At the end of the day, it’s all about the money. Business, especially small businesses, have to know where their money is and what it’s doing. That includes the most important money of all: unpaid invoices. For most small businesses, dealing with invoices and getting paid on time is a constant battle. Fortunately, new tools and mobile services are allowing small business owners to win the invoicing battle, according to Karen Peacock, SVP and small business segment leader at Intuit Inc.

To gain some insight into new options for small business owners, John Walls (@JohnWalls21) and Jeff Frick (@JeffFrick), co-hosts of theCUBE*, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, spoke to Peacock during Intuit’s QuickBooks Connect conference in San Jose, CA.

Partners and cashflow

The conversation started with a quick look at the value of partnerships for helping small businesses. Peacock mentioned how partnerships are possible in new ways, thanks to today’s technology. Companies can make use of seamless integration, applications and solutions powered by anyone in the world. This flexibility helps small businesses so much more than before, Peacock explained.

Small businesses do need the help. Cashflow, especially, is an issue. Peacock said that waiting on invoices to be paid is a constant worry. Because of this, Intuit worked on driving innovation in ways to speed up the payment process. One of these, online invoices, changes the equation so companies are paid the same day.

“Getting paid can be a black box. When the life of your business depends on a black box, that’s not a happy place to be,” Peacock said.

More money, more time

On the other side of the cashflow coin, funding is also a problem for small businesses. Peacock spoke about how Intuit flipped this on its head and made the application process just a few clicks. The lender can see the finances through QuickBooks, which is one of the benefits of a big data approach. The system is seamless for the business.

Time, too, is a pressing matter for small businesses. Peacock offered Inuit’s solution, which is to improve the new-user experience so the user can see how their business is doing as quickly as possible. She said they are also very focused on mobile solutions, so the user can do everything from their phone. “So much more is possible there,” Peacock said.   

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of QuickBooks Connect.

*Disclosure: Intuit and other companies sponsor some QuickBooks Connect segments on SiliconANGLE Media’s theCUBE. Neither Intuit nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.

Photo by SiliconANGLE