As an accounting professional for over 25 years, I have had the pleasure of working with several business owners. As a business owner myself, I also know how hard it is to do everything in a business. I often say, business owners have many jobs, but bookkeeping does not have to be one of them.
As a business owner, you may think you have to handle your own accounting or you may not be sure why you need to hire a professional bookkeeper. Maybe you are uncomfortable sharing financial information about your business, or maybe you feel you cannot afford professional bookkeeping services yet. Below I am going to address some of these thoughts on bookkeeping services and why you should hire a professional bookkeeper, whether it is me or someone else.
Bookkeeping Takes Time. Even if you are a small business, handling your bookkeeping takes time. The time it takes to go over expenses, collect receipts, invoice customers, record payments and connect to the correct invoice, enter and pay bills and categorize all these transactions correctly to the Chart of Accounts takes time. As a business owner, you probably want to free up as much of your time to grow your business as possible, and that is what you should do. Outsourcing these tasks to a professional bookkeeper does just that, so you can focus on what you want, growing your business.
Confidentiality and Liability. Sometimes as business owners, we feel very protective of our business, and rightly so. Especially when it comes to our financial information. I cannot speak for other bookkeepers, but I can speak for myself and my bookkeeping firm. There is a code of ethics that I (and honestly, many bookkeepers I know) we adhere to. Confidentiality! I have had business owners worry about what they spend their money on, no joke. The truth is, if it is not illegal or immoral, I don't care. In fact, what a professional bookkeeper does care about, making sure business expenses are categorized in the correct accounts along with keeping business and personal money separate. Lastly, a professional bookkeeper knows they can be held liable for sharing financial information without consent. It is a big no no!
Affordability of a professional bookkeeper. So this one is interesting, especially in the field of accounting. While it is true, outsourcing to a bookkeeper cost you money, it also saves you money. As most business owners know, outsourcing to a contract professional means you do not have to cover payroll taxes, workers comp and other payroll fees, insurance, paid time off, and other expenses connected to payroll. Along with that, bookkeeping errors can be costly to a business. So in reality, it saves businesses money to outsource their bookkeeping to a professional.
Confusion and overwhelm. Part of bookkeeping is creating organization out of chaos. By definition, this is what bookkeeping is: the activity or occupation of keeping records of the financial affairs of a business (doesn't that sound like fun!) While many people may find the puzzles that often come with bookkeeping overwhelming, we don't. Clarity comes from diving deep into a challenge and following the numbers. It comes from having a professional bookkeeper explain those numbers to you and talking to you about your financial statements so you understand what they say about your business.
I use Quickbooks, Xero, Wave Accounting or..... So I don't need a bookkeeper. While some accounting programs promote that they are great for non accounting professionals, this simply is not always true. There are reasons why one of the most requested services in bookkeeping is called Clean Up Accounting. It sometimes takes just one wrong "click" and boom, you have a mess. By the way, it is customary for accounting professionals to charge a higher fee for Clean Up work than for regular monthly bookkeeping. That is because Clean Up work involves a ton more work to unravel the mystery of your books. Who likes puzzles?
I could go on and on about the importance of having a professional bookkeeper work on your accounting for you, but I know most people reading this are business owners and very busy. Besides, my heading says 5 Reasons You Need to Hire A Professional Bookkeeper and I am too lazy to go back and change it.
I want to add that I do my best to educate business owners and try to help you all understand your accounting with tips I share on my social media as well as her on my blog. However, this can't possibly equate to having an experienced professional do your accounting. But I do my best to help as much as I can. So make sure to follow me on social media and maybe I will help you get a handle on your bookkeeping until you feel comfortable enough to hire a professional, like me! (Links on the home page)
If you have any further questions about this or other bookkeeping subjects, please contact me at Rebecca@RHBizSolutions.com. I look forward to talking to you about your bookkeeping needs.
Here's To Your Success!
Rebecca Hurt
RH Business Solutions
Disclaimer:
Any accounting, business or tax advice contained in these articles, including attachments and enclosures, is not intended as a thorough, in-depth analysis of specific issues, nor a substitute for a formal opinion, nor is it sufficient to avoid tax-related penalties. Please seek consultation from the appropriate accounting/tax professional.