Running a business means making smart choices with your money. QuickBooks gives you powerful tools, but flipping a switch is not enough. The real value comes when you follow through with the settings you turn on.
Let’s talk about three of the most important ones:
Inventory: Track It Item by Item
Turning on Inventory Tracking in QuickBooks is a big deal. But here’s the key: once it’s on, you need to use it.
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Reduce inventory when you sell something
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Track each product, item by item
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Keep your records clean
Without follow-through, you’ll see numbers that don’t match reality. That means you could oversell, lose cash, or make poor buying choices.
Sales Tax: More Than Just Setup
QuickBooks makes it easy to turn on the Sales Tax setting. But it’s not enough to just set it up.
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File your sales tax reports on time
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Pay sales tax each month or quarter
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Keep your records in order
When you follow through, you stay compliant and avoid painful penalties.
Billable Expenses & Time: Put It on the Invoice
This one catches a lot of business owners. QuickBooks lets you mark expenses and even employee time as billable to customers. Sounds great, right?
But here’s the problem: if you don’t add those charges to an invoice, you lose money.
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Billable expenses = put them on the customer’s invoice
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Billable time = track it and charge for it
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No invoice = no payment
If you skip this step, QuickBooks will show a huge report of unbilled charges and time. That’s money your customer should have paid you!
Why Follow-Through Matters
Turning on QuickBooks settings is step one. Following through is what brings results.
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Inventory gives you real insight only if you update it
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Sales tax protects your business only if you file and pay
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Billable expenses and time increase profit only if you invoice them
QuickBooks offers more tools—like Projects and Classes—but the same rule applies. Ask yourself: Am I really using this feature, or just letting it sit there?
The Bottom Line
QuickBooks is powerful, but only when you use it the right way. Don’t just turn things on. Follow through.
Your business deserves clear numbers, less stress, and more profit.
👉 If you’re a small business owner and you’re not sure if your QuickBooks settings are working the right way, we can help. Let’s make sure your numbers tell the truth and give you confidence in every decision.
