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Author: Jake Snelson

File Federal Business Taxes

How to File Taxes for Small Business LLC

If you’re a small business owner running a single-member LLC, understanding how to file federal business taxes is crucial to ensure compliance with tax laws and make the most of potential tax benefits. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the process of filing federal business taxes for a single-member LLC and cover important aspects of tax filing, including estimated tax payments, self-employment taxes, and more.

How to File Taxes for Small Business LLC

Small Business LLC

Filing taxes for a single-member LLC involves several key steps:

1. Determine Your LLC’s Tax Status

Single-member LLCs are typically treated as disregarded entities for federal income tax purposes. This means that, by default, the IRS treats your LLC’s income and expenses as part of your personal tax return. In this case, you’ll file a Schedule C with your individual income tax return to report your business income and expenses.

2. Prepare Your Business Income and Expenses

Before you start the tax filing process, make sure you have accurate records of your business income and expenses for the tax year. Maintain a separate business bank account to keep your finances organized and make it easier to report your business income.

3. Calculate Your Net Profit

Your net profit is a critical figure when filing taxes for your single-member LLC. It’s calculated by subtracting your business expenses from your total business income. This net profit will be the amount you report on your Schedule C.

4. Self-Employment Taxes

As a single-member LLC owner, you’re considered self-employed for tax purposes. This means you’ll be responsible for paying self-employment taxes, which cover both Social Security and Medicare taxes. The IRS requires you to report and pay these taxes if your net earnings from self-employment exceed a certain threshold.

5. File Your Personal Tax Return

With the information from your Schedule C, complete your individual income tax return (Form 1040). Make sure to include all relevant schedules and forms, such as Schedule SE for self-employment taxes. Be accurate and thorough in reporting your income and expenses to avoid potential audits.

6. Estimated Tax Payments

Single-member LLCs are generally required to make estimated tax payments throughout the year to cover their tax liability. These payments are typically made on a quarterly basis and are calculated based on your expected annual income. Failing to make these payments can result in penalties, so it’s essential to estimate your taxes accurately and make timely payments.

How to file federal business taxes for a single-member LLC

How to File Federal Business Taxes for a Single-member LLC

Filing taxes for a single-member LLC follows a specific tax treatment by the IRS. The IRS classifies a single-member LLC as a “disregarded entity,” essentially recognizing only the owner for tax purposes. Consequently, the tax treatment mirrors that of a sole proprietorship.

This arrangement offers a notable advantage since sole proprietorships and partnerships benefit from “pass-through taxation.” This means that the business itself isn’t subject to taxation on its income; instead, the tax liability falls solely on the owners. In contrast, traditional corporations face “double taxation,” whereby the company’s profits are taxed twice—first at the corporate level and subsequently when distributed to the owners.

In the case of a single-member LLC, profits are typically reported on Schedule C, titled “Profit or Loss From Business,” and are combined with the owner’s personal tax return using Form 1040. An exception to this can arise with income generated from rental property, which is frequently reported on Part 1 of Schedule E. For more precise details, one can refer to the IRS’s guidelines for Schedule E.

It’s crucial to understand that, whether operating as a single-member LLC or a multi-member LLC, all income derived from the business must be reported, even if it remains within the business’s bank account and is not withdrawn as a personal draw.

Tax Filing for a Multi-Member LLC

Tax filing for a multi-member LLC follows a default structure of pass-through taxation, meaning that, unless the choice to be taxed as a corporation is made, the business itself does not bear the responsibility of paying federal income taxes on its earnings. However, a crucial distinction lies in the LLC’s obligation to file an informational return with the IRS, informing the government about the individual profits or losses incurred by each member of the LLC within the business.

To fulfill this requirement, the multi-member LLC is mandated to complete and submit Form 1065, officially titled the “U.S. Return of Partnership Income.” Furthermore, the LLC is tasked with furnishing a Schedule K-1 to each member of the LLC, serving as a comprehensive account of the member’s income or losses attributable to the business. Subsequently, each member incorporates the data from the K-1 into Part II of Schedule E, which is then included with their personal tax return.

It is essential to underscore that each member bears the responsibility of paying federal income tax based on their respective share of earnings, regardless of whether these earnings are disbursed among the members or retained within the LLC.

