How can a bookkeeper help my business?
Good financial management is the key to any business’s success. However, not every business owner has the time to thoroughly track their business’s financial records on a weekly basis. In between finding new customers, managing staff, and keeping clients happy, there’s very little time at the end of each working day to properly complete important financial administrative tasks like data entry and expense tracking.
The time-consuming nature of many of these financial administrative tasks is the reason why many business owners opt to bring in an external bookkeeper to help with the day-to-day management of their financial records. So, how exactly can a bookkeeper help your business and what are some of the tasks you can outsource to a professional bookkeeper?
What are the duties and responsibilities of a bookkeeper?
Bookkeepers can perform a wide range of tasks for business owners, which is why they’re such valuable assets to have on hand. The primary goal of any good bookkeeper is to maintain the financial records of a business, so that a small business can continue to thrive and grow.
So, what are some of the tasks you can ask a bookkeeper to do? Here are six things that bookkeepers can do to assist you in the day-to-day management of your business:
1. Prepare financial statements
One of the most essential services that bookkeepers can provide is preparing financial statements. Your bookkeeper can help you prepare a range of financial reports, including profit and loss statements and balance sheets. Having this information on hand will mean that you’re always across exactly how your business is performing at any given stage. This will inevitably help you improve your business’s financial performance as it grows and better equip you with the information necessary to make strategic decisions.
2. Process payroll
If your business has staff, then you’re likely already dedicating significant hours every week or every fortnight to processing payroll. Paying staff involves checking timesheets, calculating tax and superannuation, and keeping accurate records. Mistakes can result in unhappy employees and hefty fines, so payroll is definitely something that requires a lot of concentration and effort.
Bookkeepers can help small businesses process payroll much more efficiently and professionally. Outsourcing your payroll to a professional bookkeeper will help to save you lots of time and will also reduce the chance of administrative mistakes.
3. Manage invoices and receipts
One of the struggles that many business owners face is keeping track of their outgoing invoices. When you start to lose track of who owes you what, you’re putting your business at significant risk from a cash flow perspective.
Bookkeepers can work with a business owner to ensure that invoices are being sent out on time and that they’re being paid on time. This will help to keep you on top of your finances and to ensure that you have enough money coming into the business.
4. Handle accounts payable
In the same way that bookkeepers can help with your accounts receivables, they can also assist with your accounts payable. Tasks such as paying supplier invoices and entering credit card purchases can be handballed to a professional bookkeeper, which can save you a huge amount of admin time every week.
5. Cash flow advising
Having an understanding of cash flow makes all the difference to a business’s performance. Since bookkeepers are responsible for keeping an eye on the day-to-day operating expenses and revenues of a business, they’re well equipped to make recommendations on how to improve cash flow.
6. Prepare you for tax time
Outsourcing your financial administrative tasks to a professional bookkeeper will mean that you’ll never have to scramble to prepare for tax time ever again. Bookkeepers will ensure that your financial records are always up to date and that all your financial activities have been accounted for. This means that when tax time comes around, you’re fully prepared and ready.
How much does a bookkeeper cost?
Bookkeeping services are quite diverse, which means that the costs for bookkeeping services can vary significantly depending on what you’re asking them to complete and the complexity of the job. However, bookkeeping services in Australia generally cost between $80 per hour to $100 per hour.
Although these fees might seem high at first, the reality is that these services are well worth the money. When you consider the time you would have to otherwise set aside to complete these bookkeeping tasks on your own, you’ll quickly realise that it pays off to hire a professional to do the job instead. Keep in mind that bookkeepers are experts when it comes to financial data, so they’ll be able to get your financial admin done in a fraction of the time it would take an untrained person to complete the same tasks. You can use this handy online time calculator to calculate the real cost of doing your bookkeeping tasks on your own.
One of the biggest lessons that every business owner needs to learn is how to value their time. By investing money in resources that will allow you to free up your daily schedule, you’ll have more time and energy to put into growing your business.
So, if you’d like to learn more about how a bookkeeper can help your business, get in touch with us at Jim’s Bookkeeping today. All of our bookkeepers are trained and certified and are well-versed in a range of accounting software. Call Jim’s Group on 131 546 or enquire online to arrange your free consultation.
