Ok, so what’s all this hype about the functionality of Tags in the new Sage Live Accounting system? Sage Live differs from your traditional accounting systems Chart Of Accounts (COA). If you think of your existing COA and how many Ledger Accounts you have set up for absolutely everything you want to run reports on. I can imagine it would be as long as the queue if there was a sale on at Yves Saint Laurent! We’ve learnt in previous blogs about the Sage Live basics and how Dimensions & Tags create this unlimited reporting capability based on a condensed more manageable COA. But what else can we do with Tags within Sage Live?
Related Tags
Tags as we know can be absolutely anything you want to run a report on and are unlimited. Just like that collection of shoes you have accumulated over the years! So how we use these Tags to not only Report but also make data entry for a Sage Live user easier, quicker and more efficient? Well I’m glad you asked, because this is precisely what related tags can do.
So, you may have a Dimension set up for all employees within your organisation and you may also have a Dimension for each department. This allows, for instance, when entering a Travel expense into the system the user the ability to tag both the specific employee who is claiming the expense. As well as the department they belong to. This allows you to run a report not on the expense costs from a specific employee but also the department they are based in. Now for the user, this relies on them inputted both bits of information. If you have these different departments across branches they would then also need to tag the branch or even area that employee is based in. To make this data entry process easier for the user, Sage Live offers a function to relate certain tags to other tags. You can relate a specific Employee to the Department they work in, the Branch they are based in and the Area they cover. When the Employee tag is selected in the Expense screen, the other tags from Department, Branch & Area are automatically pulled through and pre-filled for the user. Easy!
Tag Ledger Account
Selling on that Ralph Lauren jumper you bought and never worn on Ebay? Whether you’re buying services in or purchasing products to sell on to consumers, how does Sage Live know which Ledger Account to hit when the product is both sales and purchase? Keep calm… Tag Ledger Accounts are here!
A Tag Ledger Account is used to tell the system when this tag is selected which ledger account is applicable. For a product that is both within your Sales and Purchase list, rather than having the same product set up twice for each; this function allows you to have the one product set up in the system with two ledger accounts to post to. One Tag Ledger Account will be for the Sales of the product and another will be for the Purchase of the product. This ensures that whenever the tag is selected in a transactions screen, the system will automatically know whether it’s a Sales or Purchase and then which Ledger Account to post to. Genius!
Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as a no limit credit card for us mere mortals, these are non-negotiable.
But with Sage Live using Related Tags we can make the users data entering tasks quicker and easier. Having tags related to others also ensures that all those tags you have set up for reporting purposes are automatically selected. So, not only do users save time by not having to select every tag but also no tag will ever be forgotten. Unlike those hideous curtain patterned frilled trousers you wore back in the 80s…what were you thinking?!
Having Tag Ledger Accounts in place ensures the system knows which ledger account to post to automatically. Setting up Tag Ledger Accounts improves overall the systems efficiency but also limits the risk of posting to the incorrect ledger account. This functionality also saves having several versions of products set up in the system if you both buy in and sell the same product. Giving you the ability to set the system up in a way that it automatically knows even though the same product was selected which ledger account to post to.
Now go! Create an abundance of Tags, relate them with others and tell the system where you want each to post to! Oh and for your own good, please get rid of the picture with you in those trousers! If it’s never seen it never happened!
If you would like to talk more about how Sage Live can help improve your process automation and reporting capabilities get in touch.
Gabbie is the Ultimate Organiser If you have a question, ask Gabbie. And if she doesn’t know the answer, she knows who will! When she is not keeping the rest of the team on track, Gabbie spends her time horse riding. She also throws the best house parties!