Tax Filing as an S Corporations

Some LLCs opt to pursue S corporation taxation as a strategic choice to reduce their self-employment taxes, which encompass contributions to Social Security and Medicare. Operating your LLC under S corporation taxation maintains the principle of pass-through taxation, akin to that of single-member or multi-member LLCs.

However, it is imperative to commence by confirming compliance with the IRS’s prerequisites for S corporation election and subsequently completing Form 2553, known as the “Election by a Small Business Corporation.”

Upon receiving IRS approval for your LLC’s S corp election, you will be obligated to annually file Form 1120-S, officially referred to as the “U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation,” on behalf of the business. Similar to the procedure followed by multi-member LLCs or partnerships, your LLC will need to furnish a Schedule K-1 to each member of the LLC.

This Schedule K-1 functions as a comprehensive record of each member’s income or losses directly related to the business. Subsequently, every member of the LLC, now operating under the S corporation tax status, will integrate the information from the K-1 into Part II of Schedule E and include it with their individual tax return.

Can I File Taxes Myself or Should I Hire a Tax Professional?

While some single-member LLC owners choose to file their taxes themselves, others prefer to enlist the services of a tax professional. The decision largely depends on your comfort level with tax regulations, the complexity of your business finances, and your time availability.

If your financial situation is relatively straightforward, you may be able to file your taxes independently using tax software or online platforms. However, if your business has complex income and expenses, you’re unsure about deductions and credits, or you simply want to ensure compliance with all tax laws, hiring a tax professional can be a wise choice. Tax professionals, such as Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) or enrolled agents, possess the expertise to maximize your tax benefits and reduce the risk of errors or audits.

Best Practices for Filing LLC Taxes

Keep Accurate Records: Maintain detailed records of all your business income and expenses throughout the year. This will make the tax filing process smoother and help you maximize deductions.

Stay Organized: Use accounting software or hire a bookkeeper to keep your financial records organized and up-to-date. This will save you time and reduce stress during tax season.

Make Timely Estimated Tax Payments: Calculate your estimated taxes accurately and make quarterly payments to avoid penalties and interest charges.

Seek Professional Advice: Consider consulting with a tax professional to ensure that you’re taking full advantage of available tax deductions and credits. They can help you strategize for future tax planning as well.

Review Tax Law Changes: Stay informed about changes in tax laws and regulations that may affect your business. The tax code is subject to updates, and staying current can help you make informed decisions.

Keep Personal and Business Finances Separate: Maintain a clear distinction between your personal and business finances by using a separate business bank account. This simplifies financial tracking and reporting.

Retain Tax Documents: Keep copies of all tax documents, returns, and supporting records for at least three years in case of an IRS audit or inquiry.

Filing federal business taxes for a single-member LLC involves understanding your tax status, accurately reporting income and expenses, paying self-employment taxes, and making estimated tax payments.

tax treatment for a single-member LLC

While some entrepreneurs choose to manage their tax filing themselves, the value of seeking expert guidance cannot be overstated, particularly for complex financial situations. Explore the invaluable assistance provided by specialists like Vyde, Your All-inclusive Accounting Partner, a trusted choice among more than 10,000 small businesses across the country. Vyde offers a range of essential services, including bookkeeping, tax assistance, and invaluable accounting advice.

Frequently Asked Questions: 

How does the tax treatment for a single-member LLC differ from other business structures?

A single-member LLC is treated as a disregarded entity for federal income tax purposes, similar to a sole proprietorship. This means the business’s income and expenses are reported on the owner’s personal tax return using Schedule C.

What are the key steps involved in filing taxes for a single-member LLC?

Filing taxes for a single-member LLC includes determining tax status, preparing business income and expenses, calculating net profit, paying self-employment taxes, filing personal tax return, and making estimated tax payments.

What’s the difference in tax filing for a multi-member LLC compared to a single-member LLC?

Multi-member LLCs follow pass-through taxation, like single-member LLCs, but they’re required to file an informational return (Form 1065) and provide Schedule K-1 to each member. Members then use this information to file their personal tax return.

How does electing S corporation taxation for an LLC impact tax filing?

