Archive for the ‘accounting bookkeeping’ Category

Small Business Accounting Is Not As A Bad As It Seems

Feb 10, 2010 accounting bookkeeping

If you are the owner of a small business, probably one of the things you least enjoy is keeping track of your accounting. The bad news is that the reason for most small businesses to fail is because of that fact. Owners who have a great dislike for accounting tasks tend to prioritize other more interesting business tasks like sales, customer care, communications, etc. We show you here a few important tips to make your small business accounting better.

The key to Small business accounting does not only have to do with numbers

Small business accounting is not only about keeping track of expenses and sales. You can transform it into a strategic tool.

It is true that most of it has to do with keeping track of what comes in and what goes out of the business. However, if you look closer at the information small business accounting gives you, you should be able to see trends in sales and expenses for example. When you focus on the long term trends, accounting becomes more useful and interesting. It tells you what happens every day, it highlights the problems, but it can also help you to solve those problems. You can make small business accounting if you only changed the way you look at it.

Two: Incorporate small business accounting into your regular activities and keep it consistent.

Once you incorporate small business accounting tasks to your regular routine you will be able to manage your finances better. You may for example choose a day in the week for reviewing what you have spent, and another day to go to the bank to make your deposits, and another day to keep track of customers who have not paid. When you are successful at incorporating accounting to your business regular life, you will be able to monitor and update your finances in a very easy way.

Here we show you more examples of small business accounting activities to perform regularly.

Plan for your fixed costs, look for trends in what you have spent in the last months and make decision on that. Take care of your taxes, learn how. If you have employees, check how many have left and how many have joined, look for trends and make decision regarding the payment of wages. Keep track of the customers that owe you money. Also pay attention to the behavior of your working capital, etc.

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Small Business Accounting Tips For New Entrepreneurs

Feb 8, 2010 accounting bookkeeping

Below we give you some tips on how to make small business accounting more bearable for you.

If you want to improve your small business accounting, the first thing you should do is to make a list of all the tasks that are related to accounting. Small business accounting should be easy for you if when the work is already divided into small tasks you can choose to perform each week or every day or every month.

Second, you should understand the basis of small business accounting

Some experts in finance and accounting will use a lot of acronyms when they refer to certain concepts. Do not get frustrated, they may seem like plenty of concepts but the most common ones are easy to learn. Understand what the basic acronyms mean and you will be able to understand more small business accounting concepts. The whole purpose of this exercise is for your business to make more profit. Learning these concepts may help you understand and make a better use of the services of your bookkeeper or accountant. Your accountant may also help you to understand these concepts.

In contrast, it is a mistake to become a super fan of small business accounting. The company does not come down to accounting. There are firms and professionals who do this very well. This is not the job of an entrepreneur to be a know-it-all of Management or Accounting.

Thirdly, it is important to separate company accounts from the personal accounts

It is a bad idea to mix your personal account and your business account. Separate them completely: even if you’re the sole shareholder in the company, even if only your money is put into the pot. This separation enables you to plan, predict, without confusing personal cash and professional cash. This allows a lucid view of the true accounts of the company.

Fourthly, maintain consistency.

It may be hard to get used to at first but we recommend that once you create an accounting system for you, you should stick to it no matter what. Remember to register everything, forget nothing, and be consistent. If you are not consistent you will start doubting your own system later which will not help you when you want to evaluate your business performance at the end of the year. It is a good idea to meet with your accountant to have him or her verify the information.

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Singapore-Changing The Face Of The Trendy Industry

Jan 22, 2010 accounting bookkeeping

Singapore is gaining control and power over the commercial sector slowly and steadily. The workplace as we all understand is the most effective base from which to control, and a virtual office in Singapore is a much higher foundation from that to work in Singapore since it will not involve the cost and time concerned normally which happens within the case of putting in a permanent office.

These days, a secretary has a major responsibility to play in each field. Secretaries in Law firms, healthcare teams, paralegal along with a legal secretary, project secretary, junior secretary together with govt secretary and much more have created a high demand in the economic sector. Expertise, education, mannerisms, personality these are some of the basic necessities of a good secretary, along with other qualifications as well.

