Article

Data Care: looking after your valuable asset

It's an Australian statutory requirement to keep financial records for up to 7 years. In addition, your database is also your most valuable marketing and client management asset. Your client data is essential for the day-to-day running and success of your firm. Without a healthy database your practice would, not only fail to meet mandatory record keeping criteria, but also struggle to complete jobs and services.

It's around 7 times more cost effective to get business from existing customers than to find new business. So not only can you lose business by not keeping records up to date but to replace that business will cost you much more!

Maintaining data integrity and updating records are crucial to the ongoing success of your firm and needs to be part of your standard business procedures. A healthy database enables you to keep in touch with specific types of clients through follow-up calls, newsletters, emails and business opportunity letters. Plus, it gives you the ability to answer any queries quickly and accurately with an instant overview of each account's status and history.

Just as you would look after other assets belonging to the company, details on customers
and prospects should be managed and looked after.

HandiSoft modules are designed to record, protect and support your data in a way that makes it accessible from multiple angles. However, many firms are not aware of the features available to assist them in keeping their database healthy, secure and up to date. You can record all your clients' details that are needed to support the valuable services you offer.

Practical tips

Here are some basic data care procedures, system setting recommendations and tips that every firm could benefit from:

Keep it current

Update the Client Information data in Practice Manager whenever you interact with a client, record events and keep their status up to date. Alternatively, you can send your clients a mail merge letter/email containing their current contact details for them to respond with relevant changes. This process can be done for your entire database with the click of a button. If you don't have such a template, one can easily be created and set up by yourself or one of our consultants.

Custom fields

Wondering where you'd store a client's cashbook password, financial planner's details or corporate key? All of these can easily be stored in your HandiSoft database by making use of the additional customisable fields in Practice Manager. These fields are ideal for the additional marketing data your firm uses regularly. All HandiSoft modules allow you to attach notes to each client's record and Document Manager users can easily store and retrieve emails, scanned documents and clients' accounting data files.

Segment and contact

Setting up Categories using the Practice Manager functionality allows you to distinguish between different types of clients in your database (e.g. FBT clients, Financial Planning clients, Self Managed Super Fund clients).

Tagging allows you perform group tasks, such as sending text messages (using Notify) and email reminders to your inactive clients, or doing a batch update on client records. These could include updating partners, managers and staff associated with clients from Practice Manager, or even updating clients' correspondence preferences with the ATO in HandiTax.

Also, don't forget to move prospects to the Client database once they actually become clients.

Easy search & retrieve

Did you know you could search for a client by their phone number? If you received a call from an unknown number on your mobile,
it may be useful.

It's an essential time saver when your team makes the most of the search features supplied in HandiSoft. Use the Search function within your reports to find any particular client record or even a specific account code in the "chart of accounts" in HandiLedger. Adding keywords to you saved documents, in Document Manager, makes retrieval easier. To ensure faster searching, turn on indexing and also try searching by date or username.

Keep it secure

Your database is best protected from theft or accidental updates and deletes. You are able to set in-depth permissions for data access, additions and amends. Security Manager delivers precise control over the specific activities that each staff member is allowed to perform within the HandiSoft modules, and on which client data.

Back it up

In a land of extremes, disaster can strike at an unexpected time: fire, water damage, electrical problems, hardware failure are all possible. Ensure you have a disaster recovery plan in place should an emergency occur. This will allow you to run servers/workstations, restore your data and minimise the potential downtime.

Data can be backed up on an external disk, server or online and the ideal strategy includes all three. Automate it to save you time and always keep a copy of your backup offsite even if it is done on a server or external drive.

Should you require any additional information or assistance with your database setup and care procedures, please contact our friendly Professional Consultants on (08) 9245 0688.