QuickBooks Software Integration : Big Changes

Charlie Russel for Sleeter Group writes: I firmly believe that an important feature of ANY accounting product is the ability to create an ecosystem of add-on products created by third-party developers. If an accounting product can’t let other companies expand its feature set, that product is severely limited. That is why I pay so much attention to the ways that you can integrate with products like QuickBooks (desktop and Online) and Xero. It’s a key point made by Greg Lam in his Cloud Accounting Comparison. It is also a major component of Doug Sleeter’s concept of Chunkification.

With that in mind, at the Sleeter Group Accounting Solutions Conference, Intuit announced several MAJOR changes in their policies for add-on product development for QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online. The two main points (from my perspective) are that Intuit is now saying:

• If you develop products for QuickBooks Desktop, use the SDK. This is a 180 degree change from what they’ve been saying for several years now.
• If you develop products for QuickBooks Online, they are dropping all developer fees. This is a significant move towards an “open API” to encourage developers to work with QuickBooks Online.

This is a major change in their approach to add-on products!

I have to say that I am truly surprised by this, these are things that I’ve been advocating for, along with many add-on developers, for years.

In addition to those major changes, Intuit also announced:

• The release of the IPP/QuickBooks API V3, which allows developers access to a more consistent, easy to use and global-ready programming interface.
• Intuit.Apps.com is now fully functional, taking over from the Intuit App Center, providing better app discovery features for consumers looking for add-on products
• Intuit has a partnership with American Express that will provide a tighter integration between QuickBooks products and the American Express small business “Receipt Match” product.

Let’s review how add-on products work with QuickBooks, what this new policy means for developers, accounting professionals and product users. There are a lot of complicated details!

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