In Singapore, the require for a secretary Singapore is rising day by day because of the rise within the economic position of Singaporean industries. As an example a certain company of Singapore needs an government secretary who has had 5 to 8 years of relevant expertise in administrative or secretarial duties, has a capability to organize, prioritize and multi-task, encompasses a aptitude with coping with individuals from all corners of the planet and is cyber-smart.

Singapore accounting is setting principles and has managed to come to par with other countries as well. For instance, the inauguration of the Masters of Business Administration (Accountancy) programme was launched in Singapore in order to satisfy the dearth of excellent managers in most of the businesses in Singapore, therefore serving to provide graduate business education, provide accountancy education as a functional stress further on satisfy the professional requirements brought forward by the accounting occupation in Singapore.

Singapore these days is an attractive location for doing business due to a number of reasons, some of them being non taxation on capital gains, political stability, transparency in law, highly knowledgeable and motivated workforce, swiftness in setting of a company that sometimes takes around 3 days, no exchange control except for certain measures put in place to test money laundering activities, pro-business and highly efficient government, liberal rules for capital allowances, a territorial system of income tax with a low rate of company income tax, availability of tax incentives below the Singapore Headquarters programme. Audits are carried on in order to keep a track on the records of the companies and also the profits and losses they incur. The Accounting Standards Council works strictly with the Accounting Standards Committee of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Singapore in order to help corporations throughout audits etc.

As it’s a known truth book keeping could be a very important part of commerce and since Singapore is one in all the rising industrialist places in the world bookkeeping plays an important role. The system here is additional compact and easier since the bookkeeping is left to another section within the firm therefore as to assist the opposite staff concentrate more on the other aspects of the business.

Bookkeeping Singapore consists of preparation of full set accounts, mass consolidation and preparation of annual report ,money reporting and management reporting, tax services and such other services as well. There are even freelance computerized bookkeeping services which are provided for medium companies wanting to outsource its accounting or bookkeeping functions, in Singapore. Accounting and consultancy services, Bookkeeping services, are not only found in corporations however are a separate branch below some other companies as well. These suppliers satisfy the businesses with their modern, compact and precise bookkeeping and accounting solutions therefore enjoying a major role in the development of the industries of Singapore.

At ACS Management Consultants Pte Ltd, we have more than 30 years of accounting and management experience. We are the solution to all your accounting needs. Do not hesitate to call us for any queries; we will be pleased to talk to you further, without any obligation. Our mission at ACS is to strive to provide excellent, personalised professional accounting, tax and related services to small and medium-sized businesses.

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Important Facts To Consider When Comparing Bookkeeping Rates

Dec 17, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

Most Small Business owners when considering hiring a bookkeeper for their business will begin by asking the question “What is your hourly rate for bookkeeping ” and base their decision on the cheapest hourly rate in the misconception that they may actually be saving their business money. They should consider many more factors that may affect the hourly rate before making an informed deciding.

Bookkeeping support from a subcontract bookkeeper to a dedicated Bookkeeping Company can vary from $30 per hour up to $60 per hour and there are many factors to consider what is a fair and adequate price to pay for your bookkeeping service.

If your business requires the bookkeeper onsite then you can expect your hourly rate to be slightly higher than an offsite bookkeeper. You could also expect to get a better rate if you have a certain number of hours to offer. It is also important to consider the state that your current bookkeeping is in, are your records and paperwork sorted and collated or in a real mess.

Business Owners should beware that there could be a number of reasons that a bookkeeper is charging lower fees such as inexperience or lack of industry knowledge.

Some important factors to consider when considering comparing a lower rate to a higher rate would be the following.

* Time Frames – If a bookkeeper is charging a lower rate and is inexperienced then your bookkeeping may actually take a lot longer and therefore cost you more money ! If you look at a 2 hour job for $60 per hour = $120 but a 5 hour job for $30 per hour = $150 ?? A bookkeeping company should also give a cheaper rate for data entry.

* Outsourcing your bookkeeping and Administration to a Bookkeeping Service Company completely can also be more cost effective for your business in the long term. You generally will have no software costs for upgrades or licencing. Consideration : Depending on your business it can also save on office space, rent and other overheads.

