How Xero's Projects Feature Benefits Your Business - Key Features

Business finance management can be a really daunting and stressful task. It involves keeping track of invoices, expenses, project workloads, and much more. This makes it hard for businesses with limited resources to manage piles of invoices or make sense of confusing spreadsheets.

This is where Xero software comes into the picture. You can think of Xero as your smart accounting and project management assistant who knows what you need. Xero is the most popular choice for accounting software in over 180 countries where it helps them handle professional invoices, keep track of banking transactions, and create extensive reports to help guide their business decisions.      

If you are wondering what is Xero accounting and how it can enhance your business performance, this blog is all you need. Keep reading to learn how you can use Xero and its features to improve your accounting processes and enhance overall business efficiency.

• What is Xero?
• Basic Xero Overview
• Why is Xero Better Than the Other Accounting Softwares?
• Top Features in Xero
• Xero Features That Improve Business
• Unique Features in Xero
• Business Use Cases of Xero
• How Xero’s Features Improve Different Business Use Cases
• Frequently Asked Question

What is Xero?

Xero is an easy-to-use cloud-based accounting software that small to medium-sized businesses can use to manage their finances better. This software solution is linked directly to your bank account and credit cards of your business which allows for the tracking and recording of all bank transactions.

The Xero accounting system gives you key data regarding your expenses, income, and budgeting which allows you to make informed business decisions.

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Basic Xero Overview

Xero is a cloud-based accounting software that aids small businesses in key tasks like cash flow management, invoices, inventory, payrolls, and bank reconciliation. Using this tool, businesses can have a real-time view of their financial statements which allows them to use a more proactive approach for project management.

The basic functionalities and capabilities of Xero include bill payments, project tracking, financial reporting, analytics, and data storage.

Why is Xero Better Than the Other Accounting Softwares?

Every business aims to save time and enhance profitability and the Xero software is built to do exactly that. It gives small businesses an affordable but effective solution for time and job cost tracking without having to work through complex spreadsheets.

Businesses who find most project management tools ineffective and extremely difficult can use Xero’s Project feature. This feature is available within the general Xero accounting software. With this feature of Xero, you get core financial accounting services along with end-to-end job management solutions.

The accurate tracking and reporting of the time and money spent on the project by Xero allows you to handle invoices better and make informed decisions regarding the financials of the project.

Top Features in Xero

Xero and its features, especially Xero’s Projects, give businesses a low-cost and easy-to-implement solution to capture critical financial data. This allows for efficient costing and profitability tracking.

The following section covers some of the top features in Xero that have transformed businesses.

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Unique Features in Xero

Here are some unique features of Xero’ Project that make it the best project management solution

• It allows for budget and job cost monitoring.
• You can handle an unlimited number of projects.
• Assists with fixed price and time expenses invoicing.
• Allows for out-of-the-box reporting.
• It gives you a real-time view of all your projects in one place.
• It can assign your actual invoices, bank transactions, and bills.

Xero Features That Improve Business

Following are the main features of Xero that improve businesses significantly

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1. Cloud-based Accessibility

Xero offers cloud-based accessibility which allows businesses to manage their projects and finances from anywhere and using any device or network. This also enhances collaboration between the employees and the management.

2. Pricing Flexibility

Xero offers unmatched price flexibility where you can add any number of users without a significant cost increase. No matter which plan you get, you receive a free mobile app. You also have the full freedom to upgrade or downgrade at any time.

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3. Multi-Currency Support

Xero can handle payments in over 160 currencies which makes it ideal for businesses operating internationally.

4. Bank Reconciliation

Xero can sync with your bank account which allows you to import all your business transactions directly. This promotes an error-free payment reconciliation.

5. Inventory and Expense Tracking

Zero helps businesses with better inventory management by automatically populating orders and invoices.

Moreover, with Xero, you can better submit and reimburse expense claims. This tool allows you to review claims and identify expense patterns using analytics.

6. Analytics and Reporting

Xero implementation allows you to look at your key performance indicators. You can check analytics regarding your cash flow and financial health. It can also help you create customized and standard accounting reports.

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Business Use Cases of Xero

Xero’s features benefit so many industries that deal in professional services. Construction, manufacturing, retail, e-commerce, marketing companies, consultancies, and healthcare sectors are just a few examples where this tool can reduce administrative burden by offering automated expense tracking, billing, financial documentation, etc.

Businesses across the globe are using this tool for tasks like project cost estimation, creating accurate quotes, time tracking, and viewing job progress and profitability.

How Xero’s Features Improve Different Business Use Cases

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Here is how Xero’s Project feature improves businesses around the globe

• It helps with payroll management tasks like pay calculation, reimbursement management, benefit plan administration, etc.
• It gives valuable information regarding performance or ROI using dashboards, custom reports, and standard reports.
• Businesses use it to handle inventory management tasks like inventory tracking, automatic reordering, and location management.
• These features also improve general ledger and configurable accounting tasks like cash management, bank reconciliation, expense management, and time tracking.
• Xero’s Projects feature also help businesses with regulatory compliance and electronic tax filing.

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Conclusion

You can find a number of cloud-based accounting software in the market but very few of these are effective for small businesses. Most of these tools have limited features and their costs are very high.

With Xero, you can get full control over your financial accounts and project costs which reduces management burden to a great extent. Xero’s wealth of features gives businesses easy-to-implement and low-cost financial tracking, reporting, and management solutions which can help them make effective and low-risk financial decisions.

Frequently Asked Question

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1. Is Xero expensive?

Compared to other market-leading software like Sage 50 and Quickbooks, Xero costs you more but its features and ease of use save you more in the long run.

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2. Is Xero cloud-based?

Xero stores all of your financial data and transaction records on the cloud which gives you extra security and reliability.

3. How much time does it take to set up Xero?

Based on the size of your business and the complexity of your needs it can take from half a day to a week or two to set up Xero.

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4. Why is Xero preferred over the rest?

Xero offers seamless integration, enhances security, affordability, and business-specific accounting solutions which makes it better than other accounting programs.

5. Do you help with the Xero setup process?

Our Xero-certified bookkeepers can help set up your Xero accounting software and customize it to your business and project needs. They can help you utilize Xero features completely to manage your financial transactions from any location.

Visit Alpha Pro Partners to get the best Xero accounting solutions for your business to better manage your finances.

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