5 reasons to hire an accountant for your small business
- Your accountant can take away stress.
When starting up my clients say things like:
” helped me a lot with my limited company.”
“Very good communication, good advice and friendly”.
“keeps me in check with expenses and advises on tax policies at the right times in the year.”
“an efficient, professional service that caters for all my accounting/tax needs.”
“So easy to work with and always reliable. would highly recommend!”
When engaging an accountant after being in business a while, clients tell me:
“I now wish I had got in contact a lot sooner.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t let her do it sooner”
“I just wish I’d found her sooner.”
“provides peace of mind that everything is taken care of and is very patient with my lack of organisation”
“takes the anxiety out of the whole tax recording process with her calmness and uplifting approach.”
” I have been doing my own accounts (badly!) for 5 years. I cannot believe how much easier you’ve made life – thank you!”
There’s a theme isn’t there? The clients who engage an accountant from Day 1 refer to reliability, professionalism and good advice. The clients who waited wish they had done it sooner and talk about it being a relief and reducing stress. Accountants can take away that stress. We enjoy what we do and are trained and qualified to manage accounts and tax. We have experience with other clients and of course we are running our own small business too.
- Your accountant can help you understand what your numbers mean.
It is so important for business owners to understand their numbers. There are lots of reasons for this, here are a few: – to make sure the prices they are charging are right, to not overspend, to know what you can afford to invest in, to operate at a profit and… to save for tax.
We have spent years studying and putting into practice preparing and understanding Profit and Loss Accounts (aka Income Statements), Balance Sheets and Cashflow Statements.
You know you need to invoice your clients when you do work and that forms your turnover figure but what expenses are business expenses and allowed for tax purposes? Can I claim for petrol or mileage? Gym membership? Uniform? Office rent? What about if I work from home? What can I claim? What’s the difference between a Cost of Sales and an admin expense?
We can advise on bookkeeping, and I generally advise to use accounting software. It eliminates mistakes and automates a lot of your bookkeeping, so it saves time. There are a number of options: – Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent and Wave. I partner with FreeAgent. All things considered; it is the best option for my small business clients. The support team are exceptional and based in the UK which is a bonus as they keep up to date on tax law and data legislation such as GDPR. They have good relationships with the UK banks too so keep up to date with open banking and other software integrations.
- An accountant can provide support and guidance you can trust and importantly they can answer questions specific to you, directly.
A good accountant is qualified and experienced. They will have studied and passed exams in financial accounting, management accounts, tax, audit and also ethics and confidentiality. You can trust that your financial information will not be disclosed – apart from to HMRC and if you are a Limited Company to Companies House register.
An accountant can analyse your accounts and can advise you on how to better manage your finances and keep your bookkeeping organised. We can help you with the unknown, for example, when do I need to register for VAT? How do I pay myself and others? When and how do I file and pay my tax? Should I trade as a sole trader or Limited Company? Of course, you can ‘google it’, but the answers might not apply to your unique business. These are all FAQs and we answer them every day. We know the answers to the questions that keep you awake at night.
- Your accountant will make sure you don’t get into trouble with tax.
Missing deadlines you didn’t know about or being faced with an unexpected tax bill can be unsettling and sometimes daunting. An accountant will make sure this doesn’t happen and will communicate with you regularly and openly in advance of key deadlines. Accountants are HMRC agents and as such have a dedicated helpline. We have one Government Gateway log in to access all clients’ information. All we need is a ‘64-8 agent authorisation’ then HMRC will speak to your accountant about all your tax affairs.
No more “can’t log in”, “can’t remember my password or security answers”. No more frustration with waiting on hold to speak to someone, only to get the wrong department when you get through or worse, just being cut off.
Just imagine never having to talk to HMRC ever again – I’m sure there are some lovely people there, but they are difficult to find!
- Your accountant can be your link to a wider network of connections.
Think about how many other clients and business connections an accountant has. If you need another professional like a solicitor, marketing expert or a Virtual Assistant, ask your accountant – they will more than likely be able to recommend one and may know who is a good fit for you and your business.
Also, if your accountant is really good, they will always ensure they are a good ‘fit’ for your business. That your values and ways of working match up. I have a list of colleagues and specialists that I can refer people on to if it makes more sense for them to work with someone else, and I often do this. I feel this is looking after everyone’s best interests.
I hope after reading this article, you understand a little bit more about what an accountant can do for you. If you are ready to hire one for your business, get in touch with me about my services. If we aren’t a good fit, whether that’s based on availability, accounting software preferences, industry or location, I will happily refer you to a fellow accountant who will be able to help and support you.
