MSATP is back with a brand-new Facebook Live Episode! Last week’s episode opened with an in-depth review of the Save4College State Contribution Program and the Maryland Community College Promise Scholarship that we announced were in works back on our April 26th show. We then had the pleasure of hearing from Michael Blair, owner of Blair & Associates, Inc., to discuss the growing trend of digital accounting platforms. Michael discussed how you can implement these new and exciting technologies into your own practice to attract new clients and make your day-to-day life more efficient. To close out the episode, we learned about one of MSATP’s great sponsors: Quest Insurance. Here’s a quick recap of last week’s major segments—be sure to tune in for the real deal!
SAVE4COLLEGE STATE CONTRIBUTION PROGRAM—DEADLINE IS GETTING CLOSE!
The Save4College State Contribution Program, managed by T Rowe Price, offers eligible taxpayers the opportunity to receive a one-time matching amount of $250 that is applicable to tuition at virtually any U.S. or international college, technical or trade school. Keep in mind that you have to complete the application by June 1, 2018. You can learn more about the program and eligibility requirements by visiting https://maryland529.com/MDMatch250.
MARYLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE PROMISE SCHOLARSHIP—LINGERING QUESTIONS
MSATP has received questions from a few members regarding HBO16. The bill, which was signed by the Governor, establishes the Maryland Community College Promise Scholarship. The initial scholarship awards shall be provided to recipients based on the greatest demonstrated financial need. All eligible applicants who do not receive an award will be notified and placed on a waiting list. Beginning for the 2019-2020 academic year (September 2019-June 2020) the annual scholarship award is $5,000 per recipient or actual tuition, whichever is less.
In order to be eligible for the program, applicants must meet the following criteria:
MSATP has reached out to the Maryland Higher Education Commission to clarify how to apply and what tax year applicants should use to determine the adjusted gross income. We are still awaiting their feedback—so if any of your clients inquire about this opportunity, tell them it is currently a wait-and-see situation.
DIGITAL PLATFORMS—THE FUTURE OF THE PROFESSION
The digital workplace is the future—and that’s a great thing! Here’s just a few advantages of going digital:
Working digitally is just a different way of doing your job and managing your practice—it’s not just going “paperless” like some would have you believe. The two biggest digital players in the small business services area are QBO and XERO. Each platform has its pros and cons. The discussion is not which system is better, but rather why they are more efficient to use as opposed to the outdated desktop and manual data entry systems. Client accounting services are task-centric, but the vast majority of this work can be completed via technology and AI. Each accounting platform has an “ecosystem” of apps that will work seamlessly with the accounting application. Virtually all of these are cloud (SaaS) services. The benefits of using these apps in each Ecosystem are time saving, extra services available, custom fit for each client, integration of platforms, and costs.
Here’s a quick breakdown of everyday accounting tasks and the various digital platforms you can implement to make life easier:
WHAT DOES SOFTWARE AS A SERVICE (SaaS) REPLACE?
Here are links to the websites for the digital platforms mentioned above where you can learn more and get started to integrate them into your practice:
QUEST INSURANCE—TRUSTED BUSINESS & PERSONAL COVERAGE
Last, but certainly not least, we closed out the show with a message from Chris Corbett of Quest Insurance. Quest Insurance has been serving accounting professionals and their clients for over 25 years providing employee benefits, business insurance and personal coverage in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. They look forward to providing you the best value for your insurance needs! For more information, get in touch with Chris via phone: (571) 367-7971 or email: chris@questinsurance.us or checkout the Quest Insurance website: www.questinsurance.us to learn more about all the great options they have to offer!
In case you missed it, you can find the full broadcast below and at https://youtu.be/oZJxYj37Utk.
Not a member of our private MSATP Members Facebook Group yet? Click HERE to join!