Ditched Quickbooks Pro for time & billing — using TimeSolv happily!

Posted by: “Marilynn Mika Spencer” mikaspencer@labornet.org mikaspencer

Mon Jan 16, 2012 2:25 pm (PST)

I used Quickbooks Pro from about 1993 to 2011. I was a Beta tester for about seven or eight of those years, maybe more. For all those years, I wanted a slew of features QBP didn’t offer. I must have sent in over 20 separate requests for a timer, the option to charge different clients different hourly fees, charge different timekeepers at different rates, a way to show trust activity on statements, have multiple timekeepers, and more. Sometimes I was told these were “great ideas” or “in development.” In 2011, I switched to Quickbooks Online. This was after several in-depth phone calls with customer service from which I understood some of the features I wanted would be available. Wrong! After 18 years, QB was just as featureless, inelegant and clunky as it was in 1993. I finally decided to dump Quickbooks altogether.

Late last year, I tested a number of billing programs. I decided to try Timesolv after testing it for about a month. www.TimeSolv.com. What a fabulous improvement! All the features I lusted after are there. It’s an on-line program, which I had been resistant to for security reasons . . . evidently I’ve gotten used to the idea of it. With the on-line availability, my bookkeeper can access whatever I’ve given her access to and generate invoices and statements from home. She can troubleshoot without having to traipse over to my office, which makes the turnaround timemuch shorter.

The learning curve isn’t steep, and the company is highly responsive, patient, and genuinely interested in helping it’s customers get the most from the application. Maintenance and tech support is included in the monthly price. I paid for two years in advance to get a better price, My QBP customers, balances, accounts, etc. uploaded seamlessly into TimeSolv. I’m still stuck with QB for general ledger, and Timesolv downloads into QB without trouble.

The multiple timers is a great feature and it helps me track not just my billable time, but also administration, bar association activity, etc. And my villa les have increased by about 25 per cent — no kidding. I had no idea how much time I was failing to capture without timers.

I’m a happy camper.

Marilynn Mika Spencer
2727 Camino del Rio South, Suite 140
San Diego, CA 91942
(619) 233-11313

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On January 16, 2012, in observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, TimeSolv Support will be closed.  Normal support hours will resume on Tuesday, January 17, 2012.  For urgent issues,  please feel free to send email to support@timesolv.com.

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In order to provide improved customer service, we have implemented a new phone system.  Please note that the toll free number has been changed to 800-715-1284.  It is listed on our website also.

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Intuit will stop offering both Time Tracker and QuickBooks Time & Billing effective December 1, 2011.  Please consider TimeSolv solutions as a replacement.  TimeSolv Corporation provide easy to use and affordable time tracking and billing solutions that seamlessly integrates with QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online versions.

To learn more about TimeSolv solutions, please visit http://www.timesolv.com/

It may be that Intuit is discontinuing Time Tracker and QuickBooks Time & Billing after receiving unfavorable feedback from the customer base or they are consolidating their product line.

Ref:  http://http-download.intuit.com/http.intuit/CMO/SAASHelp/timebilling/sunset/disco.html

Work Time Discontinuation Notice

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Work in Progress (WIP) on Accounts Receivables Report

• Firms need to know how much a client owes include unbilled time and expenses.  Now you have the option to include WIP in the Accounts receivables report.

Smarter Bill Deliver Method – Only show email option if there is an email address on the draft invoice

• Billing admins were frustrated to see that an invoice cannot be emailed after they tried to send a batch of bills. They had to click on the draft invoice to find that the client contact on the draft invoice is missing email address.  Now, if the email address is missing, delivery by email is not visible.  This enables the users to fix the draft if they decide to send it by email.

Invoices – not show credit as negative balance due

• Based on customer feedback, instead of showing credit as a new balance due, it now shows as a positive number as Credit Due to Client.

Payment allocation to matter only

• TimeSolv allows for payments or trust deposits available for one matter to be allocated to another matter.  Now you have the option to allocate payments to only the same matter that was selected to deposit the payment.

Invoices – show blanks instead of zeros for hours and rates

• To make the invoices easier to read, now zero rates and hours are shown as blanks.

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TimeSolv now provides custom categories for clients, matters or timekeepers for filtering all reports.  This feature was previously only available for time cards and expense cards reports.

For example, you have three types of clients or matters, Divorce, Wills, and Child Custody.  You can create client or matter categories under Advanced Setup and apply the categories to clients and matters.

Benefit

Create reports for specific group of clients, matters, or timekeepers.

How to apply categories to Clients and Matters

1-      Go to Administration, Advanced Setup tab, Client and Matter Categories.

2-      Enter Category Title, Practice Area, and save.

