As a small business owner, you have enough to worry about without adding the stress of drowning in a sea of financial paperwork and receipts. Here are three ways you can get your financial documents organized so you can spend less time searching for what you need and more time running your business.

1-Cloud Based Folders

Organizing your financial documents in cloud-based folders is a great way to reduce paper clutter and make sure your important files are always backed up and available when you need them. You can create folders for different types of documents (bills, receipts, bank statements, etc.) and subfolders for specific projects or businesses. Once everything is sorted into its proper place, you can easily access any file you need with just a few clicks. And if you ever need to share a document with your accountant or bookkeeper, simply send them a link to the folder instead of having to dig through your piles of paper.

2-Attachments In Bookkeeping Program

If you use accounting or bookkeeping software like QuickBooks or Xero, attaching your financial documents to each transaction can help you stay organized while also making it easy to pull up documentation if you ever need to reference something later on. Simply scan or take a photo of each document and upload it into the software program. That way everything will be stored electronically in one place and you won’t have to worry about misplacing physical copies.

3-Paid Document Management Apps

There are also several paid document management apps available that offer features like OCR (optical character recognition) which can help you organize and search for documents more efficiently. Some popular options include Adobe Acrobat DC, Scandit Document Capture, and Hubdoc. While there is usually a fee associated with using these apps, the time and frustration they can save you is well worth the cost.

By taking some time to organize your financial documents, you can save yourself a lot of headaches down the road. Whether you opt for cloud-based folders, attaching files to your bookkeeping software, or using a paid document management app, taking a few extra steps now will pay off in the long run.