Many of us have heard about “hot shot” accountants and bookkeepers who save clients untold cash by reorganizing sole proprietors into 501c-3 status, or moving trust funds into semi-secret offshore banks. These are typically fabrications that stretch credibility as much as the Internal Revenue Code.
What many small business owners do not realize is that a good bookkeeper or accountant really can save them big money – and without bending or breaking the law.
There are many ways that a small business QuickBooks accounting professional can help you see an overall marked improvement in your bottom line.
These are four of the most important:
1. Smoothing out your cash flow. If there is a single challenge that’s universal to almost every small business on the planet, it’s keeping the receivables coming in at a consistent rate. Utilities, Vendor Invoices, Payroll, and estimated tax payments all have to be paid regularly – even though your deposits might not keep pace.
A good accountant or small business bookkeeper can help you keep tabs on what you have coming in and out on a weekly basis, as well as help you anticipate upcoming expenses. This should be reason enough for any business owner to retain one.
2. Helping with the fine print. Lots of businesses are set up incorrectly; they’re established as sole proprietors when limited liability corporations would make more sense, for example, or arranged as S corporations when there’s no reason to justify the extra paperwork.
If you suspect your small business isn’t set up as optimally as it could be, a good QuickBooks accountant or bookkeeper can help you know. They know the ins and outs of the current laws, and they can assist your transition into a format that better suits both your short and long term goals.
3. Saving you money on taxes. While this is the best-known benefit to using an expert accountant – April 15 is to many CPAs what Valentine’s Day is to florists – it would be hard to overstate its importance. Millions of business owners in this country routinely miss out on tax credits and deductions they could claim, simply because they don’t know to look for them.
Having a QuickBooks accountant who knows the tax code, and your small business, can easily make a five or six-figure difference in your profit and loss sheet; that’s something important that few businesses can afford to overlook.
4. Making strong connections. Good accountants don’t simply know about taxes and payroll – they also know other top legal and financial professionals. If your QuickBooks accounting or bookkeeping professional has been in practice for more than a few years, it’s very likely that he or she can connect you to other pros in your area, and coordinate with them to insure that your small business and finances are being well taken care of.
Perhaps it’s interesting to hear about shady accountants who bend the law to hide millions of dollars, but the truth of the matter is that diligent QuickBooks accounting or bookkeeping professionals can save you quite a bit of time, worry AND money.
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Outsourcing business bookkeeping is surely an idea whose time has come.
Thanks for the great blog on the growth of outsourcing bookkeeping services. This is something I can refer my prpospective clients to read. I own a Portland Oregon Bookkeeper and Accounting Services company that helps clients with their accounting needs. I’m sure your information in this blog will help me and my mployees.
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