3-      Enter Category Names, Divorce, same in Description, and save.  Repeat for other categories.

4-      Click on Clients and Matters; check off Bulk Edit Mode, select category for each client and matter.  Note that client category would be inherited automatically by new matters.  For existing matters, you will have to select a category manually.

How to use Client and Matter categories to filter reports

Go to reports, select any report that has a client or matter as data filter.  For example on time cards report, select the Practice Area as Divorce to filter time cards for matters categorized as Divorce.

How to apply categories to timekeepers

1-      Go to Administration, Advanced Setup tab, Timekeeper Categories.

2-      Enter Category Title, Specialization, and save.

3-      Enter Category Names, Litigator, same in Description, and save.  Repeat for other categories.

4-      If needed, you can also enter a second custom category.  For example you can enter second category to be Timekeeper Type.

5-      Enter Category Names, Partner, same in Description, and save.  Repeat for other categories such as Associate, Paralegal, etc.

How to use Timekeeper categories to filter reports

Go to reports, select any report that has a timekeeper as data filter.  For example on time cards report, select the Specialization as Litigator and Timekeeper Type as Partner to filter time cards.

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Great news.  Per our prior post, TimeSolv Engineering has deployed the following updates to increase usability of Trust Accounting.

• A convenient option to know how much needs to be transferred to the operating account
  • An Allocate link has been added next to the balances in trust account.  Allocate link only shows up if there are invoices to be paid from available funds in a trust account.  Please note that previously users had to transfer and allocate one payment at a time and not the total balance in trust.  Allocate is same as moving funds from trust account to operating account.

• Easy to see balances available by client
  • Two options are now added:  1- “Balances Only” to quickly Allocate funds from trust account to invoices.  2- “Grouped by Client” to see transactions by client with their Balances.

• Not allow for negative balances
  • Any transactions that cause the balance to go negative when fund are transferred out of the trust account are not allowed.

• View trust transactions in Client Transaction Log report
  • An option to include trust transactions is added on client transaction report.

What’s coming next

• An option to just see Allocateable payments.

Please contact TimeSolv support at support@timesolv.com if you need help.  We are happy to provide you the new updates to allow you to quickly allocate funds to invoices.

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TimeSolv would like to introduce you to TimeSolv QuickBooks Sync!  QB Sync has just been released as the NEW integration tool that enables you to quickly and easily transfer data between TimeSolv and QuickBooks Desktop and Online, at NO CHARGE!

Take a look at what can be synced!

TimeSolv QuickBooks Sync

To learn more about TimeSolv QB Sync, please see the instructional videos http://timesolv.com/billing-knowledge-manager/questions/8/TimeSolv+QB+Sync

Please contact support@timesolv.com if you have any questions or need further information.

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We have received several customers’ unhappy comments on usability of the latest update to trust accounting.  Since we are dedicated to keeping you happy, we have developed an expedited plan to address their issues.  We are planning to have the following update early next week.

• Need a convenient option to know how much needs to be transferred to the operating account

• Potential Resolution:  Provide an option similar to Allocate and an Allocatable filter on the payments tab to transfer to operating account while paying invoices.

• Easy to see balances available by client

• Potential Resolution:  Provide an option to just show balances by client and matter

• Not allow for negative balances

• Resolution:  Not allow for the balance to go negative when fund are transferred out of the trust account

• View trust transactions in Client Transaction Log

• Resolution:  Provide an option to include trust transactions on client transaction report

What to do until these issues are resolved

• How much to transfer and how to Allocate
  • Run the accounts receivables report to see amount due and compare it to the balance available in trust for each client either on screen or by running the Trust Bank Accounts report.  Transfer the lesser of the two amounts.
  • Allocation is done the same way as before on the payments tab.

Please contact TimeSolv support at support@timesolv.com if you need help.  We are extremely sorry for any inconvenience.

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We are pleased to announce that based on customer feedback, we have redesigned the Trust Accounting area in TimeSolv Legal.  The main objective is to make trust accounting more intuitive and similar to transactions in a bank account.

Enhancements to Trust Accounting will:

• Manage trust accounts separate from the operating account.  There is a new tab for Trust accounts under Invoices and Payments.
• Funds will be deposited and withdrawn from the trust account just like a bank account .
• Funds will be transferred from trust to operating account to pay for invoices using a single transaction.  Previously, funds were allocated from trust accounts to invoices one transaction at a time.
• All trust transactions will be viewable in one place.
• Funds will be disbursed up to the client’s trust balance in an easier fashion.

You may watch a video to learn more about the new Trust accounting at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81sEzn0aODM

Please contact TimeSolv support at support@timesolv.com if you need help.

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