ZipBooks provides a better than decent accounting software, and better yet, it’s free. For SMEs, it’s without a doubt the best software out there right now, given its functionality and price.
The ZipBooks iOS app was just announced—but is it worth downloading?
The answer is yes, but it comes with some qualifiers. I’ll share what makes the app so good, and some potential drawbacks to consider.
Advantages: Go-anywhere invoicing and complete business connectivity
Here’s a quick list of some cool features that connect you to your work:
Dashboard: The app dashboard allows you to instantly view your company’s billing & collections, revenue, customers and more.
Instant support: Just click “Support” in the “More” menu and the app automatically connects to your email account to send an email to ZipBooks, with the email address, subject and opening statement of the email already done for you.
Instantly send invoices: Sending an online invoice from a phone can be incredibly convenient in a variety of circumstances. For example, it allows ZipBooks users to instantly send on-site invoices if they do work away from the office.
Time Tracking: You can even track time on a project, right from your phone with a simple tap. The time will save to your project to be factored into your next invoice.
A couple more bonuses to consider
Picture receipt saving: Could there be a simpler way to keep track of expenses? Just take a picture of your receipt and save it to your accounting software through the app. This one’s a winner for me.
Quality invoices: Right from the palm of your hand, the invoice that you send is the same invoice as the web version of ZipBooks’ accounting software. With just a couple taps, it sends out to your customer with all the glory of a top-tier invoice that looks like it came from a fancy computer software.
Estimates: Depending on what business you are in, sending estimates is a must. The ZipBooks iPhone app has you covered there, as well.
Instant data transfer: The app automatically links to your online ZipBooks account, so any account activity will be immediately transferred. It’s seamless, and allows for instant work whenever and wherever you’re connected to the internet.
Finally, the biggest (and most unique) advantage
Invoice financing from a phone:
The ZipBooks iOS app is the only app that makes on-the-go invoice financing within your accounting software possible. That means you can get paid on an invoice within 1-2 business days regardless of where you are. When you compare this convenience with the common alternative, which is (1) working through a third party and (2) always having to work on a computer—this is an undeniable plus.
Disadvantage: The app can’t compete with ZipBooks’ computer software
There are some features that the app is lacking:
Adding taxes to an invoice: You simply can’t do this in the app, which is one of its greater imperfections, but you can still calculate the cost for tax manually and add it to the total.
No auto-import in iPhone app: When you create a new invoice in the web app version of ZipBooks, ZipBooks looks for an unbilled activity for that client and prompts you to import it. If you are hoping for that feature in the iPhone app, you are out of luck.
No recurring profile in iPhone app: The ZipBooks app allows you to setup recurring billing for your client where they pay the first invoice and then they are automatically billed at a regular interval and for the total frequency that you set.
Other missing intuitive features: Certain features are more intuitive in the computer version of the software than the app. For example, billing a new customer on the app isn’t allowed until you’ve added the customer’s information to your list, whereas on a computer you can add new customer information on the same page as the invoice. Easy fix? Build up your customer list first!
Last thoughts
It would take a combination of apps to compete with the features packed into this one app, and you simply won’t find anything else like it. It’s free, it’s advantages far outweigh its disadvantages, and for those who already use ZipBooks, it’s a no-brainer.
If you ask me, the app puts ZipBooks in the running of forward-thinking leaders in accounting, and I highly doubt any ZipBooks user will be disappointed with it.
