Customer service software is a centralized platform that helps businesses manage their customer communication touchpoints. Designed to deliver excellent customer support, it typically requires an omnichannel approach that includes shared inboxes, live chat, in-app phone features, and ticketing tools. This article answers the question—what is customer service—and explores how it works, customer service tool types,…
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What Is a Tax Credit vs Deduction? Difference & Calculation
Federal tax credits and deductions both reduce the amount of tax you owe on your tax return, but the way the tax savings is calculated is very different. Tax deductions reduce the amount of your taxable income, whereas tax credits are directly applied against the tax you owe. Credits can reduce the amount of tax…
FICA Tax: What It is and How to Calculate It
FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) is a federal payroll tax on the paychecks of employees, as well as mandated contributions from employers to fund the Social Security and Medicare programs. Both employees and employers are responsible for paying 6.2% of employee gross earnings for Social Security and 1.45% of gross earnings for Medicare. These are…
What Is the Fraud Triangle in Accounting?
Designed by well-known criminologist Donald R. Cressey, the fraud triangle is a model for identifying the existence of fraud as exhibited in three risk factors: incentives, opportunities, and rationalization. It’s a guide for small business owners and managers to assess the possible areas in the business where fraud might exist. In the accounting process, we…
9 Sales Pipeline Stages Every Team Should Create
Sales pipeline stages are the steps within a sales cycle that identify the internal activities needed to move a prospect from initial contact to buying your products or services. These include tasks like prospecting, lead qualification, and product delivery—all of which can be tracked using customer relationship management (CRM) software. There are nine common stages…
Can I Claim the Meals & Entertainment Deduction?
If you own a business, you may be able to take the meals and entertainment deduction to lower your tax liability. Generally, you can deduct the cost of business-related meals and meals consumed while traveling overnight, whereas the business-related entertainment costs aren’t deductible. The purpose of the meal or event and who benefits from it…
What Are Accounting Controls? Types & Examples
Accounting controls are methods and procedures that prevent, detect, and correct misstatements that occur within the financial accounting process until the formation of the financial statements. They are one type of a larger set of internal controls that every business should follow. When we talk about accounting controls, we’re referring to controls within the accounting…
Industry-specific CRM or General Use CRM: Which to Use?
Customer relationship management (CRM) software provides businesses with a centralized location to input, store, and manage leads and customer interactions. Industry-specific CRMs offer more niche and specialized tools to help particular business types, including insurance, healthcare, and hospitality, move customers and prospects through sales cycles more quickly. Meanwhile, general-use CRMs provide more universal features applicable…