Sleeter Group QuickBooks Conference - November 9-12 - recommended

Note: For anyone who may stumble across this on the web - we are Sage MAS 90 consultants and my comments below are what I sent to my private email list of VARS who regularly share information about not only our products (Sage) but also competitors. Even though we don't represent QuickBooks we find it important to always stay on top of competing products so we can understand their capabilities. While it may seem "odd" - we often will recommend a competing product if we find that the one we represent does not fit.

I went to this Sleeter Group conference last year. While I cannot say that it converted me to a QuickBooks believer -- there is a LOT to be said for spending a few days with people who sell competing products. Most of the attendees fall into the small bookkeeper category -- so do not expect to be learning much about running a practice. They do know a lot about the product and they're pretty vocal about shortcomings. Overall the conference is extremely high quality and there is LOADS of information on QuickBooks.

This is a GREAT way to get information about QuickBooks. If you sell against them (or for them) and want an update on their technical capabilities - you should think about attending.

Most telling sessions where those that demonstrated report writing. All the reporting tools I saw were WYSIWYG and canned -- looked like a horror show to me. Several of the presenters openly said that they "don't like to mess with Crystal Reports" -- this is great information because if the highly skilled trainers don't like to mess with a tool you can bet there's a problem there (complexity, functionality, etc)

I'm not sure whether I'll attend this year -- the timing (November 9-12) is up directly against the Sage Summit in Atlanta.

FYI and as usual -- your mileage may vary...I highly recommend this conference. Sleeter Group puts on a great show - if you cannot make the conference then I highly recommend you consider joining their group and/or purchasing their "how to" guides for QuickBooks

Guides:

http://www.sleeterstore.com/servlet/Detail?no=159

Sleeter QuickBooks Conference:

http://www.sleeterconference.com/