Managing Subscription Business Accounting
The subscription or recurring revenue business model has grown in popularity over the past decade because it can create a tighter relationship between sellers and customers and establish a regular, more predictable revenue stream. However, corporations have had to deal with a singular set of challenges associated with this business model because it introduces layers of complexity in managing transactions that do not exist in a one-time sale.
Ventana Research strongly recommends that corporations with a subscription or recurring revenue business model adopt a continuous accounting approach to manage these transactions. Technology has made it possible to not only remove operational constraints that once limited sales and marketing flexibility but also streamline back-office processes, shorten the accounting close and improve customer satisfaction. Automation improves data quality and strengthens controls by substantially reducing human error in the process. Continuous accounting is an elegant approach that uses technology to measurably improve a company’s operational and financial performance. We assert that by 2025, fewer than one-third of subscription companies will have adopted continuous accounting, giving those that do a business advantage.