Clear financial records are vital to business owners, so B2BeeMatch is here to provide our guide to small-business bookkeeping services! Whether you’re trying to improve the financial health of your business or sort through the wild world of tax code, we want to make sure that you're prepared for financial success.
In this post, we'll go through the importance of organizing your bookkeeping records, the process of hiring professional bookkeepers and, finally, provide some bookkeeping tips! We’ll also introduce you to some of B2BeeMatch’s many members with excellent bookkeeping (and accounting) businesses—these financial professionals can help you manage all of your daily transactions.
What do bookkeepers do?
Bookkeepers are integral to accounting. They collect and organize accurate records of your business finances: they are responsible for gathering, sorting and storing all of your business finances, including invoices, receipts, tax forms, tax returns, deductible expenses, payroll and bank statements. Accountants use the data provided by bookkeepers to produce financial analysis and reports. While modern bookkeeping and accounting have become increasingly automated with business accounting software like Bench or QuickBooks Online's services, an experienced bookkeeper can save a small-business owner from the many headaches that come with balancing their business accounts.
Every business needs a solid bookkeeping process
Without a bookkeeping system, something will inevitably get forgotten when tax season rolls around—for example, a lunch with a client, the office supplies that you buy on a daily basis and so on. These relatively small expenses can add up quickly when it's time to start your tax filings or break down your business’s future with an accountant. What if a customer takes issue with a charge that has no complete records? What if you have late-paying customers who don’t have clear customer invoices? Further, if you hope to open new business bank accounts or take out business loans in the future, the clear financial reports of your business's revenue and expenses—your income statements—will be essential documents.
Whether you're running a cash-only brick-and-mortar store or an online empire, compiling a year's worth of paper receipts and electronic receipts can be exhausting. Keeping this information on the books is an important task, but it can quickly become overwhelming if you don't have access to basic bookkeeping necessities. Expense tracking is much simpler when you have access to a public accountant or tax professional—or even a QuickBooks account.
B2BeeMatch strongly recommends that you invest in a dedicated bookkeeper or at least reach out for an accountant’s advice to improve your current record-keeping efforts. An accountant’s knowledge of tax codes, business structure and financial planning will be a huge relief during tax season and increase your tax return—which means that it could end up costing more to not hire someone. Likewise, a professional bookkeeper has the skillset to keep track of all your important daily transactions so that your accountant can generate accurate results later.
How do I choose a bookkeeping or accounting professional?
B2BeeMatch has many bookkeeping, accounting and financial experts who can help you manage your records. With so many different services out there, it's important to us that you connect with the right bookkeeping or accounting firm to fit your business needs.
How do you choose the best bookkeeper for your business? Assess your needs and budget, then choose a bookkeeper who can work within your requirements. Remember that bookkeepers focus on managing your daily transactions while accountants use that data to make financial recommendations. Many businesses will offer a consultation process so that you can determine if that business is right for you!
To get you started, we'll introduce five (of the many) bookkeeping and accounting firms that you can connect with on B2BeeMatch!
B2BeeMatch bookkeeping businesses
Bestax: Chartered Accountants
Based in Dubai's Business Bay, Bestax is an accomplished financial consultancy and business advisory firm. They offer a multitude of services, such as tax advisory, bookkeeping, auditing and accounting. With national and international clients, Bestax's team prides itself on timely, efficient results that can enhance your business's profitability.
Match with Bestax accountants, and keep your business activity as organized as possible!
VPC Accountants
VPC Accountant’s chartered accountancy practice provides business insights and assistance to match their clients’ financial needs. Their firm offers a wide range of personalized services for individuals and business clients in the UK who require financial advisors. VPC can offer you a dedicated personal accountant to manage your bookkeeping in the long term and on a day-to-day basis. VPC also features an option with online accounting software that can provide businesses with accurate, up-to-date financial information—you'll have the data you need at the tips of your fingers to make important business decisions!
Connect today with VPC Accountants to ensure your business assets are secure in the future!
Nowak Accounting
Located in the Niagara region, Nowak Accounting offers cloud-based bookkeeping and tax services for small businesses in Ontario, Canada. They're passionate about small business successes and upfront about their services. They are available for all of your bookkeeping needs, both personal and business-oriented. Nowak Accounting offers book cleanup, tax preparation and filing, book reviews, payroll services and more! With clear strategies to keep or bring your books up-to-date, Nowak Accounting is a great option for your business!
Let Nowak Accounting handle your financial reports, so you can keep your business's bigger picture in mind!
SJS Accounting
SJS Accounting offers monthly, quarterly and annually recurring bookkeeping services. They know that well-organized finances make for smoother business operations, and their tailored bookkeeping and accounting services are sure to offer the right options for you! From revenue reconciliation to monthly financial reports, SJS Accounting has your business covered. Interested in gaining business insight into your current and future operating budgets? SJS Accounting provides customizable controller services so that you have the data to make key financial decisions.
