for a calmer,
more focused and time-efficient approach to any ‘mammoth’
task.
Let us know if you've got more tips to add to the list and if
any of the above works for you!
www.clearbooks.co.uk
Online software for small businesses