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Spring is in the Air
Spring is very definitely in the air. Buds and flowers are appearing everywhere – many, perhaps disconcertingly, well ahead of time. At Online50, we sometimes feel that we are well ahead of the game, especially when we hear some of the comments of potential Partners about the Bureau service we can offer them. We frequently hear expressions of pleasant surprise when we explain that the service enables them to access multiple applications and any company they have asked to be installed on our system and from within the same session without having to go through lengthy log in and out procedures. A fuller explanation of the scope offered by the bureau service is included in this Newsletter.
It is not only potential Partners who can be amazed; it frequently happens to us. We tell you below of our own approach to our data storage tariff. We tend to think that our flexible, pay-as-you-go approach is reflected in our competitors’ approach and are frequently astonished with the long term contractual financial knots others impose. Online50’s approach is discussed below. In the same article we address the current ‘hot potato’ of data security which is a paramount element of all that we do for all of our clients.
As we are sure you will appreciate, in everything we do at Online50, it is always approached with the old but fundamentally essential adage that the customer comes first. A most important element in this is the Bureau service we enable our Partners to operate…
Online50:- A Comprehensive Bureau Service
The Online50 service provides access to hosted software. It can be used to provide a 'hosted desktop' giving users access to mainstream software and their data from anywhere. From its conception the service was intended to be used to help accountants and their clients work on the same data at the same time from different locations. Accordingly there are features to the way it has been designed that reflect the nature of this 'Bureau Service'.
One Accountant has Many Clients
We anticipate that there will be many clients for each accounting bureau. An accountant can access all of their client data from within the same program - for example in Sage they simply need to choose 'Open Company' to open another client's data. We register each of the client data sets by version so that a company cannot be accidentally upgraded to a newer version by opening it with the wrong version of the program. Because the datasets are registered, when a client opens the Sage program, they can only see their own data (they are allowed more than one company, but they only see their own companies).
Different Clients have Different Software
We recognise that people choose to run different software, and different versions of that software and so an accountant can have access to several accounting packages in the same session. Each package will have access to the relevant data for that package. This allows an accountant user to open data with Sage version 11 for one client; use Microsoft Excel to prepare mamangement reports for another client whose data is in version 2007; run a payroll for a third client and post the journals directly into their Sage data — all from the same screen without having to log into different services. And because we offer more than just accounts software, the client can also run their CRM, email systems and office software on the platfrom if they choose to.
Different Bureaux offer Different Services
As a Bureau service we brand the Online50 service to each of our partners. They are free to promote their own service in the way that they choose, and to offer services that are appropriate for their practice. We also allow our partners to choose to bill their clients directly (which most do), or we can bill them and collect directly from the client with direct debit.
Our intention is to ensure that our Partners can offer their clients a service that is tailored to meet their needs. A service that ensures flexibility, choice and reliability. A service that is available wherever and whenever needed.
To find out more about the Online50 Bureau service, contact our sales team on 0800 195 0835.
Using the Online50 ‘Linked Client’ Service
As part of our service to Online50 bureaux we offer the 'Linked Client' service. This is where we arrange to bill a client of one of our accounting bureau partners directly. The accountant retains their access to client data and the service they can offer their client is not diminished in any way. as we are billing the client there is a clear contractual agreement between us and the client.
There tend to be two reasons why the Linked Client service will be opted for by an accounting partner.
Firstly, they may want to have a clear separation of what services they are providing. We are a hosting company and we provide the hosting to both the accountant and their client and in some cases our accounting partners prefer that this is billed by us directly to the client separately from the accounting service. There is then no contractual arrangement between the accountant and the client with regards to the provision of hosting services, only for the provision of accounting services.
The second reason may be that the client is a poor payer. If our accounting partner is billing the client then they are taking the credit risk for that client. If we bill the client then we take the credit risk — we will setup a direct debit with the client and we will use our standard Credit Control policy. This will result in us withdrawing service from a client that does not pay. If we withdraw service from the client, then the accountant still has full access to that clients data as their own service has not been affected.
The Linked Client service is only used where requested by the accountant, and the client has agreed to our standard terms and conditions of business. If you are an Online50 accounting partner and you would like to discuss how this would work for you please contact your Account Manager on 020 7536 7736.
Online50:- The Flexible and Secure Data Storage Providers
Online50 are a multi-service provider of online accounting and business solutions using an enterprise class infrastructure. We regularly invest in our systems to ensure that all of our users have the best possible experience using our system. We provide the processing power and data storage to meet our customers demands. Users of our service with a Sage 'Hosted Bureau' license are licensed to use the Sage software with an unlimited number of datasets. This entitlement is used to varying degrees by our Partners — some host all of their Sage data on our service whether their clients have access to it or not.
We make a generous allowance for use of storage on our platform. The growth of the data storage market, the emergence of online storage providers in the last few years and the introduction of additional storage based services at Online50 have all prompted us to review our storage tariff. Some importantGB above changes are being made to the way we charge for storage which are highlighted for you here.
We think these changes make our storage billing more in-line with current industry norms and as we charge for larger requirements on a per GB used basis we are flexible and competitive for larger users of data. All billing is on a per calendar month basis for the storage used, customers do not have to make a long term commitment to pay for more storage than they use. We also don't cap storage and so you won't find your service disrupted by running out of storage.
Our customers data is held securely on Storage Area Networks at two data centres. Our rigorous security polices safeguard your data. At a time when the media is having a feeding frenzy with regular stories of lost PCs and CDs containing a whole range of sensitive personal and commercial information you can take comfort in the knowledge that your data is safe with us. As you can access the data from anywhere, and we provide not only the data stroage but also the processing power and software you can work on your data whtout the data ever having to leave our secure environment.
