There is so much buzz about ‘being in the cloud’ and getting your business online, but what does it actually mean? How does it relate to accounting? Is it relevant for me? What should I do?
These are all questions which I have been asked recently, so here’s the bottom line. The cloud is good. Every business should have it, the sooner the better. It’s going to save you money, and time, and that ticks the boxes in my book, and I’m sure in yours too.
So here’s the thing. This blog is going to give you the lowdown. What it is, why you need it, and what it means practically. I’m going to make it really easy for you to see that it isn’t as confusing as you might think that it is.
First things first, what on earth is it?
Essentially, anything that is in the cloud means that it is stored online. You probably already have things stored in the cloud without even knowing about it. Do you use Dropbox, for example? Hotmail? These are examples of applications which use the cloud. You’ll recognise them by the fact that you can log in anywhere to access the information. Take any computer, tablet, mobile, and as long as you have an internet connection, you typically enter a username and password and, woo hoo! There are your emails, files, documents etc.
When it comes to accounting, what we mean by the cloud is essentially storing your accounts online, and using software to log all this information. At Striped Leopard, we use a system called Xero. The beauty of this, and other similar systems is that it links to your bank accounts, making the logging of your accounts SO much easier!
You and I can both access the system, so we can see in real-time what’s coming in and what’s going out. It makes it easier to help you keep control of your finances, helps with tracking cash flow, forecasting, all good practices you should be doing so that you are clear on what you need to do to meet your business goals.
And let’s face it, the easier it is to do that, the more likely you’re going to do it, right?
In addition, there are also lots of very funky features, so you can invoice clients through it, set up reminders to contact clients if their invoices are overdue (so you don’t have to) and there are even facilities where you can collect payments from clients (like a Direct Debit). And it all links up together, automatically tracking, collating, calculating etc. Anything to make our lives easier!!
Plus it’s safer for you. If your laptop or computer goes kaput, you can still access everything. You don’t need to come to a complete standstill. It’s all still there. This is a huge blessing in disguise. If you have ever been in that situation and lost everything, you know how devastating it can be. So anything that prevents that works for me!

It’s also a LOT more secure. Having your files and documents in the cloud means you are less likely to suffer from cyber attacks. If a criminal manages to access your device, your data is protected. If your device is infected, then it can be taken offline, repaired, and the data is still there when you go online again. That’s the beauty.

It gives you more freedom, you can work on the move. Access your data in real-time, giving you full control over your files, accounts and your business. It saves you time, you don’t have to input figures upon figures, or your accountant or bookkeeper doesn’t have to, saving them time, and you money.
So there it is. A win win situation. That’s the cloud. See, it’s not so bad, right? So when we talk about getting you online, it just means logging on to some software to store your files. That’s it. Safer, cheaper, and gives you more time.
So what are you waiting for?
Get your head in the cloud and your business will benefit as a result.