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Welcome to ZAP Accounting Software. We value your time. The sections on this home page include:
0) Advisory Committee Now forming...
1) Introduction to ZAP Accounting Software
2) ZAP Accounting Software is and is NOT...
3) The ZAP Accounting Software License is...
4) The ZAP Accounting Sponsored User Permit is...
5) Comparative Benefits for ALL who use the software are..
6) Small Business Accounting Best Practices + ZAP Accounting Part A = Holistic Programming for YOU
7) Data Privacy and Security
8) The 220 Club -- A publisher with Free and Paid Offerings

A new type of commercial train has arrived. Hop aboard and give it a try! It was designed with YOU in mind.

Interested in being on the Advisory Committee? click here...

1) Introduction to ZAP Accounting Software

Zap Accounting 'Software' is a simple yet sophisticated Bookkeeping Solution for Individuals, Sole Proprietors, Partnerships, S-Corps, LLC's, LLPs, and Real Estate Investors. CPAs, Auditors and Financial Bounty Hunters may also really like it. Educators and programmers will love it. Rumor has it Divorce Attorneys may like it for their clients too !

ZAP Accounting 'Software' is an open-source, cloud based, data independent, double-entry Bookkeeping Solution designed in Google Sheets that puts you in full control of your Chart of Accounts, your Accounting Data and fully customizable reporting for the first time in Digital History. As an additional benefit our spreadsheet templates increase spreadsheet and database user competency, and they can be used to teach spreadsheet, database and java-script programming too. And to be crystal clear here -- this are just file templates -- no ties back to the developer -- no auto updates -- and no ongoing fees.

ZAP Accounting Software combines paradigm shifting Google Drive and Google Spreadsheet Technology, Small Business Accounting Best Practices and powerful accounting programming in a surprisingly robust manner. ZAP Accounting Software is "just" a bunch of Google Spreadsheets, but never under estimate the power of the word "just" nor the paradigm shift being delivered via Google Cloud Technology. Have you ever heard of Bookkeeping Software with automatic reconciliation that the doesn't formally revolve around "Debits and Credits" nor the checking off of one line item at time? Our Positive and Negative Values version complements our Debits and Credits version and oh what a relief aggregated reconciliation is for all!

Spreadsheets have always been the proper digital platform for bookkeeping and accounting, not relational databases. Most small business owners and individuals do not realize the level to which CPA's, corporate accountants, and auditors use spreadsheets for their reconciliation and reporting needs. Spreadsheets simply are the better platform for accounting. The only reason you haven't realized that yet is because commercializing a solution in spreadsheets isn't nearly as profitable as doing the same with controlling and limiting relational database solutions. Speaking of commercialization and profitability, we feel you are really going to like our permitting, licensing and pricing structure.

== THIS PART IS STILL UP IN THE AIR - FINAL COMMERCIAL STRUCTURE tbd ==
We are fence sitting at this time. There may be a one time required licensing fee or we may go full donation based. Below was the last iteration of a possible licensing structure..

ZAP Accounting Software is licensed at two levels via affordable, one-time licensing fees. Our "Licensees" and our "Sponsored Users" get a LOT more than just 'software' given this is about peer-to-peer commerce, community building, and raising global accounting and programming competency too! ZAP Accounting Software has a very unique (and untested) licensing, distribution, and support model. Our initial software goal was low cost, functional, independent, peer to peer supported bookkeeping software. Putting all that into a new commercial model was the real challenge after building the stand alone file templates.

We (will) go to market through “Licensees”. Think of our Licensees as “Power Users” who also have ability to sell, install, configure, and support the software for those they "sponsor" as users (aka “Sponsored Users”). Our Licensees also have the authority to educate publicly and they are encouraged to setup local or virtual networking chapters under the ZAP Accounting or 220 Club flags if they'd like (this last part is still a concept in process, but we are thinking along the general lines of a Toastmasters model).

Becoming a Licensee is a multi-hour, multi-day process. No one can show up here and just buy a Licensee for use, distribution, or educator purposes. Our licensing process requires a small time and educational commitment (process not fully defined yet, but sponsored user agreement below is now on paper). Once licensed...

