BookKeeping

If you’re thinking about hiring an accountant or bookkeeper but not sure what the difference is or which would best suit your business needs, read on.

As a small business owner, it’s fundamental to keep on top of your finances in order to enable you to make sound business decisions and ensure healthy cash flow. But as your business grows, it can get increasingly difficult to keep track on your own.

Before you get to the point where you’re struggling to keep a handle on your business finances, it’s a good idea to seek professional help. But what’s right for your business? A bookkeeper, an accountant or both?

Put in basic terms, bookkeeping is a direct record of all purchases and sales that your business conducts, while accounting is a subjective look at what that data means for your business. But let’s break things down a bit more.

What does a bookkeeper do?

A bookkeeper’s job is to maintain accurate records of all money that has come in and out of a business – the day-to-day purchases, receipts, sales, and payments. Typical tasks include:

Recording financial transactions
Posting debits and credits
Producing invoices
Managing payroll
Maintaining and balancing ledgers, accounts, and subsidiaries. Ledgers can range from traditional paper lists to specialised bookkeeping software, such as QuickBooks, Zero, Clearbook and Sage.

What does an accountant do?

An accountant takes the financial data recorded by the business owner or bookkeeper and provides business insights and financial advice based on that information to give you a complete picture of your business needs. Key tasks include:

Verifying and analysing data
Generating reports, performing audits, and preparing financial reporting records like tax returns, income statements, and balance sheets
Providing information for forecasts, business trends and opportunities for growth
Helping the business owner understand the impact of financial decisions

Essentially, most businesses require both a bookkeeper and an accountant because the year-end reporting, requires your bookkeeping to be up to date.

3 reasons you should hire a professional for your bookkeeping and accounting requirements

If you’re spending more time on accounting tasks than growing the business, then it’s time to seek help. Why get bogged down with tasks you don’t have the expertise in (and therefore will likely take you longer) when there are professionals who can do it for you, leaving you to concentrate on growing your business and making more money!
If your business is experiencing growth. Perhaps you were a one-person band and now have staff, or your customer base has grown significantly. Bring in someone to help with finances can alleviate a lot of the pressure on a growing business.
If your taxes have become too complex to manage on your own, with multiple income streams, deductions and allowances to consider, it’s time to hire an accountant. They could save you hours of time by helping you keep on top of payroll, tax deductions and tax filings.

Whether you are a sole trader or a limited company, Booker Wyatt offers an array of accounting and bookkeeping services including:

Limited company set-up
Registration for Self-Assessment, VAT & Employer PAYE
Expense processing
Invoicing
Quarterly VAT returns
Bank reconciliations
Year end Self-Assessment
Monthly payroll
CIS returns for construction
Annual accounts preparation & submission

Your requirement may be for a day a week, or a few hours a month, either way you can rely on Booker Wyatt to keep your accounts in perfect order while you concentrate on running your business.

To find out more contact Catherine on 07510 180 530 or email: [email protected].