Maintaining your finances is a critical part of success in the business world. Just as you would keep track of your physical finances, you need to be aware of and manage your virtual finances as well. There are plenty of ways to do this, and each has its advantages and disadvantages.
There are many resources available to help you maintain your business’ financial information with today’s technology. However, how to manage them can be a complicated issue. The key is finding the one that best suits your needs and then using it consistently.
This article will explore some of the most popular methods for managing your virtual finances.
Redirects
Using redirects can be one of the simplest ways to manage your financial information. It is because you only need to maintain one site for information storage. Instead of creating redundant accounts across multiple resources, you create a single account on each resource linked by redirects.
For example, you run three different websites under three other company names. Each website has a separate domain name and hosting, but all sites are hosted on shared servers. To make your virtual finances more manageable, you can use redirects to manage them from a single source.
Off-site Payments
Whenever you make a purchase online, the payment information is typically sent to the merchant. It means when you purchase from one website, it may post it in your financial data on more than one site. To avoid this redundancy and maintain your virtual finances, consider making all of your purchases off-site.
One way to do this is by using an online payment service to handle all of your transactions. By consolidating your transactions through one account, you can avoid posting redundant information to your financial management tools.
Financial Management Sites
There are several sites for tracking and managing various aspects of your finances. As is often the case with websites, many of these sites are tied to specific providers. These sites allow you to quickly link major accounts to track and analyze your financial information across multiple resources.
You can use one or more of these sites to manage your virtual economy. Many are available free of charge, but some come with a fee. It all depends on the services you require. However, it is essential to review each site’s terms before signing up, as they may contain limitations that impact your business activities.
DCMS Network
The DCMS Network is an international collective of merchants, banks, and payment services providers with one goal: to help e-commerce companies manage their virtual finances.
They offer various levels of membership depending on your needs. You will gain access to the consolidated network at any level, which includes over 200 major accounts across multiple financial institutions and payment processors.
They offer a main website from which you can manage all of your accounts, including paying bills and transferring funds between accounts through one interface. As a member, you also receive support from other members in the network should any issue arise with your transactions or account management.
In addition to simplifying your virtual finances, they also provide insight into your business by providing access to their knowledge base that contains articles and training videos on various topics.
Statements
Even though virtual transactions are not physical, they still require documentation for proper accounting and reporting practices. In addition, you need accurate records when filing taxes at the end of each financial year. Statements provide the details you need to record all virtual transactions.
There are several ways to receive your financial statements, including email and fax. However, the best way is to store them on a secure site so you can refer to them whenever necessary. You also need access to your financial information 24/7, so an online account is another option for convenient access.
In addition to the benefits of consolidated reporting, you will also receive an annual report that provides an analysis of your financial health. The information is compiled by professionals who review your accounts and provide insight into how your business progresses.
Data Breach Protection
As you maintain your virtual accounts, it is crucial to be prepared for an attempted data breach. You are at risk by storing transactions on the main website because hackers can access the site to see what information they can extract. Ensure each transaction is encrypted and stored in multiple locations to protect yourself.
Financial management is an essential part of any business, and virtual finances are no exception. Using the tips in this article, you can manage your virtual transactions more quickly and efficiently. It will help keep your business running smoothly and ensure that your finances are always in order.