Licensees gain access to our Licensee Portal which includes software templates, demo data, detailed configuration videos, advanced use videos, flow charts, instructional documents, Google Drive and Google Sheets specific info, and more.
Licensees get membership to our private Licensee Only Facebook Group for peer-to-peer support from other Licensees on this community supported bookkeeping solution.
Licensees also have the rights (and responsibility?) to 'distribute' the software to others via our "Sponsored User" program. That isn't just about sales however. They will need to educate, train and support anyone they sponsor too.
For more on our Licensing Program and the Licensee Agreement with ZAP Accounting Software, click here (link comeing soon...)

Users who do not want to put the time into full licensing are refereed to as "Sponsored Users" because they must be Sponsored by a Licensee to use the software - For the people who want and/or need to use ZAP Software but really do not want to put the time in to get licensed (clients of bookkeepers, for example), you will need to seek out one of our Licensees for a "Sponsored User Permit" and a "Sponsored User Relationship".

Sponsored Users pay their Permit Fee to the Licensee. The Licensee then makes payment to ZAP for the User Permit. Sponsored Users never pay any money directly to us for Permitting, that always goes through a Licensee.
Sponsored Users will also need to pay their sponsoring Licensee a fee for initial configuration services as well as introductory education. That part of the agreement is exclusively between the Sponsored User and the License and we get no portion of any of those fees.
Click here to view our Sponsored User Agreement This is the agreement that a Licensee gives to a Sponsored User that outlines all aspects of this relationship.

Together, we're really just a Brotherhood of Benevolent Bookkeepers or maybe it's Monks of Old working for a global good with debits, credits, and technology as our tool. 

ZAP Accounting Software is a panacea for small business owners. ZAP Accounting Software and fully independent licensees help experienced business owners begin to heal from a thousand tiny cuts inflicted by: bad software, expensive software, software-as-a-service traps, horrific and expensive Microsoft and Mac hardware options, less than sincere bookkeepers and accountants and much more.

ZAP Accounting Software and fully independent licensees help less experiened owners avoid the thorny paths related to bookkeeping and accounting that those before them have had to endure. There are no shortage of challenges on any commercial path these days, thus why keep the complex bookkeeping kerfuffle in play? With this commercial model we become each other's keepers.

ZAP Accounting Software, powered by Licensees and Sponsored Users is expected to replace most instances of Quickbooks Cloud and Desktop , Quicken, and most other web-based bookkeeping solutions used for Tax Accounting for small businesses within just a few short years. Few of the current software solutions are truly flexible, functional and/or user friendly. Most have extreme software bloat and/or navigational dysfunction, and pricing on many is inappropriate for the level of service offered. Once you realize your bookkeeping software should NOT be directly connected to other accounting software modules or and commercial software modules like Point of Sale, payment processing, Invoicing, Accounts Receivable and Accounts payable, a lot of things will make more sense.

We feel you are about to get blown away in a really cool way. We hope you enjoy the ride. For those this resonates with, please share it with others and remember to donate a little something to a truly worthy cause from time to time.

2) ZAP Accounting 'Software' is and is NOT...

The term "Accounting Software" is confusing. For some folks, it means solely bookkeeping and tax accounting related functionality. For purposes of this website and our current software offering, that's how you should think of it.

For other folks, the term Accounting Software refers to anything and everything that touches money in their business including Point of Sale Systems, Payment Processing Systems, Invoicing Systems, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, Payroll, etc. We refer to Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable as Accounting "modules". The others we more generally refer to as "commercial software" or something more generic, although depending on the situation we may refer to the others as accounting modules too.

The vocabulary goal here is to raise awareness to an overly broad and liberal use of the term "Accounting Software". When you start selecting different software components to fill your commercial needs from different vendors to mix and match for optimal solutions for you, more discerning vocabulary is required.

ZAP Accounting 'Software' is...

ZAP Accounting Software currently includes all relevant bookkeeping functionality required to do bookkeeping for Tax Accounting purposes. The items denoted with an * below are features not found in other bookkeeping solutions at this time.

