A few days ago, I encountered a small business owner speaking to a street vendor, trying to choose from about 5 different accounting software installation disks. The vendor was obviously not interested in helping the CEO make a choice.
Instead, he kept pushing for the man to buy as many disks as possible (at double the normal price), and then “go home to try out each one to make up your mind” – he said!
I was horrified, but had to keep my mouth shut after the vendor accused me of trying to “spoil business” for him.
The CEO went ahead and bought 2 of the disks (making the vendor look accusingly at me, as if to say I cost him the sales of the other 3) – but before leaving, he came up to me and asked “What did you mean when you said MS Excel can easily be automated to meet most of my needs as a small business user?“
I replied by telling him that the MS Excel he used on his laptop had many powerful features/functions in its spreadsheet engine, in addition to a Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) development interface that can be used to incorporate custom automation into the custom workbooks he creates.
I ended by noting that virtually anything is possible with MS Excel, in the hands of someone with the right know-how – and that he could either hire such a person, or LEARN to become that kind of person.
When he pressed for more information, I gave him the URL to my Excel Heaven blog – asking him to click the Excel-VB apps link on the site menu.
My work on the web has NEVER been an ego trip. Instead my focus has always been on adding value to as many members of my target audience as possible.
That’s why I never hesitate to feature 3rd party writeups on this blog that I feel will benefit my readers/subscribers.
For instance, in line with the theme of the story I just shared above, below is a preview ending with a URL to an article by an ExcelVB solutions provider, that highlights powerful features of MS Excel one can leverage to create superior custom solutions to many conventional accounting software.
Title: [RECOMMENDED] 8 Reasons Excel is Better Than “Off-The-Shelf” Accounting Software
Preview: According to various sources one of the major competitors for business accounting softwares is Microsoft Excel. The reason for that is two-fold:
Excel is widely available and can be easily manipulated to perform recordkeeping and analysis. According to IRS publication 583, “Except in a few cases, the law does not require any specific kind of records.” Business owners can choose any recordkeeping system that clearly shows income and expenses. If the proper controls are put in place, elegant, efficient and cost effective business recordkeeping systems can be produced using Microsoft Excel. The following are eight reasons Excel can be used in lieu of pre-packaged accounting software.
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