We’re happy you are part of the Aplos family, and we are here to help you get started. Below are recommended steps to help you get on your way. Each step will provide a link to the referenced area in the software, as well as a resource that specifically goes over the process in more detail. If you have any questions, contact our award-winning Support Team.
For those interested, you can download or print a PDF of our Quick Start Guide for Accounting & Finances. Also, here is a video recording of our weekly webinar that goes over these setup steps.
Step 1: Add Your People
It’s easy to import contacts within Aplos! If you have an Excel file of your donors and/or vendors, along with their contact information, our contact import tool can quickly bring those details into your account.
Importing And Updating Contacts
Step 2: Edit Your Chart of Accounts and Set Your Starting Balances
We have started you with a basic chart of accounts that you can edit to reflect your preferred structure. You’ll want to set the starting balances for any of your asset or liability accounts so your register balance matches your bank. These should be the balances of your bank accounts as of the first transaction you enter in Aplos.
Setting Up Your Chart Of Accounts
Step 3: Create Your Budget
Setting up your budget will help you project income and expense goals for your fiscal year. Once you set your budget, and as you enter transactions, you can run budget reports to see if your spending and revenue are matching your goals.
Creating Your Annual Budget In Aplos
Step 4: Create and Link Your Purposes
To track donations and prepare contribution statements in Aplos you need to create purposes in the Donations section. You can then link this purpose to the related accounts in your accounting if you want your contribution deposits to also post in the bookkeeping.
Step 5: Online Donation Form
Giving people an option for recurring donations will help keep your donations a little more predictable. Create your Aplos online donation form and share this with your people, or add it to your website so they can set up a weekly or monthly recurring gift to your organization.
Step 6: Invite Other Users
You can share access with the rest of your team by adding them as a user with a role permission in the Settings section. You can also create a Group or Team for your board or volunteers from any of the contacts in your People section. Then you can invite them to a private group portal to schedule meetings, share documents, and sign up for volunteer opportunities.