The part that truly separates accounting software from a list of categorized transactions is 1) an properly prepared Income Statement and 2) a properly prepared Balance Sheet. And it's the Balance Sheet that is the far more complex one of the two and the one that most demands a truly accounting oriented solution as opposed to a more simplified transaction categorization system for small businesses.

Part A -- Chart of Accounts, Ledgers and Reporting

Chart of Accounts with unlimited account types, unlimited account quantities, and no required accounts || Bank Statement Header Data Archive * || Bank Statement Raw Transaction Archive * || Ledgers for Checking, Credit Card and Cash with no limit on number of accounts || Automatic, aggregated Checking and Credit Card Account Reconciliation * || Transaction Reporting Tools || Income Statement Reports (automated, semi-automated*, by month, by year with monthly breakdown, etc) || Balance Sheet * || Other Reporting and cross checking tools

Part B -- (obsolete)

The Balance Sheet use to be in a separate file and a manual process. It is now automated and an integral part of Part A. It does require some custom configuration for use...

Part C(s) -- Other Tools and Utilities

We offer numerous other file templates for things like cash management, deposit preparation, a year-end financial summary worksheet and more *

* -- not found in other bookkeeping solutions

ZAP Accounting 'Software' is NOT...

ZAP Accounting Software does NOT currently include
Point of Sale, Invoicing, Payment Processing, Digital Receipt Creation, Accounts Receivable, Accounts payable.

HOWEVER. The creators of this solution already have templated solutions for many of those commercial needs worked out in Google Sheets too.

Information and examples of those can be found at http://diy-software-club.weebly.com/accounting1.html .

While these items are not available to the public at this time, but it's good to get a glimpse to see just how far you can go with this networked spreadsheet concept, for sure.

The additional "software modules" you need to do your daily deeds like Point of Sale, Accounts Receivable, Invoicing and others may be marketed at a future date via the ZAP Accounting Software website and/or via other avenues.

Roll out of these additional modules will be dictated by receptivity to this module, its commercial success or lack there of, and the way in which people play in this new commercial sandbox.

In summary, if after using ZAP Accounting Software Parts A, B and C(s) you like the way they operate and you have a desire to use more Google Sheets style solutions, we may have more for you in the future one way or another.

3) The ZAP Accounting Software "License" is...

The ZAP Accounting Software License is the higher level of licensing and it requires a mulit-hour, multi-day commitment before it can be purchase.

The License grants you much more than just rights to use the software. To get it you get a nearly free education about Small Business Accounting Best Practices, and THEN you get access to a Licensee Portal and optional inclusion in a Private Facebook Group for support.

The Licensee Portal is packed with software copies, lists of public and private videos, FAQs and more.

Becoming a licensee is more like joining a thought club with other like minded, accounting oriented folks than it is like buying software.

Becoming a licensee is as much about changing your entire perspective about software, hardware, community building and disruptive commerce as it is about bookkeeping and accounting -- all under the great guise of providing you with a digital tool you can use to simplify your tax accounting and bookkeeping with no ongoing monthly fees.

Oh. And one more thing. One of our longer term goals is to assist Licensees with the setup and operation of local networking clubs with an accounting or computer programming component that can be used to draw people to you and the things you are interested in most. We would hope you'd setup these chapters under a 220 Club or ZAP Accounting Software flag but that is open to discussion. The Chapters would be for educational and commercial outreach for our products and services as well as for your own personal networking wants and needs. In doing some research it seems the Toastmasters commercial model my be a good one to follow. This club/chapter thingy is all still in the works and not yet a sure thing, but we are hopeful.

4) The ZAP Accounting Software "Sponsored User Permit" is...

The ZAP Accounting Software Sponsored User Permit is the lower of our two licensing options.

Ultimately, all accounting software is similar in nature. It's how you use it and how you set it up for use that makes a difference. There is a lot of strategy involved in a good bookkeeping/accounting setup to keep things simple that most are oblivious to, and much of it starts with things that are a stretch away from your bookkeeping routine.

Likewise, efficient software use is all about a good setup and keystroke management, and that is fastest learned from another human being who can help you get up and going.

Here are a few reasons we've chosen to go to market this way that may help this commercial model make more sense too...