* Reliability is also an important issue to consider. A dedicated company will have accountability, no down time and other people to help you if your dedicated support person is not available. Consideration : This could save you thousands in fees with the Tax Office and other fees and charges and gives you a full time support.

* Industry Knowledge and Ongoing Training. Bookkeeping Companies constantly upskill and educate their staff on the latest news and developments regarding small business. Therefore investing in slightly higher bookkeeping rates from a Bookkeeping Company will ensure your business gets all the right deductions and tax offsets that are applicable for you.

Business Owners should see that it is evident that engaging the cheapest rate will not necessarily save their business money but in fact could cost them a lot more. By considering and employing a Bookkeeping Company they will making a progressive move for their business and actually investing in the welfare and best interest of their business.

Want to find out more about Bookkeeping, then visit Michelle Carr’s site on how to choose the best Bookkeeping Services for your needs.

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Intuit – Affordable New Tax Software For Small and Home Based Businesses Tax Preparers

Nov 19, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

In September 2009, Intuit launched a new web based tax software called Intuit ProLine Tax Online Edition (beta) for those individuals and tax preparer’s that need a low-cost, comprehensive and Web based 1040 tax program. This software is designed for low volume users whose client base does not justify a more expensive PC or networked tax software. Like many other web-based software programs, and in particular like QuickBooks Online, this program allows the tax preparers to work from home or anywhere as long as they have web access. Intuit has been in the tax preparation business for many years and has its TurboTax ,Pro Series ,and Lacerte matured brands. Intuit clearly understands its customers’ needs and has had foresight to know that many of the tax software applications are heading towards “cloud computing” and this tax software, is another example of a Web enabled program.

How it Works- Behind this program is the concept of simplicity, and Intuit accomplishes this by setting up 3 basic workspaces for the tax preparer. These workspaces are “input”,” review” and “file”. The “input” workspace is where the preparer enters tax information such as W-2, 1099, Schedule A and B,etc ..It is easy to find the proper form. When you open up the form you’re able to make multiple data entries by using a list and total feature in the software. The second workspace, is the “review” section which provides the preparer with a diagnostics summary and a list of tax suggestions. The third workspace, is “file”, which permits the tax preparer to electronically file the return or to print out the tax return for manual transmission to the IRS.

In the past, tax preparers have purchased TurboTax software and pirated the tax software to prepare hundreds of tax returns by using TurboTax. In order to capture and capitalize from this market, Intuit designed a low cost tax software for a preparer that wants to prepare a tax return in the dining room of a client or their own dining room or from any location with web access. The value proposition is that this software is low priced and simple to use. Although the Intuit website currently offers the beta software for 2008 at no cost, I’ve been unofficially informed that Intuit will sell the software on a pay-per-use basis of $16 per tax return. This price is not currently shown in the Intuit website.This tax software becomes an affordable alternative for the tax preparers whose practice cannot afford to purchase the Pro Series or Lacerte brands.

Some of the features of the software include the following: (a) 1040 only- single user (b) Pay per return (c) E – file or paper file for two states. It is expected that by the end of the 4th quarter 2009 that filing will be available for most of the other states. (d) Data conversion (e) Status tracking with the IRS (f) Notes and listing features and totaling capabilities embedded in the various forms and schedules(g) Diagnostics and suggestions and (h) Support from Intuit

Like any other new software, the concerns at this point relate to the fact that the software is still in beta. Notwithstanding the hundreds of users that have beta tested the software, there are invariably issues arising from any new software release and, only with the passage of time can the software achieve its expectations. Also, like any other web enabled software the connection and performance is dependent on the web connection, and quite frankly may result in sluggish performance. Also despite the Web-enabled software, there are taxpayer’s homes that may not have web access which would prevent the tax preparer from entering the tax information “on the fly”. Not a major issue, since the preparer can prepare the tax return later, or back in his or her the office or home.

I commend Intuit for producing a web-based tax preparer software for new low volume users as well as making it easy for those individuals that have used “pirated” versions of TurboTax in the past, to legally use a low-cost and affordable tax software.

