QuickBooks Online Success Story

QuickBooks Online enables entrepreneur to run his companies from a distance

Thirty-two-year-old entrepreneur Terry Harmon has started a few businesses in his time. He's started a trucking company and an associated brokerage firm, two telecom companies, and an ongoing consulting business. All told, his companies today employ about 20 people, most of them in his home state of Texas.

But his dream wasn't limited to Texas. Ever since he was posted in Hawaii by a previous employer, he's looked for ways to spend more time there. "When I got into business for myself, I definitely set out with a plan", Terry says. "I started with the idea that I wanted to travel, and spend a significant amount of time back there."

Now, looking out his window at the beach, he says it's a sunny 85 degrees, and he can see the mountains where he went hiking yesterday. "I like to see things and go places," he says. "That's ultimately what we get into business for: to gain some money, some time, and some opportunity. QuickBooks Online has allowed me to travel and have experiences that I otherwise could not have had."

No Background in Accounting

When Terry first got into business, he had little interest in accounting. "I was always a marketing and operations guy," he says. But he also knew that, "as an owner of the company, if you don't control your financial data, you don't control your company."

In 2000, Terry started using the desktop version of QuickBooks. Then an accountant friend told him about the online version in 2002. As soon as he checked out QuickBooks Online, he glimpsed how it could help him achieve his goal of running his companies from a distance.

First, he had to get up to speed on the books. He spent an few intensive months reviewing all his companies, looking at the data coming in, talking to his CPA, and teaching himself more about bookkeeping. "QuickBooks Online was easy enough for me to learn bookkeeping completely, and then teach it to my assistant," he says. "That gives me financial control of my company, without having to be there," he says, "It's one of the chief reasons I can be in Hawaii."

Working Together, Four Time Zones Apart

Terry works with a far-flung network, including his CPA and a trusted assistant in Texas, and a tax strategist in Honolulu. Even when Terry is in Hawaii, he can log on to the same screen as his CPA four time zones away, and they can work together.

"For example, we can look at expenses, reclassify them if needed, then hit refresh, and see an updated screen. When I see how the money moves around, that gives me a better understanding of my finances," he says.

He says he can now live and work where he wants, with complete control over his businesses, thanks in large part to QuickBooks Online.

Data Was Safe, Even during Meltdown

Terry also appreciates the daily backups the system automatically makes for him-especially after a close call at his trucking company.

"It was a server crash — an actual physical meltdown. When they took the hard drive out of the server, it had melted, and there was zero data recovery from it," he says. "But we had all our customers and vendors on QuickBooks Online, so we didn't lose any financial data."

"With QuickBooks Online, you don't have to worry about your data," says Terry. And if he's ever stuck, he likes the technical support he can get. "I just send tech support a note, and someone calls me back within 30 minutes," he says. "I would rate them high."

Overall, he rates QuickBooks Online 10 out of 10. "I would recommend it for just about anybody," he says, "When I consult for people, I say right away, 'Let's go to QuickBooks Online.'" For his next business venture, he's considering buying real estate in Hawaii as an investment. "We have a couple of owners who want to come in with us," he says, "and the first step will be getting QuickBooks Online."