Educated Users and a Good Reputation -- In order or this software to grow, we need educated users. If we have people downloading spreadsheet templates who then mess them all up that wouldn't make for a good reputation. If/when you have a local person help you get up and going, that learning curve flattens dramatically and they aren't going to let you fly solo until they know you've got the hang of it. For some of you, that may be a matter of minutes. For others, it could be hours or several cycles of bookkeeping and since everyone is different we need a human being there to help you learn to solo at the pace perfect for you.
Online Reputation Management -- Everyone reading this understands we have a problem now with "Fake News". Unfortunately, that "faking it" problem extends way beyond news. We have massive problems right now with folks manipulating product and service reviews on national and global levels. We expect our Licensees and our Sponsored Users to provide accurate and honest reviews anywhere they choose to leave them. That said, given every single user of our software is registered with us, we'll should have a much easier time managing fake reviews...

For more about our Sponsored User Permit and to view the Sponsored User Agreement click here (link coming soon)

5) Comparative Benefits for ALL who use the software are...

The Benefits to of ZAP Accounting Software as compared to Quickbooks and other bookkeeping and accounting solutions for Tax Accounting and reporting are numerous and significant. Multiple forms of Stress Relief are being provided as part of the ultimate and overarching goal.

Time Savings - Monthly bookkeeping time drops dramatically due to 1) aggregated reconciliation functionality not found in any other solutions 2) bulk transaction categorization via efficient use of spreadsheet functionality and 3) the nature of spreadsheets versus relational databases for accounting tasks in general. Year end tax preparation time also drops dramatically if you use some of the tools and Best Practices we recommend.

Cost Savings - Recurring monthly and annual software licensing costs are eliminated forever with our affordable, one-time-licensing fee. Monthly and quarterly bookkeeping costs paid to others are reduced as a result of time savings. Annual costs for year end bookkeeping closeouts decrease due to software simplicity. All bookkeeping costs paid to others can be reduced or eliminated entirely if you start doing the work you are currently subbing out to others.

Unlimited Files for Your own Use -- Are you a serial entrepreneur with several ventures going on? You can make as many copies of this as you'd like for your own personal and business use. That's where the software savings can really start to add up for some of you...

Multiple File Instance Operation and File Sharing with Others -- If you use our spreadsheet templates on Google Drive (in Google Sheets) as intended, you can have multiple copies of the same file open in different screens at the same time. And that can be on one computer or on multiple you control anywhere in the world. Likewise, you and as many collaborators as you'd like can be working on the same file at the same time, and you can generally see what the others are doing in real time, if you know where to look. Some of you will need to see these benefits in action for just the blink of an eye to realize the liberating nature of it all.

Built in Backup and Recovery Systems - If you use our spreadsheet templates on Google Drive (in Google Sheets) as they were designed to be used, you gain all the benefits of cloud data storage and backups offered by Google. Cloud based tools like this eliminate the need for regular individual backups, but you can make those via a manual download process or via low cost, third party, cloud data backup services too. At the file level, Google Sheets has a built in versioning system that saves incremental changes. In the event of data corruption, you can revert back to a prior version of your work at anytime.

Increased Accounting and Technological Prowess - Our users report a dramatic increase in their accounting, spreadsheet, Google Drive and database understanding. That increase in prowess is very empowering, and it leads to increased personal confidence, increased general well being, and lower stress when engaging with your computer and society in general.

Configurable Income Statements and Balance Sheets that educate and provide transparency too - Configuring income statements to show what you want and more than what is required on in income statement is not an option in other software. In ours, the sky's the limit. Learning about a Balance Sheets at a granular level and getting to see exactly where all the data comes from helps explain why Balance Sheets are such a powerful tool for crosschecking all your work, and why they are demanded by most CPA's for any small business clients.

Decreased Risk of Fraud and Embezzlement - -- The transparent nature of this very straight forward, non-bloated, spreadsheet based accounting software with aggregated reconciliation, income statements and balance sheet reporting dramatically decreases and/or eliminates the risk of nefarious behavior by bookkeepers and accountants who you may engage for services.