Sandor Lenner,CPA has been providing accounting services for companies for over 35 years. He is a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and provides QuickBooks support and business accounting services. As an Intuit Authorized Affiliate, heoffers you specially discounted QuickBooks and Intuit software. He works as a part-time for Susan Missal Lenner, P.A.

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The Importance of Keeping Proper and Accurate Financial Records

Nov 3, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

Imagine driving a car without being able to see out of the windscreen and without being able to see any of the instruments because the dashboard is completely blacked out. This is the way that many businesses operate. The owner of the business has no idea day to day, week to week, and in some cases month to month, where they are heading to or how they are travelling. If you try to drive your car in this situation, then think about it: you would have no idea where you are heading to; you would have no idea of the hazards ahead; you wouldn’t know the speed that you were travelling at; you probably wouldn’t know the direction that you were heading in; you wouldn’t know how far you had come from where you started; and you wouldn’t know how well your car is performing relative to other cars on the road; nor would you know any of the vital information about the well-being of the car such as the temperature of the engine, the oil pressure or the revolutions per minute.

It may seem tiresome keeping financial records current. You may not find maintaining and managing your accounts fun. But if you do not keep proper and accurate financial records you run the risk of your business failing. A recent survey of Accounting firms reported over 50% of the Accountants surveyed rated their small business clients accounting records as average, inadequate or non-existent. There are some very important reasons why it is vital to your business well being to keep your financial records up to date:

It will enable you to understand your tax position

It will enable you to track who owes you money and encourage you to get this money paid when it falls due

It will enable you to know who you owe money to and when this is due on a day-by-day, week-by-week basis

You will have a very good idea of the current money free in the business to use – your current free cash position

It will enable you to understand your future cash needs through using a cash flow projection.

So don’t think of your business accounting and record keeping as an annoyance, something you have to do, treat it as a health check for the ongoing vitality of your business.

However, the time is worth spending on keeping accurate, timely and up-to-date financial records as a matter of normal business process when you consider how financial visibility aids in the success of many businesses.

Time demands faced by small business owners often puts the accounts and record keeping under pressure. If this is the case for you, then a healthy alternative would be to utilise the services of a professional bookkeeper.

The best businesses understand on a daily basis what their cash position is, what debtors have passed their due date and when cash is likely to arrive in their business.

Want to find out more about Brisbane accounting, then visit Accountia’s website and learn more about bookkeeping Brisbane services.

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How To Get full Time Staff Without Paying Full Time Wages

Nov 3, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

The biggest drain on time and the biggest frustration for business owners are quite often managing in house business fundamentals when in fact they should be spending their time on growing and developing their business or doing what they do best ! Instead they are busy with the books or managing staff.

For many small business operators just the effort of hiring, training and managing staff to do your administration, bookkeeping or marketing can take as much as 15-20 hours per week and if you are doing the books yourself the hours are even more. Whats even more alarming is most often the most critical operations of your business could be neglected and this could be a dangerous gamble for even the most profitable or well established business.

Outsourcing your bookkeeping/administration or marketing and having an on demand solution for your business can literally save your business thousands in overheads. Just the savings in wages, superannuation and holiday pay alone will make a positive on your business expenses. Outsourced and contracted services are fully accountable and only get paid if the job gets done, the same cannot be said for employed staff and the time saved on management will see the results reinvested into business development.

Outsourcing is a win win for Small Business. In the ultra tight economic climate, smart business owners know they can downsize overheads and reinvest into growth and development without compromising any of their business operations. All bookkeeping, administration and marketing can be outsourced leveraging expensive equipment or software, staff wages and time and still operate with confidence that the job is being done.

Core Business Processes that can easily be outsourced

Marketing

Marketing

Bookkeeping

Marketing

Staff Training and Development

Staff Training and Development

Systems and Infrastructure

Advantages for your business

Time : Have more time to grow your business

$$$ Savings : Lower overheads and save thousands on anything from wages to office rent

Save on Staff : No advertising for staff, training, no downtime, holiday pay or super. A full team working for your business without the costs

ACCURACY Accountability, doesn’t require YOU driving your staff to achieve. No re-inventing the wheel. Services are process mapped, with regular audit, review and compliance programs in place to ensure accuracy.

