Deductr

We are sitting down with John Thomas, CEO of Deductr, a free web-based and mobile app automated expense tracking service that maximizes tax deductions and helps small businesses stay in business by tracking their activity. How John came up with the idea and what differs Deductr from other similar apps, find out from our interview below.

Can you explain in a few words the idea behind this expense tracking tool and how it all started?

A couple friends and fellow entrepreneurs were frustrated by the lack of a tool for small business owners to track their expenses and mileage. The concept grew from simply making tracking business expenses easy, to showing the user their estimated tax savings!

Can you convince the reader to start using your product in one sentence?

Save time, save money and make tax time less taxing!

What differs Deductr from other similar tax tracking apps on the market?

The easiest program to use.

Track your mileage using our mobile app and the GPS in your smart phone.

Deductr is the only tool that lets you track time spent on your business. Validate your business and justify your deductions should you ever be audited.

Our patent-pending calendar allows you to easily link an activity (such as lunch with a client or prospect at a restaurant), with an expense (the credit card transaction from the restaurant), and mileage (tracked with our app and GPS or entered manually). All three events are linked together in a simple and easy to use “drag and drop” calendar. There is nothing like it anywhere!

Schedule C tax strategies such as home office deduction, the benefits of employing children under 18 in the business, and medical expense deductions when employing the spouse in the business.

Has Deductr got the feedback and growth you expected since its launch?

We have surpassed over 200,000 paying users on Deductr PRO, and most of that growth has been realized in the last 18 months. So yes, we have received the feedback, validation, and acceptance we expected, but it took a year longer than we hoped. We are now launching a free version of Deductr and putting this great tool in the hands of millions of users in 2014.

What's the biggest milestone you had to overcome as a company?

Releasing version 2.0 of Deductr PRO and our new free version – a major undertaking and investment 10 months in the making.

If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

Come out with our free version earlier. We are kind of “backing into” the Freemium model.

What is the coolest feature of Deductr in your opinion?

Our new calendar is revolutionary! It really will change the way people think about and visualize tracking and connecting their business activity, mileage, and expenses.

What is your advice for other entrepreneurs?

If you really think there is a pony in there, keep riding and don’t give up! However you need a few other smart people to agree with you.

What are you most excited about at the moment?

Putting the free version of Deductr in the hands of millions of users this year. Small/independent business owners now have a free tool designed specifically for them.

Pie in the sky, whose advice would you like to get? 

Steve Jobs: do something different – not just to be different, but because you believe in it!