Hello people! In the last post, we discussed what Artificial Intelligence is and what changes it can bring to the accounting industry. Now, we will tell you the benefits of AI in the accounting industry.
The media is full of sensationalist stories of how 'A robot will replace your job'. But the development in AI offers a great opportunity through machine learning and software so that the accountancy firms don't have any threats.
An algorithm is where it provides you with more work target than replacing an accountant's work. It's a mixture of software efficiency and human expertise driving AI and machine learning adoption in accounting and fintech platforms.
So, if you’re in the dark with a lot of confusion, we are here to pull you out of that and provide real user benefits that can help you and make your work much more comfortable. Here's our lowdown on how AI can transform your accounting processes and finish all your career in a fraction of seconds.
The Opportunity for Accountants:
Artificial intelligence (AI) software duplicates human thinking and the way of doing their accounting work. It allows the software to experience and perform those essential tasks by itself with any human aid. In this process, the software memorises specific patterns of doing this work and processes these algorithms as a till for absolution and automating low-level businesses.
For example, let's take Netflix suggests the shows based on the shows you have viewed previously. It understands your taste and according puts up a suggestion list for you. Let's say banks; whenever you make some unusual payments to a huge account, it automatically sends you a caution message on your registered phone number. So these are all where AI is functioning and making the world easier for everyone. Here is a small video on Accounting, Automation and Change that might help you understand the concept of AI in Accounting better :)
So, how can this be applied to accounting? What’s the AI opportunity for accountants?
What AI and machine learning can do and already do in platforms like Xero is carrying out a lot of the basic bookkeeping, financial housekeeping and CRM admin jobs – the kind of coding, data entry and repetitive admin tasks that software excels at, and humans find less interesting.
1. Automation and push for efficiency
An accounting firm aspires to improve the efficiency of workflows and practice systems. AI-driven automation could be the absolute one to achieve this productivity. AI can automatically learn and improve through experience and the input of data. Thus, with AI's machine learning capabilities, many of the low-end elements of bookkeeping tasks can be automated.
For example, automatically coding your accounting transactions speeds up receipts' input and reduces the error levels in your bookkeeping process. This results in getting the work done more quickly and having data of high quality. This, in turn, helps in allocating time for more productive and higher-value work.
2. Diving deep into your client data
Humans have to experience times like a ‘bad day at the office’.’ In contrast, AI-based software tools don’t get tired and constantly do, tirelessly – processing, analysing and deconstructing your client data 24/7. In simpler terms, we can say that an algorithm eats, sleeps and breathes data. AI offers insights into the numbers and can also suggest proactive ways for you and your team so that your firm will be able to work more closely with business clients. AI does this by taking the outputs from the data analysis. The capabilities of AI software doesn’t just restrict to this aspect. Still, it also flags up the potential cash flow issues and suggests conversations about expense variances and can again remind you that a clients' tax return is due and hasn’t been filed yet.
3. Driving a More Proactive Client relationship
AI can dive into the data, pulling out hidden pearls of wisdom and then flagging the important issues, actions and opportunities. This makes it more than just a passive piece of software.
Increasingly, algorithms are becoming a vital part of firms. Even though AI will not replace accounting professionals in the near future, it helps people shift from humdrum and routine accounting elements.
With less focus on compliance work, people can shift their focus, time, and expertise to work directly with the clients. This helps to cement important client relationships, allows clients to improve their business financials, and improves their commercial experience.
4. Enhancing Marketing through Real-Time Analysis
AI has the potential to revolutionize your financial processes and client conversations. But algorithms don’t just help with accounting – AI also helps you market the firm more effectively.
Your digital and social marketing can be improved by applying the same benefits of AI, algorithms and machine learning, helping you to target your ideal clients specifically.
This enhanced targeting and analysis of your marketing involve three key stages:
Collect – through your marketing campaigns and lead generation activity, client and target data is collected and stored in your CRM system. This then becomes a precious data source that AI marketing systems can process.
Reason – looking at your audience's behaviour and engagement, algorithms in the marketing software analyse this lead data in real-time. This reasoning process can suggest productive ways to re-target these businesses by segmenting the audience.
Act – the marketing software then uses its reasoning capabilities to take action in a fully automated AI-driven system. This could mean refining a campaign to make it more effectively next time or sending specific emails to one audience segment.
The average small business spends 20 hours per week on marketing – but finding 20 hours to focus on non-fee-earning work may be a struggle for many busy accountants.
The answer is to use AI-based smart technology to drive marketing by updating the CRM data, running the campaigns and providing key analytics and recommendations. With AI, a business can remove the complexity of making marketing decisions and get on with being that trusted adviser.
Embrace an AI-driven Accounting firm:
We all are aware that the only permanent thing in the universe is "change". According to the "The Future of Work report" from the World Economic Forum, 35% of our existing work skills will change in the near future. To meet the new challenges of the digital age, the accounting industry needs to reskill.
As far as accounting is concerned, machine learning automates the lion's share of the bookkeeping process. As these AI tools deliver high financial and business advice to a truly targeted audience of business clients, a modern accountant's real task is to come up with strategies for optimizing the AI tools.
The number one highlighted occupational skill by 2020 is "complex problem solving". Therefore now it's time to let the software do the number-crunching work and let you and your team do what you do best, i.e., coming up with human solutions to your client's financial issues.
Embracing AI will drive you a long way in the successful path. Next post, we will be coming with why you should invest in Artificial Intelligence.
Until then, you know the drill...
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