A lot of business owners spend money every day without properly tracking where it goes. Small purchases pile up quietly, supplier payments get forgotten, and at the end of the month, it becomes difficult to explain why profits feel smaller than expected.
Recording your business expenses consistently helps you understand how money moves through your business. You begin to see what costs are necessary, what expenses are increasing too quickly, and where your money is going most often.
Proper expense tracking also helps with:
– Budget planning
– Tax reporting
– Vendor management
– Profit analysis
– Financial decision-making
With BrandDrive’s expense tracking system, your expenses stay connected to your reports, accounting records, vendors, and overall business performance in one place.
In this section, you’ll learn how to:
– Navigate to the Expenses section
– Categorize and record business expenses
– Manage vendors and multi-currency expenses
– Record full or partial payments
Recording Your Business Expenses
Step 1: Open the Expenses Section
From your dashboard, click on Bookkeeping at the top navigation bar.
A dropdown menu will appear.
Select Expenses from the list.
This opens your Expenses dashboard, where you can view the following:
– Expense history
– Spending summaries
– Recorded payments
– Outstanding expenses
Using Filters to Find Specific Expenses
If you already have multiple transactions recorded, BrandDrive gives you filtering tools to help you locate expenses faster.
Search Bar
Use the search bar to find a specific expense using:
– Vendor name
– Reference number
– Expense description
Category and Currency Filters
Click the orange filter icon to open the filter options.
From here, you can filter expenses by:
– Category
– Currency
For example, you can choose to view the following:
– Advertising expenses
– Transport costs
– USD transactions, etc.
Date Filter
Use the calendar icon to select a specific timeframe.
This becomes useful when reviewing:
– Weekly expenses
– Monthly spending
Step 2: Start a New Expense Entry
Click the blue Add New Expense + button at the top of the page.
If your business operates across multiple branches, select the branch or outlet connected to the expense.
For businesses with only one location, BrandDrive automatically selects the default branch for you.
Categorizing and Recording Expenses
Step 3: Select an Expense Category
To keep your records organized properly, every expense should belong to a category.
Scroll down to the Expense Category section.
You can:
– Click the orange + icon to Add an Expense Category
Then choose the appropriate category for the expense.
Examples include:
– Advertising & Promotions
– Furniture & Fittings
– Airtime, Data & Power
– Transportation
– Office Supplies etc.
Using categories properly makes your reports easier to understand later.
For example, you can quickly see:
– How much goes into operations monthly
– Which areas consume the most money
– What expenses are increasing over time
Step 4: Add Expense Details
Next, enter:
– A short description of the expense
– The amount spent
– The vendor or payee
This helps you maintain clearer records of who received payment and what the expense was for.
For example:
– Diesel supply for office generator
– Facebook advertising campaign
– Office chairs purchase etc.
Vendor tracking also helps you monitor how much your business spends with specific suppliers over time.
Managing Currency and Payment Dates
Step 5: Set Currency and Important Dates
On the right side of the page, you’ll manage the transaction details.
Currency
Select the currency used for the expense.
If the expense was made in a different currency from your default business currency, BrandDrive gives you the option of inputting the exchange rate.
This becomes useful for businesses working with:
International suppliers
Cross-border payments
Foreign invoices
Expense Date
This is the actual date the expense happened.
Payment Due Date
Use this when recording bills or expenses that have not been fully paid yet.
This helps you keep track of upcoming payments and outstanding liabilities.
For example:
– Supplier invoices
– Monthly rent
– Utility bills
– Logistics payments
Saving and Recording Payments
Once all the details are complete, click Save.
BrandDrive gives you two options.
Save and Close
Use this option if the expense has not been paid yet.
The expense will still be recorded, but the outstanding amount remains visible inside your dashboard under the Amount Due section.
This helps you keep track of pending payments without forgetting them later.
When you’re ready to pay:
1. Locate the expense in your list
2. Click the action menu (three dots)
3. Select Record Payment
Save and Record Payment
Choose this option if payment has already been made either fully or partially.
Once selected, the Record Payment window appears.
Here, you can:
– Enter the amount paid
– Select the payment method
– Confirm the payment date
If only part of the expense was paid, BrandDrive automatically calculates the remaining balance for you.
Supported payment methods include:
– Cash
– Bank Transfer
– Card
– Other payment channels
This helps you maintain accurate payment records without manual calculations.
Managing Your Expense History
After saving, the expense appears immediately inside your Expenses section.
Because BrandDrive is connected across your business operations, the expense automatically reflects inside your:
– Sales & Expense Reports: Giving you an instant view of your net profit.
– Vendor Records: Helping you track how much you’ve spent with specific suppliers over time.
This means you do not need to enter the same figures multiple times across different systems.
Over time, by staying intentional with these entries, you move from simply spending money to managing capital for your business’s next level of growth and your records remain clean for when tax season arrives.
