10 important values you get from using CostTracker

Searching for the best purchase order system is difficult. So, what separates CostTracker from other solutions in the market? In this article we will let you in on the top 10 values you can expect from using CostTracker. But, first:

What is CostTracker?

Our main objective is to make cost control easy for small and medium-sized businesses. CostTracker is a cloud-based purchase order system helping companies and project-teams with purchasing and cost control. CostTracker can easily be used out-of-the box as a stand-alone software or integrated with your accounting system using pre-made plug & play integration.

What are the most important factors for the end users?

Surveys based on user reviews by hundreds of companies provide us with valuable insight. The graph below displays what are the most important factors from a user's perspective when considering a purchase order system.

  And then; what's in it for you?

10 important values you get from using CostTracker

1. Ease of use

We believe that making it easy and intuitive to perform user tasks is the most critical factor to ensure a good user adoption. So, what does this really mean? In CostTracker we focus on the following: User design - A good looking design and making key processes as intuitive as possible. Ease of use – You can perform all tasks with in as few steps as possible Reuse of data – Data is prepopulated and reused everywhere possible. Valuable input – To see important information when performing an action (for instance budget status and impact when approving a purchase) Quote from one of our clients below:

We onboarded all our 30 users in 5 hours and created 200 purchase orders the first week of using CostTracker.

Try the checklist: 10 criteria for selecting the right purchase order system

2. Real time cost control

Tracking financial commitments (i.e. approved purchase orders) provides you 100% control over the financial status in your department or project. As part of this we also,

• Ensure we capture deviations between the purchase order(s) and supplier invoice(s)
• Ensure we capture non-purchase order related cost in your budgets All to provide you a 100% updated and accurate view on how you are tracking.

CostTracker - making cost control easy

3. Clear supplier agreements

Using purchase orders ensure clarity in scope and terms with your supplier. This will help you maintain good relationship with your suppliers. By using purchase orders, you ensure clear agreements. Also, in CostTracker, we keep track of revisions so that should the scope of your purchase change, then you can easily revise your purchase orders and keep track of what was sent to your supplier and when.  

4. Time-saving processes

Everyone who have tried to keep track of purchase order or invoices approval in a manual way knows how time-consuming this can be. This is non-value adding work we aim to avoid. Having all in one system will allow you to save tons of time and allow you to make proper quality checks there and then with no manual efforts.  

5. A watertight process for invoice control (Accounts payables)

Checking invoices against purchase orders and goods receipts is really cumbersome when the information is located in separate places or you have to strive to ask people who have been involved in the process. Having all in one system will allow you to save tons of time. Furthermore, it will allow you to make proper quality checks there and then with no manual efforts.

When starting with CostTracker we found that more than 40% of our supplier invoices were incorrect. Earlier, we did not have time to check the supplier invoice against the original purchase order. Now we have everything clear and available UK client

6. Automated cash flow forecasting

Having updated and accurate cash flow forecast is vital to keeping control on your business. In fact, cash flow restrictions is the number one reason for bankruptcy. Knowing that the average profit margins in several industries are razon thin, making sure you have a proper and automated way to forecast cash flow will save a lot of time and provide increase accuracy.

• When using a purchase order system, key information related to delivery dates and payment terms are captures in a systematic way, making it easy to create an accurate cash flow forecast for your business. Some of the key functionality includes
• Present and export in weekly or monthly format Automated cut-off with accounting system to ensure no data is missing or double counted.

7. Pure purchasing or full procure-to-pay

You can decide if you want to implement CostTracker as a pure purchasing solution or include our accounts payables supplier invoice module to cover the full procure-to-pay cycle.

Purchasing vs procure-to-pay

8. Stand alone or integrated

CostTracker works perfect as stand-alone but can also be integrated with your accounting software using our prebuilt integrations. This gives you the flexibility to choose what is right for you.  

9. Other unique features

CostTracker comes with certain unique features Planned purchases is an add-on that allows companies to track Estimate At Completion (EAC) for their projects and get control on order dates for long lead items. This feature is also included in the cash flow forecast, ensuring full control on outstanding cash flow in your project. Order confirmations – For many companies it is vital that the purchase order is confirmed by the supplier. Keeping track of order confirmations will ensure that you can be confident your orders are received and accepted.  

10. Try before you buy

No need to take any risk. We want you to know what you are getting before entering an agreement. Therefore, you can easily set up a trial account and try out CostTracker with your team. In this way you can be 100% sure that the software will meet your needs before implementing. No credit card required.  

Do the key values of using CostTracker match your expectations?

Well, why not try it out? You can set up a 14 day free trial without entering any credit card details. To register for a free trial, click here

10 criteria for selecting the right purchase order system. Click the button below to download the checklist