Following the well-known paradigm that it is more profitable to generate business from existing customers than to find new ones, just how well do you know your various types of customers?

QuickBooks makes it easy for you to track the various types of customers which you do business with and also create targeted lists using that information. It all starts with the use of the "Customer Type" field that is found in the customer file.

To locate the "Customer Type" field, find any customer in your customer list and double-click on their name. Then click on the "Additional Info" tab. Here you will find the "Customer Type" field. The data within your field may currently be blank, but it is easy to create new choices as you work. Simply click on the upside down arrow in this field, then click on the words "Add New".

You would want to add entries in this list that are unique to the various groups of customers you work with. For example, a landscaper would consider using types of residential and commercial as choices in this list. A retailer could use types of internet customer, walk in customer, referred by a friend, and other choices in their customer type list.

Don't worry - it is possible to add to this list as the business grows. You can simply click on "add new" any time you think it makes sense to create a new type of customer.

Know this though - there is no way to "mass change" a group of customers from one type to another in QuickBooks. You would have to change them one at a time, so give some thought to the various types of customers you work with before plunging in.

Here is the best part! - once you have added a customer type to your customers, you can then create various reports that show just one or several types with a quick report modification. In the example of the landscaper above, he could click Reports, then Lists, then Customer Contact List to create his base customer list report. If he wanted to see only residential customers from there, he would click on Modify Report > Filters > Customer Type and choose Residential. The resulting report will then only show Residential customers so that you can use it for various purposes, including very targeted marketing of products and services!

My next QuickBooks users group meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 19th at the Radisson Hotel in Eastlake. Here is the exciting slate of topics for this upcoming session:

• Stop Going to the Bank to Make Deposits! - See and learn about a great new banking tool called "remote capture" and how it can simplify and streamline your daily workflow. Stop wasting time standing in line at the bank and deposit your checks electronically!
• Customers and Vendors: A to Z - Use your customer and vendor lists with complete confidence! Take advantage of features you are most likely missing! Understand how to segment your customers by type, use price levels to simplify invoicing, use custom fields, manage aliases to keep your lists manageable, use and track job information, customize the view of your lists, use notes, reminders and to-dos, and how 1099s are created in QuickBooks.
• The Care and Feeding of Your QuickBooks File - Don't be confused any longer about the critical importance of using the verify and rebuild utilities as well as the "clean up company data" (formerly known as archive) function to keep your QuickBooks file as clean and fast as it can be!
• QuickBooks Add-On Software of Interest - A review of several very useful applications that may benefit your business.
• Question and Answer Session - What's on your mind?

Our last user group meeting had some terrific questions and insights. Don't miss out on this opportunity to get critical insight into YOUR QuickBooks investment!

The Profit and Loss Standard report is a good one, but it only gives you the perspective of one period (i.e. usually a month). What about getting not only the monthly results but those for the entire year-to-date as well?

That perspective is exactly what the Profit and Loss YTD report provides to you. Conveniently presented in side-by-side format, this report shows both the monthly and the yearly totals. From here, you can easily see how the "year is shaping up" both from a sales perspective, but also see if there are any costs or expenses that are out of whack or that need some additional review.

It's easy to access this report - just click on your Report Center, then Company and Financial, then Profit and Loss YTD!

Q: Is there an easy way to close all my open windows in QuickBooks at one time? I find that I end up with a lot of them open

A: If you find yourself in this predicament and have opened up many windows in QuickBooks (some of which you might not have even realized), it is very easy to close them quickly rather than one at a time. Just click on Window in the menu bar, then Close All. That's it! If any open window is in the middle of recording a transaction, you will be prompted to save or cancel it prior to the window closing. Window > Close All is a huge timesaver AND it helps keep your QuickBooks running smoothly by not having too many windows open.

QuickBooks Online Backup is the perfect solution to simplify your data backup!

The new QuickBooks Online Backup service now offers two sizes of digital storage vaults for not just your QuickBooks data, but other critical files (think Word documents, Excel sheets, PowerPoints, etc.) as well.

The pricing for these vaults is as follows:

• 1 GB vault = $49.95 per year
• 10 GB vault = $149.95 per year


With deals like these, there isn't any reason for you NOT to have a solid data backup solution in place for your business.

My clients that have opted to use this service have been very, very happy with the ease of setup and use. They no longer have to fiddle around with CDs, flash drives or any other problematic backup - this service does it automatically for them.

If fact, I had a client tell me yesterday that this was one of the best decisions she made in relation to simplifying the daily work in her office!

Bookkeeping blunders are a fact of life in many small businesses today. But they don't have to be in yours!

Get a copy of "Your Bookkeeping Stinks" today, and pick up valuable tips on how to avoid 21 common bookkeeping problems. Your boss will thank you!

Get your own copy of "Your Bookkeeping Stinks!" in PDF or print format today!

During May, visit with Scott at the:

• Willoughby Area Chamber of Commerce Business Expo - Wednesday, May 9th from 10am until 2pm. Stop by to visit and attend free sessions on "Putting Your Business on eBay" and "Marketing Tips for Your Business". Held at the Willoughby Hills Community Center.
• Mentor Library - Monday, May 14th from 6- 8pm. He will be joining forces with Dick Rutkoski from SCORE and making a presentation on the benefits of SCORE and QuickBooks for small businesses.

The "QuickBooks: News You Can Use" newsletter is written and distributed monthly by Scott Gregory. Scott is a:

• QuickBooks Specialist
• CPA
• Technology Consultant
• Charter Member of QuickBooks Enterprise Solution Provider Program
• Member, Intuit Speakers Bureau

Scott is also the president of Bond Technology, a firm that specializes in helping small businesses use QuickBooks effectively and profitably. Feel free to drop Scott an e-mail if you'd like to learn more about the services his company can provide.

QuickBooks is a registered trademark of Intuit. Bond Technology is not affiliated with Intuit in any way.

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