Business Development and Growth : A team of staff dedicated to your business and giving you a big business solution

To get effective and proven results for your business the Small Business Support model is a cost effective solution for aggressive business growth and development. Reinvestment back into your business of funds will drive your business.

Learn more about bookkeeping gold coast. Stop by Michelle Carr’s site where you can find out all about Gold Coast Virtual office and what it can do for your business

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3 QuickBooks Online Add-Ons that Maybe Required to Operate Your Business

Oct 21, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

There are 3 important QuickBooks Online Add-ons that may be important to the way you manage your business with QuickBooks Online. This article will discuss these QuickBooks Online add ons and will provide you with information that you should consider to make an informed business decision. This article will inform you of the additional expenses that may not be apparent when considering the purchase of QuickBooks Online.

By way of background, the three types of QuickBooks Online products discussed are QuickBooks Online -free, QuickBooks Online Basic,and QuickBooks Online Plus. Please refer to my other articles that compare and contrast the functionality of QuickBooks Online Basic and QuickBooks Online Plus.

Add-On for Credit Card Sales From Customers - To process,approve and record credit card sales you need to purchase QuickBooks Online Merchant. Accepting Visa, MasterCard, American Express and other credit card types can attract new customers, help you get paid faster, and save you time in collecting payments. This ability to accept credit card payments is called a merchant account service. With the QuickBooks Online Merchant account, you are able to authorize and process credit card transactions with eitherQB Online Basic or QB Plus. This credit card add-on, processes and records payments from customers, in real time, thereby eliminating the need to manually record credit card sales in your QuickBooks. For this add-on, there is a onetime set up fee of $59.95 and a monthly fee of $19.95, along with standard authorization and credit card fees. If you are able to purchase this from a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor there are substantial discounts available for these services.

One positive aspect, is that the use of QuickBooks Online Merchant does save you money because you no longer need to lease phone lines and lease terminal hardware or software. It should be noted that for in store credit card sales, a merchant service card reader does not work and that a credit card reader requires QB desktop software, 2002 or higher. Intuit designed their product so you do not have to use a credit card reader. The alternative is not that bad, you have to manually type in the credit card number and enter the customer sale information usually included in an invoice. In a few moments, you are informed if the customer payment is approved or declined by the credit card company. (By the way, the other day, I made a credit card purchase in a major department store, and they manually took an imprint of my credit card and effectively, manually took the time to process my credit card purchase, so even the major department stores have manual processes)

Payroll Add On- Payroll for QuickBooks Online is sold separately and is not included with either QuickBooks Basic or QuickBooks Plus. However, Intuit, offers the following solutions as of the date of this article (a) QuickBooks Online Basic ($9.95 monthly) and payroll ($9.95 monthly) and (b) QuickBooks Online Plus ($34.95 monthly) and payroll ($9.95 monthly),sometimes Intuit offers a 20% discount for Plus version. When you purchase QB Online Plus from a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor there is an additional 20% discount available to you, which in total is a 40% savings. QuickBooks ProAdvisor discount pricing are subject to change.

Inventory Add On- At the current time, Intuit the manufacturer of both QuickBooks Online Basic and QuickBooks Online Plus does not offer an inventory accounting option. Unfortunately, many small companies companies maintain their inventories in Excel and periodically record and make the inventory adjustments into QuickBooks Online. Some options to you are available; you can buy an inventory add-on such as OE Companion which currently offers a 30 day free trial for their inventory accounting add-on or you can visit the Intuit website to obtain inventory add-ons from the Intuit Market. I have not reviewed any of these inventory add-ons and therefore, I cannot provide an opinion or review regarding their effectiveness and compatibility. However, we can look forward to the future, as Intuit is developing an inventory add-on.

This article was written to provide information to a purchaser of QuickBooks Online. The article is introductory and does not attempt to assess your specific business needs. As is the case for any purchase of hardware or software, professional analysis should be undertaken to carefully evaluate your business needs by your accountant, CPA, or a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor prior to purchasing any add-on or any software application.

