Contrary to popular belief, an accountant can serve a small business just as well, sometimes even more, than larger companies. Many small business owners overlook accountants' benefits due to their business's size and nature. However, accountants come in all shapes and sizes, meaning they can cater to and benefit a wide range of businesses, from sole proprietors and freelancers to small corporations and partnerships.
This post highlights some points about how an accountant can help your small businesses.
An accountant deals with all sorts of financial matters within a business. They provide financial accounting and bookkeeping services. This includes managing cash flows, maintaining balance sheets and trial balances, settling financial statements, helping with small business loans (like SBA), ensuring tax laws are abided by, and so on.
Depending on your country's financial laws, many rules and regulations come with operating a business. As businesses are primarily money-related, accountants are much more important than they seem. In some cases, accountants can also provide financial guidance or diagnose and treat financial hiccups within a business.
Especially as a small business owner, financials can be tricky and challenging for a small team to manage – let alone an individual. By hiring the right person for the role, an accountant can lift loads off a business owner's shoulders.
Financial accounting and bookkeeping can be a significant burden, consuming valuable time that could be better spent on growing your business. However, a competent accountant can alleviate this stress by taking over these time-consuming tasks, ensuring they are done more efficiently. This not only puts you at ease but also frees up ample time for you to focus on other crucial aspects of your business.
Small business accountants are also able to help you save lots of money in the long run. While it may seem like an additional expense, the cost of hiring an accountant is often outweighed by the financial benefits they can bring. They can help you avoid costly mistakes, such as tax errors or missed opportunities for savings, allowing you to maximise your business cash flow. In other words, they can help you make more money than you spend on their services.
Business owners often fear taxes because they need to 'get it right'. Taxes can be confusing and overwhelming depending on where you live and your country's tax laws. While it is possible to fill out and complete tax filing for your business by yourself, this can be somewhat risky if you lack the knowledge or experience to do it. Mistakes in your tax filings can lead to penalties or even legal issues, which can be costly and time-consuming to resolve. Having an experienced accountant file these taxes for you can help you avoid these risks and provide significant relief.
When it comes to taxes, an accountant can be your best friend. They can help you understand your tax obligations and ensure that you are compliant with tax laws. They can also help you identify tax deductions and credits that you may be eligible for, potentially reducing your tax liability. Furthermore, a knowledgeable accountant can guide your company in the right direction to maximise your business's tax benefits, such as advising on the most tax-efficient business structure or helping you plan for future tax obligations.
An accountant can help point and advise your business in the right direction financially when planning your business steps out. This can benefit businesses of all stages. If you're in the pre-launch stage, an accountant can help put together your first solid business plan; if you're in the middle stage, an accountant can help provide advice on which directions to take to grow your business. Even if you've been running for a longer time, an accountant can help minimise the risks from business activities.
Every business's primary goal is profit, and a good accountant can help plan out factors like revenue projection. Even in marketing and sales, an accountant can help plan out how much you should be allocating according to your business's financials.
Ensuring the security of your business's financial information is paramount. A seasoned accountant can stay abreast of data security regulations and standards, providing you with the reassurance that your financial information is in safe hands.
Whether this means using the best financial software, implementing the correct practices or introducing the best cybersecurity solutions, your accountant should be able to keep your business's information safe. Having an expert with you whilst running your business also means catered advice specifically suited towards helping you grow your business. An accountant provides guidance on improving your business to grow and increase revenues – thanks to their experience in the field.
As a small business owner, times can be challenging, especially when handling crucial yet tedious tasks like financial management. It can also be extra lonely – thus scarier – navigating your business's industry and deciding what's best for it. Having an accountant on hand can help alleviate some of these inconveniences, providing added security and efficiency, especially in the finance department. This also allows small business owners to allocate more time to what's most important – growing your small business.
