How to Hire the Right Bookkeeper for Your Small Business Bench Accounting

Significantly underpay your quarterly estimated taxes, and you’ll get saddled with fines from the IRS. Overpay them, and you’re effectively giving the IRS an interest-free loan. Part of a bookkeeper’s job is to take every business expense you incur and categorize it properly. In the process of doing so, they’re able to flexible budgeting in an activity spot obvious deductible expenses such as mileage.

You might also want to think about what you really need as a business to see if their services are in line with your needs. Remote bookkeeping services, like firms, have multiple employees. This lets them avoid the kinds of service gaps that may crop up with an individual freelancer. This typically comes at the end of the financial year, when clients’ books need to be “closed” for tax season.

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1. They can also offer day-to-day support for small business owners.
2. Luckily, bookkeepers and bookkeeping software are here to take the stress out of daily administrative tasks and sort out that mountain of paperwork.
3. Accountants are usually more skilled and in a more advanced position than bookkeepers.
4. Typically, it’s more expensive to hire a firm than a freelance bookkeeper, since firms have higher overhead to cover.

You know what a bookkeeper does and what their day-to-day responsibilities look like. But how do these job duties translate as benefits for your business? A bookkeeper can help ensure your business finances are organized and lets you focus on running and growing your small business. Trusting an outside bookkeeper with something as important as accounting is a real leap of faith. Bookkeepers must be committed to maintaining open and honest what is construction in progress accounting: everything you need to know communication channels so that clients never feel out of the loop.

Solo bookkeeping vs bookkeeping firm

Bookkeeping is a valuable service, but it must still be fairly priced. Learn what pricing structure is in place, and don’t hesitate to bring up hidden costs and punitive fees. Once you have a clear understanding of costs, compare those to the cost of in-house accounting and to the fees of other prospective bookkeepers. Remember that lowering your current costs may be possible, but the overarching goal is to improve accounting. Anyone with access to sensitive employee and financial data must guard it aggressively. Find out what  measures a prospective bookkeeper takes to ensure digital security and personal privacy.

Juvy is a highly experienced HR and payroll software writer with over 12 years of dedicated expertise. She has a deep passion for technology and a keen understanding of the HR and payroll industry. You should consider hiring an accountant when you require expertise in complex financial matters, tax compliance, or strategic financial guidance. Some cities and states have begun enacting pay transparency laws where companies must list a target salary or a salary range in the public job ad. Even if your company doesn’t have an office in one of these locations but you’re open to hiring someone remotely, you’ll need to comply with these laws. However, if you’re hiring a freelance bookkeeper, you may not have to consider such compliance laws—more often than not, these only apply when hiring an employee.

Learn how to build, read, and use financial statements for your business so you can make more informed decisions. Not sure where to start or which accounting service fits your needs? Our team is ready to learn about your business and guide you to the right solution. Xero does not provide accounting, tax, business or legal advice. You should consult your own professional advisors for advice directly relating to your business or before taking action in relation to any of the content provided.

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While bookkeepers have no licensing requirements like a CPA, voluntary organizations can certify applicants. You want a bookkeeper who is up-to- date on relevant laws and maintains a certain skill level. To save time, use our free bookkeeper job description template, which you can tweak according to your sales register business needs. And, continue reading for other considerations when you are looking for a bookkeeper. Accountants have more education under their belts, and with additional qualifications come higher rates.

This is their career, so they need to stay on top of it to make a living. So, they are more likely to pay closer attention and know what exactly to do and how to do it. Both bookkeepers and accountants are integral to a company’s financial management, but they have distinct roles and responsibilities.

You may also want to see if they’ve handled bookkeeping for other businesses that are around the same size and structure as yours. After you’ve figured out what type of bookkeeper you need, determine what bookkeeping process best suits your company. Paper-based bookkeeping means gathering your physical papers and records and reviewing them in person.