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E Commerce Accounting 1.0- A must read

October 24, 2019by Sanjeev Archak Sanjeev Archak 1 Comment

SME Website Increasing Potential of Indonesia

The internet is fueling the world economy. India is no exception. An enormous population, increasing smart phone penetration and cheap data rates make India a prime market for any e-commerce business. A report by Business Today states that Indian e-commerce business has reached $38.5 billion. But before you start up you need to figure out a business model,buy a software platform, have a logistics partner, have a sales & marketing plan. However, do not forget to have an accounting plan in place. A online venture is a challenge to an accountant and the founder. E-Commerce Accounting 1.0 is the prep lesson before you hit the ground running.

Choose an E-Commerce Platform

It all starts from having a tool for handling your entire online business. A e-commerce platform will enable you to:

build your website
catalog your products
handle orders/invoicing
connect with payment gateways
manage your inventory

Some of the popular tools are Shopify, Magneto & Zoho Commerce. These tools will help you set up an online store quickly with least effort.These tools have to integrate with books of accounts for recording sales, purchase transactions. We recommend Zoho Commerce for the automatic integration with Zoho Books. This integration will save critical man hours.

Payment Gateways

A majority of your customers will pay you online. Your customers will make payments for purchases via a payment gateway. Your bank accounts will have to be integrated with payment gateways. There are multiple payment gateways to choose from like Razor Pay, PayU & PayPal. These gateways charge anywhere between 1.5% to 5% of the payment received as gateway charges. Further, they do not transfer amounts received instantly to the bank account. There is lag of 2-3 days before amounts are credited.

Moreover, a reconciliation has to be done between the invoices raised and cash received from the payment gateway. Your books of accounts must automate, partly if not fully, this process.

Manage Inventory

If you hold inventory, then opt for an inventory management tool. Always remember that unsold inventory blocks cash. Therefore, an inventory tool will give you an insight into fast,slow and non moving items. It makes sense to sell only fast moving items and stock slow moving only when there is a demand.For instance, offering discounts on slow moving items can unblock cash. Zoho Inventory allows you manage the entire process from procurement to sale seamlessly. Re-order level can be set for all items of inventory. This will prevent you from selling items that you don’t have.

Handling Product Returns, Credits & Discounts

E-commerce business thrives on discounts, cash backs & other credits. All of these have a financial impact. Seamless integration between the e-commerce store and accounts will help. As the number of transactions rise, discounts and returns are bound to increase. An accountant must be fed this information for tracking numbers. Financial insights from books of accounts can be used to calibrate business strategies. You can read our post on retail metrics here

Managing Logistics

This is the “last mile” for an online business. The most critical part of the business is on time delivery. Delivery deadlines have to be met and measured as a KPI. Indians still prefer Cash on Delivery, which means the delivery partners have to collect cash as well. Secondly, the cash has to be deposited into your bank account. Typically, there is a 2 week gap between collection & deposit of cash. In other words, your logistics partner becomes your debtor as well.

An accounting software must support integrations with logistics partners. This is a must as cash is involved.

Comply with GST Rules

In addition to the above, you must abide by GST regulations. GST in India is complicated. Different rates of taxes apply to:

sales between the states
sales within the state
export sales
warranties
additional services tied to product sales

Therefore, all the tools of your business must combine to meet this regulation. For example Shopify or Zoho Commerce must apply GST rates based on the customer location. Further, inventory tool must apply GST on warehouse transfers. Similarly,materials sent out for job work must also be addressed. As transactions increase GST filing must get automated as well.

Final Thoughts

This post is the result of handling clients in the e-commerce space. Integra Books uses and implements all the Zoho products mentioned in this post. The benefits of technology and automation can transform your business. Let Integra Books assist your online business. Get in touch!

Cash Basis Accounting vs. Accrual Accounting

October 15, 2019by Sanjeev Archak Sanjeev Archak No Comments

In our previous post we have touched upon how to make your accounting effective. In this post we will explore ” Cash Basis Accounting vs Accrual Accounting” in detail.

The difference between cash and accrual accounting lies in the timing of when sales and purchases are recorded in your accounts.Cash accounting recognizes revenue and expenses only when money changes hands, but accrual accounting recognizes revenue when it’s earned, and expenses when they’re billed (but not paid).

Cash Basis of Accounting

Cash basis is simplest method of accounting.Revenues and expenses are accounted when they are paid.Consequently, this method does not recognize accounts receivable or payable.

This method is best suited for small businesses as it is easy to determine when the transaction has occurred.Moreover, there is no need to track receivables or payables. One has to look at the bank balances to understand the money available.

Accrual basis accounting

Accrual accounting is a method of accounting where revenues and expenses are recorded when they are earned, regardless of when the money is actually received or paid. Revenue is recorded when the delivery of the product or service is complete, rather than waiting for payment.

Accrual method is an improvement over the cash method of accounting. This provides a realistic, long term view of the business finances. A possible downside is is that accrual accounting doesn’t provide any awareness of cash flow; a business can appear to be very profitable while in reality it has empty bank accounts.Accrual basis accounting without careful monitoring of cash flow can have potentially devastating consequences.

The effect on cash flow

The method of accounting has an impact on the cash flow. Let’s look at an example of how cash and accrual accounting affect the bottom line differently.

Imagine you perform the following transactions in a month of business:

Sent out an invoice for Rs 5,000 for service completed this month
Received a bill for Rs 1,000 in developer fees for work done this month
Paid Rs 75 for a bill received last month
Received Rs 1,000 from a client for a project that was invoiced last month

The effect on cash flow

Using the cash basis method, the profit for this month would be Rs 925 (Rs 1,000 minus Rs 25)
Using the accrual method, the profit for this month would be Rs 4,000 (Rs 5,000 minus Rs 1,000)

Which method to Choose?

The Income Tax Act in India allows non corporate entities to maintain books of accounts under cash basis. Non corporate entities in India may include an individual, a proprietary concern, a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), a partnership firm, a LLP, a trust, etc.A corporate entity viz public & private limited companies, LLP’s are required to maintain the books of accounts only under accrual basis.

A change in the method of accounting has to be stated in the income tax returns filed every year.

Get to Know About the Penalty for Late Filing of Service Tax Return [And More]

November 13, 2017by Sanjeev Archak Sanjeev Archak 2 Comments

Every service provider in India is aware of service tax and many have at some point dealt with a penalty for late filing of service tax return. For those who are not aware, service tax is an indirect tax that is levied on the services provided by any service provider. Consumers are responsible for paying this service tax which is included in the invoice, and service providers are responsible for collecting it and paying it through the service tax return.

Significance Of Having a Financial Plan For Your Business

July 14, 2017by Sanjeev Archak Sanjeev Archak No Comments

You have always dreamt of starting a business of your own and finally, you got the right business idea which you are very enthusiastic and pumped up about. What’s the next step after this? What do all successful entrepreneurs have in common that makes them turn their small startup businesses into multi-million dollar companies? Well, one common advice that all these entrepreneurs would suggest is to have a sound financial plan for your business.

Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.