A Press Release From - Barnett Marketing Communications

For Immediate Release              For More Information, Contact: Ned Barnett 

Avalara’s Sales Tax Solution Links With Best Software Products to Solve Tax Problems for Businesses

Web Service Solution Removes Sales Tax Hassle for Users of MAS 90/200® and ACCPAC®

Anaheim, California – January 10, 2004:   AvaTax ST, the first on-demand sales and use tax web service provider to serve the small and medium business market with integrated ERP solutions, is now available to users of two popular accounting packages offered by Best Software – MAS 90/200 and ACCPAC.  This announcement was made at the Pacific Design and Manufacturing show in Anaheim – by Avalara, the developer of AvaTax ST – where Avalara is co-exhibiting with Best Software.

“With integration of AvaTax ST now available with two of Best’s widely-used products,” remarked Avalara’s President and Founder, Rory Rawlings, “a professional-level tax calculation service is now within the reach of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses.”

 “AvaTax ST works behind the scenes in both MAS 90/200 and ACCPAC Advantage Series™ to instantly validate the customer’s address,” Rawlings pointed out.  “Then, the service automates critical jurisdiction research, and accurately computes and applies necessary sales tax for each of the more than 8,000 North American sales taxing jurisdictions, thus providing total sales tax compliance.  The user never exits the customer and order screens of their accounting package.  In addition, AvaTax ST creates remittance reports on demand, saving hours of businesses’ valuable time and helping them to avoid the cost and nuisance of sales tax audits.”

“We are pleased to be here at the show with Best Software to present AvaTax ST as a value-added option for businesses using or interested in using its MAS and ACCPAC products,” added Rawlings.  “An affordable, web-service solution that offers small and medium businesses complete sales tax compliance, within their accounting package, has been needed on many levels, and Avalara has addressed that need.”

According to the “Business Minds” survey conducted by Best Software in November, 2004, aging hardware (29%) and increasing Internet usage (29%) are top technology concerns among small and medium businesses.  Over half the businesses polled resolved to decrease costs in 2005. “AvaTax ST is a stellar example of the evolution of web-service technology,” remarked Jared Vogt, Chairman and CEO of Avalara. “Web-service solutions, such as AvaTax ST, offer small and medium businesses flexible, on-demand services at a fraction of the price of purchasing and maintaining software in-house.”

“In the past, small and medium-sized businesses have had two choices.  They could either use error-prone, manual processes, or spend tens of thousands of dollars on costly software installations, along with the upgrades and constant updates needed to stay current with the more than 900 sales tax law changes that occur every year,” added Vogt.  “AvaTax ST is a third choice: low risk, low cost.  Businesses can forget about dealing with sales tax, and get on with the job of making their business successful.”

End users are already realizing the savings inherent in the AvaTax ST/Best Software integration.  Rancho Cucamonga-based Executive Envelope went from spending four hours per week on sales tax computations to just 15 minutes per month when it started using AvaTax ST last year.  “AvaTax ST for MAS 90 is an excellent tool.  Any business who charges their customers sales tax should be using it,” remarked Verna Wise, Executive Envelope’s Accounting Manager. 

AvaTax ST entered the market in Q3 of 2004, and is already in use by more than 120 partners and end-users.

About AvaTax ST
AvaTax ST is an “on demand” web service designed to deliver best practice solutions in sales and use tax compliance, as well as improved internal controls – and simply the best end-user experience.

AvaTax ST currently integrates with more third party financial packages than any other sales and use tax solution.  Products include AvaTax ST for Best Software’s ACCPAC® Advantage Series™, MAS90/MAS200, Microsoft’s Great Plains, and numerous others.  Available through resellers internationally, AvaTax ST is priced on a scalable fee structure, to accommodate any size business.

About Avalara
Headquartered on Bainbridge Island, Washington, Avalara is changing the sales and use tax landscape by delivering innovative and affordable web-service solutions geared to small and medium-sized businesses. Led by a team of industry experts in sales and use tax, security and information technology, Avalara's goal is to provide the easiest, most accurate and affordable way for any sized company to address all statutory sales and use tax requirements.  Additional news and information is available at www.avalara.com.

About Best Software
Best Software offers leading business management products and services that give more than 2.3 million small and mid-sized customers in North America the insight for success throughout the lives of their businesses. Its parent company, The Sage Group plc (London: SGE.L), supports 4.4 million customers worldwide. For more than 25 years, Best Software has delivered easy-to-use, scalable and customizable applications through its portfolio of leading brands, including Abra®, ACCPAC®, ACT!®, BusinessVision®, CPASoftware®, FAS®, MAS 90®, MAS 200®, MAS 500®, MIP®, Peachtree®, SalesLogix®, and Timberline® Office, among many others.
For more information about Best Software, please visit the Web site at www.bestsoftware.com/moreinfo or call (866) 308-BEST.

For more information about Avalara, contact:
Avalara Media Relations:  Ned Barnett, ned@barnettmarcom.com, 720-696-1200.