A DIY approach to your small business's finances might not cut it. Consider hiring a bookkeeper or an accountant to keep track of data. Hire a bookkeeper or an accountant when there is need in help with the collection, analysis and reporting of financial information. They can interpret financial data in order to help you make better business decisions when it comes to your company's money.

 

Small business owners need financial data to be current and accurate so you can make good business decisions and ensure you have a healthy cash flow. As a business grows and they take on more customers, vendors, and employees, keeping track of how much money you have coming in and going out of your business gets complex – and time-consuming.

 

Bookkeeper or Accountant?

When the accounting tasks for your small business are too much to handle by yourself, it's time to hire help. But do you need an accountant or a bookkeeper? The terms are sometimes used interchangeably, and there can be some overlap in what they do, but there are some distinct differences.

 

A bookkeeper performs the basic financial tasks that your business needs done daily (although they often don't work daily). This includes things like making sure your accounts receivable and accounts payable are both kept track of and up to date. ... If you collect sales tax, a bookkeeper can also help you get that paid.

 

An accountant is more advanced. They can perform bookkeeping functions, but they also go deeper—preparing financial statements and even prepping tax documents (though they can’t file them). An accountant keeps an eye on the bigger picture, looking less at the day-to-day activity, and more at top-level reporting.

 

Answer these questionsto know what’s best for your business:

1. How complex are your books?

2. Are you at the kind of scale where day-to-day bookkeeping tasks don’t give you enough information to make decisions.

3. How much do you need strategy help?

4. Do you know that your financials are healthy, and are you equipped to make big decisions based on the foundational numbers from your accountant?

5. Are you prepared to pay a premium for accounting services?

 

Our thoughts:

Consider an accountant if you need to look at your financial statements strategically in a way that a bookkeeper can’t. 

Remember that you can always engage an accountant for special projects or periodic audits; don’t do that with a bookkeeper, because they need to be helping you on a daily or shorter-term basis.

 

For our business needs we have an outside accountant and for day-to-day and inside bookkeeper. Saves money. 

We collaborate with our accountant online by using a common business tool called Quickbooks.

Why? Quickbooks is the most popular small business accounting software businesses use to manage income and expenses and keep track of the financial health of their business. You can use it for invoicing customers, paying bills, generating reports, and preparing taxes.