Audit Ready - The IRS isn't going to use your Quickbooks, Peachtree Accounting, or your Spreadsheet based ledger to start the audit process. They are going to use your bank statements, your bank statement data and an aggregated reconciliation process to get going. ZAP Accounting Software has been designed to mirror that process, and because you will be doing things EXACTLY like the IRS would in the event of an audit, you are audit ready at the end of each bookkeeping cycle! And the coolest part is it takes less time, is far less error prone, and costs less to do it this way too!

Greater financial control of your business - There is no better way to keep a pulse on your business than 1) by doing your own books or 2) by having the ability to very quickly and accurately assign categories to transactions and/or 3) by having the ability to audit the work of others easily in a transparent manner. No other solution offers a simpler, faster, and more transparent process. Bookkeepers who come in to write checks are there to write checks. They have no way to realize if a bill is too much, or too little, or was paid via another method. They have no way to realize if a bill is not a bill at all, but rather a solicitation for money for no logical reason, so your involvement is in fact always necessary in bookkeeping, so why not just make it all a little easier.

Greater commercial control of everything within your sphere of influence - When you have full control of your bookkeeping and accounting process, whether doing it alone or with the support of others who you can audit quickly and easily, you have a greater level of control of your business, and that is a good thing for all aspects of your life.

Decreased Stress - All of the items above contribute to or influence internal and external stress. Each person will value this benefit set differently, but all who embrace this solution will benefit from decreased stress in one form or another.

There is no better way to keep a pulse on your business than by doing your own books or by having the ability to very quickly and accurately assign categories to transactions and audit the work of others.

5) Small Business Accounting Best Practices + ZAP Accounting Part A = Holistic Programming for YOU

The optimal solution for bookkeeping is a holistic one in which Best Practices merge with software in a way that benefits the user the most.

The idea of "holistic" computer programming is our idea of the optimal solution for all software. Unfortunately, such solutions are not always the prettiest, nor the most automated, nor overly profitable, and this very tough fact for graphic designers, software developers, and entrepreneurs to really grasp. This split between software which is flashy, cool and profitable versus that which the small business folks need to ply their trade is why we are in such a quandary right now with a Silicon Valley. Silicon Valley is booming, yet a look at their offerings will often times reveal mediocre and/or very over-priced software solutions in almost every industry...

We (will) sell a short book which details our view on Small Business Accounting Best Practices. Below is an abbreviated blend of a few Small Business Accounting Best Practices with an ideal software use scenarios so you can recognize the systemic and holistic nature of the benefits of this "spreadsheet" solution.

* - Denotes generic Best Practice Guidance
** - Denotes guidance which only applies to ZAP Accounting Software

Your Tax Accounting process should always be separated from your Point of Sale System, your Invoicing System, your Payment Processing Systems, your Inventory System and and all other information systems *
Do your bookkeeping for tax accounting purposes in arrears and from bank statements, using the dates presented on the bank statements so you can take advantage of the aggregated reconciliation process used every day by IRS auditors and accountants. With this process, you are audit ready at the end of each bookkeeping cycle.*
Setup the income and expense account names to align with the categories on the tax form you are required to use for business or personal accounting to simplify your bookkeeping and tax preparation process. In days past, bookkeepers, accountants and consultants would help users create massive cost accounting categories and that only leads to headaches, heartache and problems for most.*
Start your monthly or quarterly bookkeeping process by entering your statement header data prior to entering transactions. This sets you up for aggregated reconciliation and it will allow you to correct any data errors prior to transaction categorization. **
Manually download transactions from your banking institutions in CSV format (comma separated values) or any delimited format offered. Cut and paste them into into ZAP Accounting Software Part A for quick and seamless semi-automated data imports. This eliminates the headaches of full automation, and it eliminates the time consuming and error prone process of manual data entry which many folks are still doing today for various logical reasons. **
Prior to transaction categorization, verify you are reconciled first!! With our system the aggregated reconciliation process happens automatically once statement data and transaction data is entered. No more item by item check marks. **
For transaction categorization, sort by Payee first and then categorize. This enables bulk transaction categorization that is faster than any memorized transaction system you've used prior. **
Make your bookkeeping and tax accounting process so efficient, it takes less than 4 hours per year of your time. If you do that, it should no longer be the least favorite part of your small business. **
Become familiar with Balance Sheet Preparation (ZAP Accounting Part B). Learn to do that yourself or with the help of a bookkeeping consultant or accountant familiar with ZAP Accounting software. The Balance Sheet is the cross check which says everything is really in order. **
Use an affordable and accessible Accountant who is familiar with ZAP Accounting Software for your final tax preparation. Using an accountant for tax preparation is as much about buying insurance as anything else. If your business is extremely simple, an accountant may not be needed, but often times, they know about a deduction or benefit you may not, and that savings alone pays for your tax filing fees *