S corporation taxation for an LLC allows for pass-through taxation while potentially reducing self-employment taxes. It involves filing Form 2553 for IRS approval, annual Form 1120-S, and issuing Schedule K-1 to members for their individual tax filing.

Should I file taxes for my single-member LLC myself or hire a tax professional?

It depends on the complexity of your business finances and your comfort level with tax regulations. While simple situations might allow for independent filing, complex scenarios might benefit from the expertise of tax professionals like CPAs or enrolled agents.

Finding the Right Bookkeeper for Your Business

Are you looking for reliable bookkeeping services for your business? Like many business owners, you may not know where to start. When you are passionate about your business but the numbers are overwhelming and challenging for you, competent and professional bookkeeping services can easily take care of the dollars and cents on your behalf. If you would like to be truly profitable and successful, you have to keep tabs on your business finances.

As a small business owner, if you do not know where you stand on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis, your chances of surviving and growing can decrease considerably. There is no doubt that a bookkeeper can help manage your finances, provide valuable insight, and can have a big impact on the trajectory of your small business.

Here are five things you should consider when hiring the right bookkeeper for your business.

1. The Right Experience and Expertise

When you start researching potential bookkeepers or bookkeeping companies, find out about their experience level. It is no secret that every industry has its unique quirks when it comes to financial record-keeping. Check to see if the company or candidate has experience and confidence that they can navigate the ins and outs of your industry.

In addition, make sure you have the right experience for the right role. Instead of having one person try to tackle all your finances, look for a team of specialized individuals who work well together. Having someone who specializes in bookkeeping focus on your books and an accountant who specializes in tax do your taxes can improve accuracy and save you money.

While a company website will certainly offer some valuable insights into their experience, you should ask a few important questions. Some of them are:

  • How long has the candidate or company been in the bookkeeping industry?
  • What type of clients do they serve?
  • Do their services meet your business needs?

Accounting and bookkeeping is not an easy science. So, for a business that is starting out or growing, you need to have somebody who has been successfully doing this job for quite some time.

2. Communication is Key

If you are not good with numbers, you need a professional who will help you understand and appreciate the numbers. So, it is important to make sure that your communication style and the communication style of your bookkeeper work well together.

Some bookkeepers or bookkeeping companies charge extra for financial reviews or consultations. Ask about potential additional costs and be sure to factor those into your budget. It’s good practice to meet with your bookkeeper or accountant at least once per quarter to get a better gauge on your business finances.

Your bookkeeper needs to present your business finances in a simple way that makes sense and also keeps you informed at both the frequency and level that you prefer.

3. They Must Have Attention to the Detail

Numbers can be challenging and tricky to deal with. Keep in mind that even a small error or mistake in figures could impact your company. Look for a bookkeeping company or individual that has a thorough review process so you can have confidence your reports are accurate. A bookkeeper’s ability to give attention to the smallest details can ensure that mistakes or errors are minimized.

4. Look for Transparency and Trustworthiness

When it comes to bookkeeping, transparency must be among the first things that you should look for in a candidate. The bookkeeper you choose should be able to give you an instant and reliable quote for their services without any hidden fees that may pop up after several months of working together. There is no doubt that this is the type of transparency and honesty that you need in the bookkeeper who will be handling your business finances.

Also, note that any bookkeeping professional that you hire should be a reliable and trustworthy candidate. You will entrust this professional with confidential and sensitive financial details of your business. Choosing an individual or company that you could rely on and trust would give you peace of mind.

5. Up to Date on Tech

The financial industry is continually evolving, and while the principles of bookkeeping and accounting might not change, there are ways your bookkeeper can make your financial data more accessible and digestible than ever before. Look for a bookkeeper who is open to adopting innovations and can keep up with changing technology to provide you with the best experience.

The right bookkeeper for your business should be adept at using standard bookkeeping software and tools, and they should also have an innovative mindset to help you have better insight and make informed business decisions.

There is no doubt that hiring a bookkeeping professional or company can be an important decision for your business. An excellent bookkeeping partner will be with you and help you every step of the way as your company grows.

