An early and open discussion about this can keep you from being hit with unexpected costs down the line. So if you’re considering outsourcing the bookkeeping or accounting services of your small business, take a look below at what you need to know before making a decision. Intended to automate the majority of both your bookkeeping efforts as well as your tax preparation, 1-800Accountant turns a major hassle into a huge relief.

They handle the day-to-day recording of financial activities, like tracking sales and expenses, and make sure every transaction is accurately entered into the company’s accounting system. Having all of your bookkeeping together throughout the year will make tax season much easier. Up-to-date reports will be provided monthly throughout the bookkeeping process, giving you a good idea of how much you’ll owe when tax season hits. Bookkeepers can also help with tax preparation and can help you navigate your tax returns.

How often do you want to communicate with your bookkeeper?

At LBMC, our mission is to support entrepreneurial businesses at every stage to go further. Building a robust accounting infrastructure is a foundational element of that. That’s why our outsourced accounting services are set up to provide firms with the exact level of support they need. The Essential plan ($249 a month if billed annually or $299 billed monthly) focuses on bookkeeping outsource bookkeeping only, giving you access to a dedicated team that performs monthly bookkeeping services. The Premium plan ($399 a month if billed annually or $499 billed monthly) adds tax advising services, end-of-year tax filing, and financial strategy planning. Bookkeeper.com’s cheapest virtual bookkeeping service starts with bookkeeping basics, like preparing key financial statements.

Additionally, when you outsource bookkeeping, you lose the ability to walk over to your bookkeeper’s desk and ask them a quick question. This can make it feel like you have less control over your accounting. However, provided your outsourced bookkeeping partner embraces cloud-based accounting software, you’ll have access to your books 24/7. You might also see outsourced accounting referred to using terms including Client Accounting Services (CAS) or fractional accounting.

Advantages of Working With An Outsourced CFO

First, you have to find an individual or firm that can provide you with the expertise and knowledge you need, and they must also be trustworthy. The first question you have to ask yourself is whether outsourcing your accounting needs realistically works for your business. Hiring a large accounting firm to cover the full service of all accounts can take a considerable amount from your small company’s net profits. However, it still could when hiring an in-house, full-time employee.

Once you’ve established what you want to outsource, the next next step is to identify who you’re going to outsource it to. If you’d like to outsource some or all of your accounting obligations, here’s how to get started. As well as helping you comply with all relevant laws, this ensures that you are fully prepared if your company gets audited. As an addition, you get access to lower credit card transaction fees, pre-authorized debit transaction fees, and many other benefits. You can find independent bookkeepers on freelance websites and similar sources. Freelance bookkeepers can be expensive, and yet the quality can drastically vary from one individual to another.

Which types of outsourced accounting services are available?

Almost all companies must pay taxes on their income, regardless of where they are headquartered. But preparing taxes and complying with regulations can be tricky, especially if your business has a complex corporate structure. Many businesses outsource this task to a certified tax professional. If you’re a small business that manages its own books, you could be spending your time and resources elsewhere. If you’re hiring across borders, you’ll have to recruit in-house accountants in all the countries you’re onboarding in.

• If you hire a bookkeeper online then that would be considered a virtual bookkeeper.
• Earlier in the article, we discussed different ways to outsource bookkeeping.
• Outsourcing your bookkeeping can open the door to several benefits that could help you grow your business.
• Better bookkeeping habits support your ability to smoothly bring in new work or add new products.
• Their expertise allows for more precise and insightful financial statements, important for informed decision-making and strategy development.

The financial service packages you can hire out will depend upon the entity you are working with. It is best to research the individual accountants and bookkeeping services offered around you, with those provided by small, medium, and large accounting firms. Typically, an outsourced accounting service can provide full coverage of all accounting and financial services for a company. A provider built specifically to meet the needs of smaller organizations, Bench Accounting’s outsourced bookkeeping services can completely replace your current process or software tools. And with a one-month free trial, you can test drive their offerings before fully committing. Having an outsourced bookkeeping service provider is known to reduce many common errors made by business owners.

Promptly collecting payments on existing work and sending regular reminders on outstanding invoices is an integral part of better bookkeeping. If you didn’t receive an email don’t forgot to check your spam folder, otherwise contact support. Get in touch with one of our experts and see how outsourcing can fit into your accounting strategy. You’ve scoured the internet for blogs about outsourcing and you’ve consumed enough pertinent information to make a well-thought-out decision. However, before you make that next move you want to know if it’ll work for your business. Above all, find an outsourced CFO that you can build a long-term relationship with.

Get the peace of mind that comes from partnering with our experienced finance team. To learn more about how we can help, speak to one of our friendly experts today — or check out our in-depth payroll processing guide. At some point, you may find it more beneficial to move some or all of your accounting processes in-house.