Today, technology has proliferated into our lives like never before and has rapidly transformed the way how we and the businesses around us operate. It has simplified the most complex processes and business models, and helped businesses not only transform themselves but also scale their operations like never before. Now, we’re witnessing how technology is transforming spa and salon businesses. Present day spas do not just rely on a spa accounting software that is functional, instead they need accounting software that is intuitive, intelligent and powerful to drive the businesses for years to come. Essentially it should become your spa’s personal assistant such that by leveraging the spa accounting software benefits, you and your team lives become easier.

While the purpose of every spa accounting software is to automate daily operations, expedite the process flow and reduce costs, one must also bear in mind that no two software are same. Each product has its own core idea and unique features and therefore the task of selecting the right spa accounting software can be quite frustrating.  Thankfully, we have done the leg work for you and created this list of must have features. 

Integration with POS System

The first and foremost feature in a spa accounting software should be its ability to seamlessly work with a POS system. Do not confuse yourself between the accounting software and the POS software. They are as different as chalk and cheese. The POS system is designed merely to create, edit and print invoices and accept payment through multiple payment methods such as cards, wallets, and other non-contact methods.  On the other hand, the purpose of the accounting software is purely financial. The spa accounting software is supposed to make the relevant debit and credit entries.  In other words it is your business’s book keeper. Its purpose is to keep records of all receivables, payables, including promotional expenses and statutory taxes. Considering the vital role of the spa accounting software, it is important that it should seamlessly work with the POS system such that as soon as the transaction occurs, the accounting software not only captures it but also creates the relevant accounting entries. 

Inventory Management

This one can directly impact your bottom line and play a direct role in keeping your finances in black or red. Have too little of inventory and you risk losing business and revenue. Have excess of it and you block crucial working capital, and add the finance cost to it. A top tier spa accounting software will be limited to making accounting entries merely for your books, instead it will also make the accounting entries for your sales (retail and services). It will track the consumption of your inputs, and based on the lead times prompt you to re-order the same thus preventing your spa from being under stocked or over supplied. Ranking amongst the top 5 spa accounting software benefits, the inventory management feature also ensures that there are no losses due to theft or pilferage. 

Data Security

With the advancement of technology, the cases of digital thefts have also proliferated. As your spa accounting software will work in handshake mode with other software, particularly the POS system, and other third party applications it is very important that the system works on a fully secure ecosystem. The slightest hacking or theft of your accounting data means that you empower your competition to know how your business is operating and performing. The spa accounting software by logic should have highly controlled access. Certain spa accounting software such as the one from Zenoti has multi-tiered data security. We love the fact that Zenoti spa accounting software allows for role based data access. Furthermore, it also comes with the state of art feature known as geo fencing, which ensures that no data shall be lost due to employee fraud or theft. The geo-fencing feature creates a virtual fence around your store. As soon as the employee moves out of that virtual fence area, he or she can no longer access the data.  

Scalability

With the main aim of every business being growth, it is imperative that the technology that you choose must be able to support that growth without glitches. Whether it is migration of data from one source to other or handle increased volume of data due to growing number of outlets, the spa accounting software should seamlessly be able to handle it all. The system should be robust and well-designed enough to be the backbone of your multi store business chain, while being flexible enough to give you financial reports on individual stores. 

Financial Reporting 

As mentioned earlier a spa accounting software is purely financial tool. While it is designed to capture all the payment and expense data, its role is much more that merely being your accountant. It is the tool that will help you comprehend your finances and based on your selected time period frequency, compute your numbers to give you the clear picture of your cash flow situation. Some of the spa accounting software come with the dashboard feature which gives you all the information in the form a ready reckoner snap shot. Whether you run a single store or a chain of stores, these dash board can be configured to give you a comprehensive picture of your overall business, along with the granular data from specific stores. In other words, your spa accounting software should assist you in making data driven decisions.

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