Doing Less and Getting More from Content Marketing

These days, companies are increasingly allocating more time and money to content marketing. And the effort is not without good reason, as 67% of marketers suggest that content marketing generates demand and leads. But with a surplus of information and entertainment options available to consumers, is all content marketing worth the effort and resources?

Because we live in an information world, many businesses assume that more content and information is better, but the opposite can be true. Information overload can be overwhelming for consumers and lead to decision-making delays. So if you feel like you’re sending content into a void and nothing is happening, you’re probably right.

What Should I Do?

If marketing is not your expertise, your first hunch might be to throw out more content and see what sticks, but that option can be risky and highly impractical. You have to remember that consumers may, at quick glance, judge the credibility or the purpose of your business based solely on what you post on social media.

Moreover, as a small business owner, your time and resources are incredibly important, and the financial flexibility to hire a content creator is often unavailable. Keeping up with trends, keeping track of the output of your content, and making sure it aligns with your brand identity can become a difficult task to juggle, so let’s go over three straightforward steps to make your content creation manageable:

1. Creating a field comparison.

The good news is that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel! You can gain a lot of valuable insight based on what your competitors are doing and how it’s working for them. Start by choosing 4-5 companies in your field and creating a chart that allows you to compare their content data at a quick glance.

Include any information you might want to consider when creating content for your business. Maybe you want to know the total number of social media accounts each competing company uses and the number of followers on each account. This might help you determine which platform works best for your service or product and where most of your customers are spending their time scrolling or engaging.

Look into what types of content your competitors are creating and how they are relating it to consumers. Are they creating educational, promotional, or charismatic content? Are they allocating a lot of resources to podcasting or webinars? Are they spending any money creating printed content, such as flyers or magazines?

You’ll be surprised to see what other companies in your field are doing; it will also be an excellent opportunity to see where their strengths and weaknesses lie and give you an idea of your own brand positioning.

2. Building a content strategy.

Once you’ve gained a good understanding of how your competitors are managing their content and how it’s working for them, you’ll be ready to create a strategy of your own. Strategizing can seem tedious, but it’ll help you lay down a strong foundation and minimize stress and confusion in the future. Here’s how to start:

  1. Determine the why. What is the reason you are creating content? Do you want to raise awareness about your brand? Help others? Increase revenue? Be sure to prioritize your reason, as too many motives will muddle everything and not provide enough focus or direction. Put this into a short mission statement and refer to it often to make sure you are staying on track.

  1. Understand your clients. Determine who you want to target and build the persona of your ideal customer. This could be based on your current clients or ones you want to focus on in the future. Think about where and how they are consuming information, what needs or pain points they may be encountering, and how your content can solve those. Connect to your consumers by sending surveys, or calling and talking to them directly. You’ll be surprised about how much insight you can gain from this experience and how much easier it’ll make your content creation.

  1. Determine your own branding. This will dictate how your customers see you and what they should expect to see or hear from your content. This can include colors, typography, imagery, voice, tone, and personality. Is your business communicating professionally? Casually? Lightheartedly? Stick to these guidelines in every business interaction; it’ll help your customers feel like they are well-acquainted with your company and will set expectations about what your company is about.

  1. Create a calendar or plan. This is the part that turns your good intentions into action. Define what the goal, medium, and topic for each part of your content will be, and don’t forget to include important dates or small campaigns. If you have a team, determine who will be in charge of each piece and what the goal or call to action will be, as well as how to measure the success of the content. Perhaps you’ll decide to attach goals to certain pieces, like reaching a specific number of likes or subscribers in a specific time frame. Don’t be discouraged when things start out slow. Most content engagement requires time and consistency, which is why plans and calendars are crucial!

3. Simplifying your content while improving its impact.

If you’ve already been creating content, take an honest look at what you have done in the past and cut out what isn’t working. This will be a great opportunity to audit your processes and help you determine where you can be saving time and resources. If you are just starting out, choose one thing to focus on this quarter based on your priorities. Maybe you just want to gain visibility, or maybe you want more interaction with consumers. Whatever the focus is, once you start feeling comfortable and that you are getting good results, you can try adding something new into the mix. Remember not to try doing too many things too fast or you’ll have a bunch of disheveled, ineffective content.

