Is it $17K or $23K in sales?

You know what keeps me up at night?

Giving a farmer advice to improve their profits—only to realize I based my suggestions on bad numbers.

I was talking with a client the other day. She was running different reports, and something wasn’t adding up.

• Sales by product report: $17,000 in sales for the month
• Profit & Loss (P&L) report: $23,000 in sales

How Could These Numbers Be So Different?

And more importantly…

How do you analyze your business if you don’t even know which numbers are right?

As a business advisor, this is terrifying.

What if I assumed the $23K was correct and told her she was doing great—only to later realize the $17K was right, and she actually needed to make major changes?

💥 Stomach. Pit. Nausea.

The Good News: QuickBooks Leaves Clues

There are telltale signs in QuickBooks that let you verify your numbers so you can analyze your finances with confidence.

1️⃣ Know What Each Report Tells You

• Cash vs. Accrual Reporting:
  • Cash basis reports show only sales where payment has been received, not necessarily invoiced sales.
• Sales by Product Report:
  • Captures income from sales receipts and invoices.
  • Does not include sales recorded directly from the bank feed without an associated invoice or receipt.
• Profit & Loss Report:
  • Records all sales (invoiced and bank feed transactions).

2️⃣ Make Sure the Numbers Reflect Reality

One of my colleagues once said:
👉 “The number of ways people can mess up QuickBooks defies imagination.”

Dramatic? Maybe. But if you’ve used QuickBooks, you know—it can feel like a mystery.

So how do you know if the numbers are right?

Check the Balance Sheet

Yes, the balance sheet—the report most farmers avoid because it seems confusing—is actually where all the mistakes show up.

🔍 If your balance sheet numbers are off, your profit & loss numbers probably are too.
Example:

• You check accounts receivable on the balance sheet.
• In real life, you have $5,000 in outstanding invoices.
• But QuickBooks shows $25,000.
• This means you probably double-counted revenue somewhere.

Confusing? I know.

But don’t worry—I have a simple solution.

In this video, I share a few simple ways to ensure you know if the numbers on your QB report are correct.

If you want more tips and tools for your business advising toolkit, I invite you to join me in my new class, QuickBooks for Business Advisors.