Business owners are no strangers to making decisions, but one of the most important you will need to make for your business is deciding on an accountant that will help your company’s profitability.
It can be tempting for small business owners to decide to do their own books, after all cashflow is (nearly) always a concern, and it’s wise to minimise unnecessary expenditures. However, ultimately you need to ask yourself, is outsourcing your accounting an unnecessary, or even a frivolous, way to spend your hard-earned cash?
We’re biased of course, but we can confidently answer ‘no’ to this question. Within a very short time an accountant will not only pay for themselves, but will also end up saving you money.
Alleviate the taxing moments
Dealing with tax can be a minefield of accidental violations and missed opportunities. It’s so important to ensure that your tax returns are filled in accurately - the first time. Filling out tax forms incorrectly can lead to delays, fines and in some instances even a tax investigation.
Remember there’s more to running a business than just filling out the online form every now and then and keeping on top of tax deadlines. That’s merely the minimum requirement.
A good accountant will ensure you’re running your business as tax efficiently as possible, including forward planning to minimise your financial liabilities. They take the headache away by keeping on top of any new policy released by HMRC, then digesting and explaining the legal implications and how it impacts your business.
The upshot being that an accountant knows how to make the policies work for you, ensuring you pay as little tax as possible, while also remaining compliant.
Cash is king
Cashflow is the life blood of a business, but even so, a lot of small and medium business owners tend to overlook its importance. They may only look at their cashflow sporadically, putting off dealing with it until there’s an impending deadline, or they may just wait for an issue arise to take an in-depth look.
Implementing robust bookkeeping means your business will be up to date on its financial position. A strong understanding of your financial obligations, such as rent, insurance and employee wages, will be easy to view and access, resulting in an understanding of any cashflow issues ahead of time. This enables you to sort it out in advance, before it leads to bigger, more costly issues.
Ready, set, grow…
A good accountant isn’t just there to crunch numbers. Instead, they act as a partner, advisor and sometimes even a cheerleader!
Having a diverse range of clients means that your accountant will have experienced business growth many times, they can therefore recognise the things you’re doing right and the things you’re missing out on. As you work together your accountant will also start to know your business intimately, it means that they will be able to tailor their advice to help your business grow.
By offering their advice you will receive an opinion that’s informed, but isn’t clouded with the emotion that business owners, understandably, have for their companies. It means they can walk you down the right path to boost your profits, from helping you set growth targets and monitor them, to assisting with investment opportunities.
It’s also possible that you set up your company according to a structure that you may have outgrown. Whether you started as a sole trader but are now more suited to trade as a limited company, your accountant will flag this up.
A company structure has huge tax implications, and the different structures have different benefits. When your finances are overseen by a professional, they will advise if it’s time to scale up and make sure that you are receiving the financial benefits as a result.
The social network
Accountants have a vast business network they call on regularly. This includes everything from legal contacts to HR companies. As your business grows it’s likely that you’ll need additional services, which is where your accountant comes in. Their extensive list of tried and tested companies will be vetted, so it’s more likely that you’ll find a service that you can trust and is efficient.
Avoid the costly mistakes
As mentioned previously, accounting probably isn’t your forte, and it doesn’t need to be - it’s what your accountant is there for after all! With this in mind, when filing tax returns and dealing with the numbers side of your business, do you actually enjoy it?
If you don’t, the chances are it will take much longer than it needs to, costing you valuable time. It’s worth taking a look at what your hourly rate would be and cross referencing it against the amount of time spent going through your books. It’s likely that you’re actually losing out on more money than you’re saving on accounting fees. Not to mention the odd mistake, however unintentional, can be costly. By employing an accountant, you no longer need to worry about potentially expensive errors.
With chartered certified accountants as well as bookkeepers on our team, we can offer companies from Bromley to Folkestone, and Tunbridge Wells to Margate the support and advice they can use to grow their businesses and achieve success. Call us on 01322 555 442 to find out how we could take your business to the next level.