Another way to simplify your content is to consider two things: Look for what performed well in the past. You may be able to refresh and use it again. As for content that didn’t perform as well as you thought, consider how you can re-title, repackage, or reformat it to help it be better.

The most important thing to remember is to keep trying. Don’t give up! If content marketing was simple, then it would be ineffective. You’ll realize that as you start taking these steps into consideration and practice, it’ll become easier and even fun to create content and measure its success!

Want more insight on doing less and getting more from your content marketing? Check out the webinar below and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel!

The Ultimate Guide On How to Write Off Vacations On Your Taxes

Can I Write Off a Vacation as a Business Expense: Your Ultimate Guide

Can I Write Off a Vacation as a Business Expense: Your Ultimate Guide

One of the perks of being a small business owner is the tax deductions you can take advantage of, including how to write off a business trip or vacation. You just need to know your motives before you go!
To begin, you need to understand your trip needs to have a business purpose for it to be eligible as a tax deduction. The key element to writing off your trip is that its primary purpose is business.

When it comes to the topic of how to write off vacations—and all business expenses—the IRS requires your trip to be both ordinary and necessary to be deductible.

In IRS lingo, ordinary means it’s an expense “that is common and accepted in your business,” while necessary means “an expense that is helpful and appropriate for your business.”

Keeping those ideas in mind, here are some key tips for writing off your vacation.

Common Business Activities That Require Travel

Common business activities that you should consider on your trip include:

  1. Attending a convention or seminar: Take a look at the calendar and see if there is a convention or seminar that would be beneficial for you to attend in an area where you can also enjoy some needed rest and relaxation.
  2. Meeting with clients, partners, or potential customers: As you are traveling to new destinations, consider the customers, potential clients, or partners you might have in the area. Set up times to meet with them to gain new insights for your business.
  3. Meeting with vendors: Research the area to see if there are any vendors or potential vendors or partners you would want to meet with. Then, set up appointments in advance.
  4. Conducting business research: This can be a bit of a grey area, so make sure your reasons are sound. As you prepare for a trip, see if there are any research opportunities you can take advantage of in that area. Traveling to Hawaii just to do some research on Google will not be a compelling enough justification in case of an IRS audit. Scoping out a local market, meeting with researchers, or taking advantage of resources specific to that area will create a much stronger case.

Business Expenses That Are Tax-Deductible

Business expenses that are tax-deductible include:

  • Plane tickets
  • Rental cars
  • Gas
  • Taxis or other transportation expenses
  • Seminars
  • Conventions
  • Meals
  • Research expenses
  • Employee expenses
  • Hotel rooms or other accommodations
  • Business activities

It’s best if you pay for these expenses using your business bank account to avoid comingling your accounts. That way, all your trip expenses are in one place and easy to find. However, if you do pay for some things with a personal card, you can still get the tax deduction. Just make sure to keep good records and keep track of your receipts and notes in case of an audit. Learn what to do after you file your taxes.

Business Expenses That Are Tax-Deductible

IRS Requirements: Knowing How to Write Off Vacations

The IRS has several requirements that each small business owner must abide by which are important to know when learning how to write off vacations, including:

  1. Majority: The majority of the days of the trip must be business-related. However, it’s important to note business days include weekends, travel days, convention or seminar days, and days you meet with clients or conduct research.
  2. Planning: Make sure conventions and appointments are planned in advance and meetings with vendors are scheduled. This will help demonstrate the intention of your travel was business. Save emails or documents that could help demonstrate this in case of an audit.
  3. Documentation: Save all your receipts over $75.00 and any lodging expenses (even under $75.00).
  4. Notes/minutes: Hang onto brochures or keep notes of business meetings. These will provide proof that you attended these business activities during your travels.
  5. Reasonable: Keep in mind that all expenses need to be reasonable to write-off.  The main write-offs include travel (plane tickets, rental cars, gas, taxis, etc.), accommodations (hotel rooms), employee expenses, business activities (conventions, seminars, employee activities, etc.), and meals (groceries, restaurant receipts, etc.).