Sandor Lenner,CPA-MBA has been providing accounting services for over 35 years. He is also a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and offers discounted QuickBooks software. QuickBooks Online Edition ” Starting as low as $9.95 a month. Subscribe to my free monthly newsletter. I will not share your email with anyone.

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Your Guide To Bookkeeping Classes

Oct 18, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

If you are trying to obtain additional degrees in accounting or even have your own bookkeeping establishment but you just cannot attend the regular campus then the best thing that can happen to you is that you can get yourself admitted in online bookkeeping classes. The advantage of the online classes is that you need not even attend the classes and also study based on your own time convenience. This allows you to spend time on your current job as well as make sure that you get the extra degree.

The best online bookkeeping classes are those which allow you to be flexible yet they have the facility of a live chat or calling up the faculty so that you can get your doubts and questions resolved by experienced people. This is a must for learning.

Most diploma courses will teach you all about the debit and credit as well as the basics of accounting. It will also teach you about the commonly accepted accounting principles or as they are called the GAAP norms.

Make sure that you get the references from your friends and relatives about the suitable online course before paying up the fees. You will not get any money back once you have already paid and want to cancel. You will need discipline and perseverance to get the best out of the online classes. This is where most of the students fail as they are not that disciplined in scheduling their time.

Compare all the costs associated with the online classes as well as the classes at a regular offline college or university. The online classes are cheaper however the fact is it is always better to have the interaction with the faculty in a regular school or college. That is why a lot of people prefer the offline method.

You should take bookkeeping classes for certified bookkeepers and select the best online bookkeeping classes

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Maximise Your Time and Business Success and Outsource to a Professional Bookkeeper

Oct 16, 2009 accounting bookkeeping

Keeping your books accurate and up to date can be onerous, time consuming and eat into your free time. But not keeping your books current may greatly impact the long term success of your business. Successful businesses are on top of their financial situation, are aware of their cash flow commitments and free-cash levels on a daily basis.

Is your time going into the most value-adding area in your business or are you spending hours entering data and doing reconciliations? Maybe it is time to consider your business efficiency and outsource your bookkeeping to a professional bookkeeper or accountant. Put your time where it is needed most in your business.

For many business owners there are never enough hours in a day to get through the daily workload. Trying to do your own bookkeeping can have a negative impact on your business and your home life. Especially if you try squeezing it in after a full day’s work, after dinner, or during weekends. Using a professional bookkeeper can prove to be a most valuable and inexpensive way for business owners to reduce stress and win back some precious time for other things.

Outsourcing your bookkeeping to a professional bookkeeper or accountant will help reduce the stress of worrying about your business finances. You be will able to keep your finger on the financial pulse of your business, you will know what your cash-flow looks like at any given time and you will have the flexibility to use your business’ free-cash as opportunities arise. Just knowing where your business is financially can give you back control and piece of mind.

Learn a lesson from America’s big companies: 35% of America’s largest businesses outsource their bookkeeping. Outsourcing bookkeeping makes sense whether you have a huge existing business, a small business or are just starting your business. As a business owner your time is valuable and you need to spend it working on your business as much as possible, rather than working in your business doing boring but essential data entry.

What are the other alternatives? Having a bookkeeper on staff? Particularly for small and medium-sized businesses, keeping a bookkeeper on staff is not always a wise use of funds or the best way to keep your books error-free

Outsourcing your bookkeeping doesn’t mean that you give up control of your books. Most bookkeepers will work with your company as if they were a part of your company. In a properly designed system a bookkeeping service only takes over the process of tracking transactions such as sales, accounts payable and balancing the books, but only the business owner makes management decisions. You will normally still have the final word on who gets paid and when.

Outsourcing your bookkeeping is a fairly inexpensive cost when you compare this to your time in your business, with your family and friends – what is this time worth to you? Are you getting the “down-time” required to keep you fresh, focussed and innovative in these current economic times? Outsourcing your bookkeeping to a professional bookkeeper or accountant may just be the smartest business decision you make.

Learn more about Brisbane accounting. Stop by Accountia’s website where you can find out all about our bookkeeping Brisbane services and what we can do for your business.

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