How To Choose the Right Accounting Service for Your New Business

How To Choose the Right Accounting Service for Your New Business

As you pull together the last details in preparation for your new business launch, don’t forget to put an excellent accounting system in place right from the very beginning. Unless you plan to have an accountant on staff, you will likely need outside help to keep records, manage your books, and handle your taxes. Courtesy of The Tax Loft, the following guide can help you find the right service to fit your needs, especially if you don’t have a list of recommendations to work from.

Determine Your Business Needs

To begin, how much time do you anticipate it will take to keep the financial end of your company running smoothly? Think about:

• How you will keep records of sales, expenses and bills
• Who will pay your bills
• How you will create a budget and make sure you stay on track
• What tools or software you’ll need to handle financial management

Depending on the size and scope of your business, you may only need to hire someone for a few days each month, or you may need daily or weekly help.

Decide Whether You’ll Need Payroll Services

If you have employees, it may make sense to look for payroll services along with accounting services, such as The Tax Loft. A managed payroll service will ensure your employees are paid accurately and on time and that the complicated mix of variable tax rates, withholdings, pay scales, and benefits are all handled correctly without errors or compliance issues. Make sure the service you choose has plenty of useful features, including automated taxes.

Weigh the Pros and Cons of Outsourcing

Deciding what company to work with — or whether to use a service at all — is a personal choice and should be a good fit for the type of company you have. Beyond just your basic needs, determine what features are important to you, such as price, value for your money, personalized service, and location:

• Cost — How do the accounting service fees compare to the cost of hiring a full-time or part-time accountant?

• Value — What will you get for your money? What resources and tools are included?

• Relationship — Will you be working with the same person who will be familiar with your company’s needs?

• Local, national or international — What type of firm is best suited for your company? Are you comfortable working with a company based in another country, or would you rather transact with a local firm?

Keep Tax Time in Mind

More and more small businesses are opting to outsource tax preparation, and for good reason. When tax season rolls around, you want to feel confident your company’s records are accurate, organized and utilized correctly so that you don’t encounter any issues.

When you work with an accountant or accounting services firm, those records are organized and notated correctly from the very beginning so that there won’t be any scrambling to get everything in order at the last minute. They keep your taxes in mind all year so that you don’t have to.

Don’t Rule Out Doing It Yourself

If you’d love to handle the accounting side of things yourself, there are ways you can make that happen. For example, you could head back to school to pick up a degree that will bolster your skills in this area. Fortunately, enrolling in an online program will allow you to further your education while also handling your business. Flexible schedules make it easy to fit these classes into your busy life. It will take some hard work and dedication to balance all of things at the same time, but with some determination, you can make it all come together.

Deciding who will manage your accounting can make or break your company and could be the difference between constant financial stress and being able to focus on what you and your business do best. Research your options carefully, paying close attention to what other business owners are saying about their accounting services.

Written by: Michael Longsdon/ ElderFreedom.net