Shamus, The sole qualification for getting on the SSA shortlist is 2.5% of votes cast, no matter how good or bad the score given in those votes is. What the shortlist largely reflects is how hard the payroll suppliers lobby their customers to get the vote out, and for various reasons we didn't try particularly hard this year. To put things into perspective, in the last 3-4 years Moneysoft has been missing more than once, and the award has been won by products that barely register on anyone's radar and have a total client base that is absolutely tiny. The winners just worked hard to persuade a large proportion of all their clients to vote and give them a good score, and good luck to them for managing that.
The percentage of votes cast has no effect on actual ultimate ranking. It is the scores given by users that determine that. Theoretically the highest ranked product might not meet the 2.5% votes criterion.
-- Edited by Tom McClelland on Tuesday 29th of October 2013 05:23:57 PM
I was genuinely surprised not to see 12pay in the Payroll category. (brightpay have pole position in that category and I had not even heard of them before).
No other great shocks in there.
For bookkeeping software seems that VT+ and Xero are neck and neck with only 5% of the votes. Freeagent, Sage 50, Kashflow and then quickbooks hold top four positions respectively.
Nice to see VT Accounts holding pole position for Accounts production ahead of Iris and Sage (the Taxcalc offering was only released this year which would explain its absence).
The figures don't actually mean anything. The software that you choose should be whats right for you. But, the voting does show what is popular with others... Again, considering the takeup here why isn't 12pay on the Payroll list where moneysoft is?
Anyway, just thought that you might like to see the software lists,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
As I said, it was a real shock that you didn't appear in the list (personally I would have expected you at the top of it). It all falls into place now.
I will say though that nobody from VT has lobied me so I'm hoping that their score is a good reflection of reality unlike the Payroll vote.
kind regards,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
The funny thing about most awards is that almost no-one other than the software suppliers and the award organisers has any real conception of the process. The SSA is more complex than most, and with that complexity it aims to make the results fairer. But to be honest I'm aware of numerous oddity results over the years, and not just in the payroll section, which has made me more skeptical about it. I'm not certain that the marketing benefit is even that significant, though some years we've tried hard and been disappointed to be pipped at the post.
It is still better than judged awards, which rest almost entirely on which supplier can write the best PR puff to impress the judging panel.
BTC cleaned up in the Tax and Practice management categories.
VT Accounts won accounts production software (way to go VT, 80% satisfaction score)
Freeagent took the small business accounts crown with a satisfaction score of 90% (VT+ got 77%, Sage and Quickbooks both scored pretty poorly this year).
Well, I already run VT accounts and VT+ but the results mean that I will now also be taking a look at BTC and Freeagent to check out why they scored so well.
Have fun having a read of the above plus the links from it,
All the best,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
