What Makes Payroll Delightful?

When I was in Las Vegas recently I met with Joshua Reeves, CEO and co-founder of ZenPayroll, which calls itself a “full-service modern payroll provider.” The strengths of the product, according to Reeves, "lie in its delightful design, ease of use and pricing.  Set up only takes 10 to 15 minutes!"

ZenPayroll is a relatively new kid on the block, having launched approximately 2 years ago. Despite its recent entrance into the payroll industry, the company has grown rapidly, processing over $160 million in annual payroll as of October 2013, up 60% from August.  Here's what we talked about:

IA:  What is ZenPayroll and why should accounting professionals pay attention to ZenPayroll?

JR:  ZenPayroll is a full-service payroll provider that is on a mission to bring the power of modern software to payroll. By simplifying a manual process and making it more affordable, we help accounting professionals save time, expand their offerings and increase revenue.

IA:  How did you get into the payroll business?

JR:  All three of us [the founders of ZenPayroll] had started businesses previously, and we also have friends or family members who are involved in payroll in their jobs.  We all felt the pain of processing payroll month in and month out. Having backgrounds in software development, we knew there was a better, more efficient way to run payroll than what we had experienced. That’s how we became determined to build the payroll service of our dreams.

IA:  Does ZenPayroll work with all major accounting platforms?

JR:  We currently support Xero and QuickBooks Desktop and are eager to expand to QuickBooks Online.

IA:  What is on the horizon for ZenPayroll?

JR:  More accounting platform integrations now that we launched our API (in October), which will grow our ecosystem. Geographic expansion is also a priority. We currently support businesses in CA, TX, FL, IL, WA, CO and NY, which covers 40% of the nation’s population.  We are adding MA, CT and NJ next.

IA:  Where do accounting professionals fit into your overall “go to market” strategy?

JR:  Accounting professionals are extremely important to our growth.  We offer an Accounting Professional Reseller Program.  CPAs, accountants, and bookkeepers can sign up to get a free dashboard and add companies as they bring them on board.  They receive a volume discount based on the number of companies they have on the platform. As their volume increases, so do their discounts. We direct bill the accountants so they can leverage their increasing discounts for increased revenue, or pass along the savings to their clients.

IA:  How do you plan to increase your foothold in this very competitive space?

JR:  We plan to exhibit at future accounting events and share our story with various media outlets. We also rely on word of mouth. We recently surveyed our clients and 87 out of 100 customers had recommended ZenPayroll to someone else!

IA:  In closing, what would you like to share with our audience?

JR:  The best analogy for who we are in the payroll space is Apple vs. DOS - and we’re Apple. We’re very excited about the trend of accounting firms becoming total solution providers because we offer accounting professionals a new revenue stream opportunity without the headaches typically associated with payroll. Our software is simple, comprehensive, fast and secure. It’s automated, so we do most of the heavy lifting, but accounting professionals can always turn to our support team for help. Lastly, we built the platform to provide a delightful experience that will strengthen the relationships between employers and their employees.

This is the first of many profiles we'll be running over the next couple of weeks, so keep reading Intuitive Accountant and make sure you subscribe to our newsletter to ensure you are getting the most up to date information on the "happenings" in the profession.