This Canadian entrepreneur put QuickBooks on the Intuit platform to the test

There are few things I hate more than being pulled out of a flow state. 

As an entrepreneur running several businesses, I’m constantly forced to context switch. And yes, I’m one of those people with an infinite number of browser tabs open, and proud of it. I know exactly why each one is open and in what order. Organized chaos. IYKYK.

But sometimes that chaos gets the best of me. And I know I’m not alone.

“I’m excited to get my hands on the tool and use it as a single place to grow and run my business.”

I juggle multiple roles. I’m a self-employed fractional marketing lead, men’s stylist, freelance writer, and educator, and keeping it all together means relying on a patchwork of online tools that rarely work in sync. Sometimes I’ll forget to follow up with a styling client or realize weeks later that I never sent an invoice for a workshop. When there’s never enough time, things slip through the cracks.

So, when Intuit asked me to check out the reimagined QuickBooks on the Intuit platform, now available in Canada, I was excited to see how this might make my life easier. 

Already today, 10 million small and mid-market businesses worldwide are served on the Intuit platform. And Intuit, which is also the maker of products like Mailchimp and TurboTax, has been quietly working on a more powerful version of QuickBooks to bring together workflows, time-saving automation, and deeper insights all in one place for business customers.

For small businesses, that means less context switching, fewer browser tabs, and digital teammates to handle repetitive work. Sounds like just what I need. 

The interface

I got a chance to see the new platform in action, and my first impression was that the new user interface is modern and organized. I wanted to explore every tab to discover its true capability. But I’ll be honest, there’s a lot there. At first, I felt intimidated by the idea of learning yet another system. 

But the redesigned navigation stands out. The menu has been restructured to make it easy to find what I need to do quickly. There’s also a business feed that recommends tasks to help improve efficiency. That means I don’t have to adopt every feature on day one, and the platform can scale with me. But it also won’t let me forget to onboard the tools that could make me more productive.

The integrations

As they were innovating and building out their platform capabilities. Intuit surveyed small business owners and found they use between seven and 25 tools to manage their day-to-day operations.

I got curious and counted mine. I use 16 tools. Between accounting, data analytics, and marketing, it adds up fast. Even cutting that down by half would free up so much brain space. 

In the new QuickBooks, all the essentials, like Accounting, Expenses & Bills, a new Customer Hub, live under “My Apps” in the left-hand navigation. There are also integrations with Mailchimp, and other tools, which means I don’t have to jump between logins or learn QuickBooks-branded versions of software I already use. I can keep my workflows the same, just in one central place.

The agents

The model I tried is just the beta, but Intuit isn’t stopping there. Over the coming months, Intuit’s AI-driven expert platform powering QuickBooks will also roll out AI Agents, leveraging agentic AI. Think of these less like chatbots and more like virtual assistants that learn and get smarter as you work with them. 

There will be agents available for accounting, finance, customer, and project management. They’ll handle things like automatically categorizing transactions and analyzing financial data for forecasting, essentially doing the work for you.

The customer journey

One feature I’m especially excited about is customer lifecycle management. Until recently, my styling business focused mostly on new clients. But this summer, I started seeing repeat customers, and I’ve been looking for a tool that helps manage my sales leads and customer relationships. Most CRM platforms are too expensive or too feature-heavy for the size of my business, so I’ve been tracking most of my business manually.

But the new QuickBooks capability, Customer Hub, allows me to follow leads from initial consultation all the way to getting paid, while also helping me identify repeat customers. Right now, I can create estimates and collect reviews. But soon, I’ll also be able to schedule appointments, sign contracts directly in the platform, and use the Customer AI Agent to identify, qualify, and convert leads. 

Being able to keep track of my clients, automate follow-ups, and bill them all in one place would be a game-changer. Not only would I be able to keep track of the day-to-day, but having all the data connected would help me make future business decisions a lot quicker.

I’m excited to get my hands on the tool and use it as a single place to grow and run my business. Until now, “we” has meant me wearing every hat. With everything in one place and, soon, the help of AI Agents, it’ll feel more like a team effort.

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QuickBooks on the Intuit platform in beta is now available. Learn more here. 

This information is intended to outline our general product direction, but represents no obligation and should not be relied on in making a purchasing decision. Additional terms, conditions and fees may apply with certain features and functionality. Eligibility criteria may apply. Product offers, features, functionality are subject to change without notice.

Feature image courtesy Jacqueline Loganathan via Instagram.