The Top 5 Barriers To Starting Your Bookkeeping Business And How To Overcome Them
De CidesaWiki
Peggy the Online Bookkeeper runs her business under the name of Peggy's Bookkeeping Service. She has a blog hosted at Posterous, the same service I use for mine. She has a Twitter page and has established a link between the two.
Once you have some experience behind you, you might want to think about opening your own business. Setting up a bookkeeping service does not involve a large investment. If you have a computer with bookkeeping software you are more than half way.
The first place you will have to make a stop at is your community college. Many colleges offer bookkeeping courses. These are availed both at the institution itself and in online accountant sources. The courses are flexible enough to meet your schedules.
Now that you've got your system in place, schedule in each week/month to keep your bookkeeping binder up-to-date. In between updating place all your receipts and invoices in a plastic folder so that everything is together when you come to update your system--it would be too time-consuming to add each receipt as you get it!
Your Online Bookkeeper will benefit because their schedule will be better structured and they can feel confident about freeing up time they may have tentatively penciled in for you. You are dealing with a professional and they will understand.
So the benefits of regular bookkeeping are many, and this only scratches the surface. But you're already spending your time running your operations and then any extra hours are spent growing the business and marketing your product. So hire a Online Bookkeeper, right? Then you have an employee to manage, and taxes and benefits to pay. Why not consider outsourcing your bookkeeping needs? There are multiple advantages to this approach. You decide how often to use the service. Bookkeeping rates are significantly less than licensed CPA firms. And you'll be working with an experienced professional whose only job is to keep your records straight and provide reporting as you need it.
What are their levels/types of service? Most, not all, firms will have levels and/or types of services. After consultation, they will make recommendations to you regarding what they can offer you. It is ultimately your decision which services you use.
Now that you have these tips at your disposal, finding that trustworthy accountant on you firm, office, small business or household would be very easy. You won't be bothered by pesky financial problems and you would be able to know your financial status of your firm, business or even at your own household.
If you need complex plumbing done on your home, pay for a plumber. If you need have a small business, and need small business consulting, then hire a business consultant. And if you have complex taxes, and need your taxes done, then hire a real tax accountant. Yes you do have all the tax preparation software packages and then there are the online tax preparers like TurboTax. With all of the recent changes in tax codes though, it would still be best to hire someone to do your business taxes.
Many freelance bookkeepers find that working at home can feel very isolating. So make sure you schedule time each week to meet with a friend so you can get out of the house. Even just going out for lunch for a couple of hours can really help with the "work at home blues".
Yellow Page Ads - in your local telephone book. It will depend upon what services you offer as to which section will apply to you. If bookkeeping is your focus then it is suggested you list your business under "bookkeeping service" or if you mainly provide typing services then "Typing Services" or "Administrative Services" would apply. Not every phone book is set up the same so it will depend upon your local phone company. If you live in a small town it might be a good idea to also list your company in the phone book of the closest large city, giving you even more exposure.
This same scenario might be playing out for you now. If you're engaging social media and finding folks who need your services, that is great. I'm glad this is working for you. If you're not engaging social media but you're asking how you can promote your services better, you need to engage social media. If you're not engaging social media but your customers and competitors are, you may lose all your customers.
When you first started your business, you probably did your own accounting; and that worked out fine. You were short on spendable capital and doing most of the necessary chores yourself was the only way to get started. But eventually, you got to a point where you really needed to concentrate on the income-producing aspects of your business and hire others to tend to the details.
The great news is that there are great bookkeeping service s available to you, provided that you ask the right questions. If you are thinking about putting a bookkeeping service in place for your small business, here are 5 questions to ask (in no particular order).
Shoe-box clients are the bread and butter of the accounting industry, but accountants often have to take a deep breath when they walk in the door. "Sometimes I think our clients confuse us with a personal organizing service," says one New York accountant. Most often these clients are referred to a Online Bookkeeper (at an average of $65/hour) to sort and organize before the CPA can begin preparing the tax return. Before your tax appointment, take the time to sort the contents of your shoebox by category. If you have several income documents, paper clip them together.