Whether you work with cash or electronic receipts, connecting with SJS Accounting on B2BeeMatch will ensure top-notch, accurate bookkeeping for your business!
Bray Commercial Finance
As an independent specialist consultancy, Bray Commercial Finance provides commercial and business financial support to SMBs across the UK. They offer insights and assistance with everything from commercial mortgages to grant funding to business loans—and even offer a free consultation. To aid UK businesses with their available cash flow, they also have a specialized service for factoring, also known as an invoice finance solution. If your bank won't provide the financial support that your business needs, Bray Commercial Finance's advanced services may be the way to go—after all, they assert that they'll "do everything possible to find a workable and affordable business solution".
Contact the consultants at Bray Commercial Finance to improve your business’ financial health!
Basic bookkeeping and records management
Learn more about different types of accounting and bookkeeping services
Hiring a financial professional to compile everything on a semi-regular basis can help maintain your business's healthy financial condition. However, if you don't think that you need an in-house bookkeeper or a business accountant right now, you can get started on your own. So, let's talk software and you!
Choose your bookkeeping software!
Preparing your bookkeeping software, also known as accounting software, for use involves connecting your business bank accounts, inputting necessary data points and reconciling business transactions. This step will involve error-checking your documents and learning about your specific software. If you go down this route, it’s up to you to make sure that your future accountant can use this data. There are many bookkeeping software options, so take the time to find the best option for you and your business. QuickBooks Online, Wave and Xero are popular options. If you need to upgrade your accounting process to include an in-house bookkeeper in the future, using software or an Excel spreadsheet for your data management could make the transition easier. They’ll be able to see the baseline of activity tracking you’ve done previously so that they can make recommendations for improvement.
The difference between single-entry and double-entry bookkeeping
This decision will affect the rest of your accounting experience!
Single-entry bookkeeping
Single-entry bookkeeping is a clear and direct method for many small businesses that have minimal equipment and inventory attached to their finances. Single-entry involves recording all of your transactions once, either as an expense or an income.
Double-entry bookkeeping
However, double-entry bookkeeping is a necessity for SMBs with more complex books. Using this method, bookkeepers enter every transaction twice, as both a debit and a credit, in order to make sure books balance. This double-checking means a higher likelihood of catching any errors that may occur.
The cash method vs. the accrual method
There are two main bookkeeping methods.
Cash accounting method
In the cash method of bookkeeping, income is only recognized when it is received, and invoices or outstanding transactions are not recorded until they have been settled. If you are a sole proprietor, or if you are just getting started, the cash method may be fine for your business.
Accrual accounting method
Alternatively, the accrual method of bookkeeping means recording invoices and unsettled bills. The accrual method is generally recommended for business owners who are managing large assets or have anything beyond simple books.
Learn more about these bookkeeping and accounting methods here.
Figure out the best transaction management system for you!
Whether you're gathering paper or electronic receipts, your next step will be to organize, categorize and import your daily transactions into your bookkeeping software. It is absolutely vital that you properly reconcile and record transactions if you're managing your own books. Otherwise, an accountant will have a harder time understanding your business’s financial health.
Also, make sure that your personal finances and business finances are distinct—unless you want an Everything Everywhere All at Once situation. The business transactions that you're reporting will include credit card statements, cash flow statements and beyond; some business owners choose to use a separate bank for their personal expenses to avoid possible confusion.
Remember to also handle your SMB's accounts receivable and payable, which will ensure that you've paid for your business's goods or services. For example, you may need to craft an estimate of the final value that a future project will cost so that you can send your customers the appropriate invoice.
Don't forget about your payroll.
If you plan on using your new bookkeeping or accounting software to process payroll, then your setup will vary across services; make sure that you invest time in a clear system for payroll so that you can avoid headaches in the future.
Consider hiring a bookkeeper to teach you basic bookkeeping principles
Even if you plan to keep your own books, bookkeeping and accounting software can be nuanced and tricky to learn by yourself. To help guide you through this new skill, you may want to hire someone to teach you the ropes. You may benefit from an expert who has tips on how to use the software you’ve chosen and who can provide general support as you set up the software.
Also, after you begin tracking your daily business transactions, remember to meet with a bookkeeper or an accountant to make sure you’re on the right track—even if it’s only on a quarterly or annual basis. Any help with bookkeeping is good help, and a checkup from a bookkeeper or business accountant may help to catch any serious mistakes and, potentially, help stabilize your financial situation.
Best of luck with your bookkeeping and accounting experience
Everyone at B2BeeMatch wishes you the best possible journey as you clean up and sort out your books! We hope that this blog post helps you with your decision-making process for picking bookkeepers and accountants. If you are running an SMB, then you may be wary of delegating such an important task; however, connecting with a fellow B2BeeMatch member to assess and aid your bookkeeping needs will put your financial records into the hands of expert professionals.