Taylor Howe Testimonial

Taylor (00:00):

Smartstart just seemed like a really good fit for us because it would help us learn kind of the ins and outs of QuickBooks and help us learn the basics of accounting.

We’re an organic handmade skincare company founded by my late wife, Laura, and she was super passionate about skincare. She actually went back to aesthetic school in her kind of mid twenties after finishing college, doing a degree that she didn’t like and just, you know, had a lifelong passion for skincare and decided to pursue that. So all of the products that we sell were created and formulated by her

Taylor (00:46):

So when I first heard about smart start we actually, it took us a little while to decide if we wanted to do it mostly because we had reached out to books, keep more for hands-on help with our bookkeeping, but we just weren’t at a place with our business because our business was smaller at the time. And so we were wearing a lot of hats and realized that we couldn’t really afford to pay for full-time bookkeeping services. And so SmartStart just seemed like a really good fit for us because it would help us learn kind of the ins and outs of QuickBooks and help us learn the basics of accounting. At least being able to manage our books and kind of the more we thought about it, the more other no-brainer, it seemed, we reached a point in our business where our, our finances were, they weren’t necessarily complicated, but they were complicated enough that we couldn’t use spreadsheets to manage stuff.

Taylor (01:45):

And we knew that we needed to use QuickBooks again, actually I say again, because some of my partners had actually tried to implement QuickBooks years before in our business and weren’t able to, because they just felt like it was too complicated. I’ve actually worked in different tech jobs and worked in software for years and consider myself to be a pretty tech savvy person. But hearing that QuickBooks was complicated, I knew that it would be easier and faster and just would, it would make a lot more sense for us to have a coach and a guide to help us learn how to use it faster. And that turned out to be true. There were some moments that were frustrating and challenging, but I think that happens no matter what software you learn. And it was just like far easier doing it with SmartStart than it would have been if we would have had to figure it out. [inaudible] Part of SmartStart that was the most effective in helping us manage our money was definitely the one-on-one calls. Like I’ve never taken an accounting class before. I just know like these buzz words and basics, but even working with someone like me, those one-on-one calls just made it really easy to get all my questions answered. Like in real time on the spot, the one-on-one calls by far were the most effective in helping us get everything set up the way we want. [inaudible]

Taylor (03:05):

Understanding of number says definitely improved. I’ve never been great with math. There’s a joke that in my family that we’re just really not built for math are not wired for math. We’ve always had a hard time with it. But I personally love math when there’s meaning behind it. The reason we went into business was so that we could make a difference for our customers and so that we can have financial freedom. And so the fact that the numbers that I’m looking at in QuickBooks and, you know, all the stuff that I learned in the smart start program about how to manage the numbers better, it’s huge for me because it’s, it not only helps us keep sure that our business is a float, but I think it helps us be more confident moving towards the direction of our like real dream of financial freedom.

Taylor (03:54):

It’s such a small investment for what you’re going to get back from it. The team is just fantastic to work with. I’ve already mentioned the one-on-one calls being super helpful and being what I like the best, but there’s email support in between the calls as well. And Telia is always super responsive and helps me figure stuff out between those calls and then the monthly calls as well. You know, be able to get questions answered there and to hear kind of what the other business owners are all going through as well. So for me, the, you know, the cost of the program for what you get out of it, I honestly don’t think there’s a better investment. And honestly, if you’re an E if you’re an e-commerce store, which I’m guessing you are, if you’re watching the video, like for me, I know other there’s other people like I have other friends and family that know how to use QuickBooks or CPAs and stuff, and they’re all great and they’re good at what they do, but the books keep team is the only team that I found that, that kind of specialized in e-commerce stores at the level that, that, that we were at and that we’re at now.

Taylor (04:56):

And so, you know, I just think it’s a no brainer for anyone that’s in that position as well.