Best Practices are required to get the Small Business Owner aligned to do bookkeeping in any solution, and then we've taken a spreadsheet solution and shown how it can be tailored to be the ideal solution for many who have prepared themselves with some Best Practice concepts.

Few people can find Best Practices outlined like we outline them because most Accountants, CPA's and small business consultants make money caring for others, not educating them. Few people can find Software like ours commercially available because as you're coming to realize, there was no prior commercial model that would really support this concept well without a lot more complications.

Times are changing and we're hopeful with this commercial and technological shift, a lot of folks will start to recapture the energy and control they've given up in recent incarnations.

6) Data Privacy and Security

This software, which is just a compilation of spread sheet files designed to be run in Google Sheets, is a fully stand alone bookkeeping solution with no connection back to us. There are also no connections to any app stores or upgrading services. These are standalone file templates and they are as secure as all data stored in Google Drive or on your hard drive.

To achieve the highest level of privacy we chose to use only standard spreadsheet functions and standard spreadsheet equations for all the core accounting functionality. We could have used some scripting functionality for the core accounting work, but as you will see in a video that is part of the Pre Licensing videos that triggering a script in Google Sheets files triggers an incredibly SCARY warning about the security of your data.

If you choose to use this on Google Drive and in Google Sheets...
In our opinion, Google has one of the best IT Security infrastructures on the planet, and having your data in your own Google Drive, separate from the accounting data silos where data is stored in like kind for millions of others is by far the best place for your accounting data.

7) The 220 Club -- A publisher with Free and Paid Offerings

For most, it will be easier to think of ZAP Accounting Software as publisher of education material, videos, software templates more so than a "software vendor".

Our commercial model looks nothing like a software company from a pricing and support perspective. Our commercial model and offering can be loosely aligned with old technology training books, where you'd buy a book with a disk or a cd in the back and you learned about computers and programming from a book. This time, you are buying a license for the software, and you are learning about the software from human beings and websites.

ZAP Accounting Software and associated learning material (videos, documents, flow charts, software templates etc) are 220 Club related offerings. The 220 Club is a very loosely organized club the prides itself on free and affordably priced publishing.

One of the 220 Club's goals is to increase global accounting and programming proficiency for the health of Mother Earth, and ZAP Accounting Software and the Small Business Best Practices Book are how those came to life.

For more on the 220 Club click here .

1) Introduction to ZAP Accounting Software

2) ZAP Accounting 'Software' is and is NOT...

​ZAP Accounting 'Software' is...

​ZAP Accounting 'Software' is NOT...

3) The ZAP Accounting Software "License" is...

4) The ZAP Accounting Software "Sponsored User Permit" is...

5) Comparative Benefits for ALL who use the software are...

There is no better way to keep a pulse on your business than by doing your own books or by having the ability to very quickly and accurately assign categories to transactions and audit the work of others.

​5) Small Business Accounting Best Practices + ZAP Accounting Part A = Holistic Programming for YOU

6) ​Data Privacy and Security

7) ​The 220 Club -- A publisher with Free and Paid Offerings

Simplify your accounting and spend the time and money saved on worthy endeavors ​

ZAP Accounting 'Software' is...

ZAP Accounting 'Software' is NOT...

5) Small Business Accounting Best Practices + ZAP Accounting Part A = Holistic Programming for YOU

6) Data Privacy and Security

7) The 220 Club -- A publisher with Free and Paid Offerings

Simplify your accounting and spend the time and money saved on worthy endeavors