So you’re probably wondering, “Where does the vacation come in?” Let’s look at an example:

Enjoying Vacation with Business

If you wanted to visit a friend in Chicago and stay for a few days, take a look at your schedule.  You could travel by plane on Thursday (business day), attend a seminar Friday (business day), and visit your friend on Saturday (business day) and Sunday (business day) since weekends are automatically considered business days. You could them take Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday for vacation days before traveling home Thursday (business day). The majority of the days were considered business days and all your flights, meals, and accommodations are deductible.

  • 2 Travel Days = Business Days
  • 1 Seminar Day = Business Day
  • 2 Weekend Days = Business Days
  • Mon-Wed = Vacation Days

4 Business Days + 3 Vacation Days = Business Trip

Common Mistakes to Avoid

International Vacations and Increased Deductions

Examine if it would be beneficial for you to travel internationally for your business. You can increase your national network as well as develop your cultural understanding of another country.

If you are traveling internationally, you may be able to deduct more expenses than a vacation located in your domestic country. International vacations need to have a quarter of the time dedicated to business. However, if your vacation doesn’t consist of mostly business you can still write off a percentage of your trip.

Taking Your Family on a Business Trip

What happens if you take your family on a vacation but still attend business activities? Do you miss out on all the tax deductions?

If the trip still meets the criteria above, you can still take advantage of writing off your trip, but calculating the write-off might be a little trickier. For example, you can write off your plane ticket but not your family’s plane tickets.

Here are the expenses you can still write off:

  • Your hotel room or accommodations
  • Your rental car, gas, and transportation
  • Your plane ticket
  • Your portion of the meals
  • Convention or seminar passes and expenses
  • Research expenses
  • Employee expenses
  • Business activities

Other expenses you can’t write off include:

  • ‌Souvenirs
  • Family or friend plane tickets
  • Family or friend meals
  • Family or friend additional hotel rooms or accommodations
  • Excessive expenses

Again, it’s best if you can pay for business expenses with a business card, so separate restaurant checks or buy plane tickets separately where possible.

What if a family member is an employee?

If a family member is an employee and goes on the trip with you, you can write off their travel expenses as long as they attend and contribute to planned business activities. For example, they could attend the convention or seminar, participate in business conversations with clients, engage in research, etc.

This goes back to the discussion about ordinary and necessary. Would it be commonly accepted for a business in your line of work to send multiple employees to an event like this? Is it helpful and appropriate for your business? If so, then you can write off both of your expenses.

International Vacations and Increased Deductions

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Now that you know the expectations for a business trip and the expenses you can write off, let’s review a few common mistakes small businesses make when trying to take a tax deduction on a trip:

  1. Not having a strong business tie or plan ahead of time.
  2. Not keeping receipts, travel plans, business notes, brochures, and other documentation.
  3. Not using a business bank account to track business expenses. Again, you can still write off expenses paid with your personal account, but this is not ideal.
  4. Trying to write off expenses that are excessive and unnecessary. This can raise a red flag for the IRS.
  5. Not taking advantage of the fact that weekends are automatically considered business days, whether or not you conduct business activities on those days. Extend your trip to include weekends if you want to enjoy a little extra vacation time!

If you haven’t fully documented your business-related reasons for travel or had a spontaneous lunch with potential clients or business partners, you may still be able to write off some expenses related to that trip. Tax deduction rules allow 50 percent of entertainment and meals to be written off when your vacation has a small portion of business-related activities.

Instead of thinking, “how can I write off my vacation?” think “how can I add a vacation to my business trip?” As a small business owner, you want to save money, and what better way to save than planning a trip around your business!

If you have additional tax tips or questions, reach out to our team today or sign up for a 30-day free trial with Vyde! We are here to save you time, money, and stress by handling your small business bookkeeping and taxes.

 

FAQs:

What qualifies as a deductible business trip or vacation?

Your trip must primarily serve a business purpose and meet IRS requirements of being both ordinary and necessary for your business. Weekend days automatically count as business days.

What are common business activities that require travel?

Attending conventions, seminars, meeting clients or partners, meeting vendors, and conducting business research are examples of activities that can justify a business trip.

Which expenses can be tax-deductible during a business trip?

Expenses such as plane tickets, rental cars, gas, accommodations, meals, seminars, and research costs can be deducted. However, excessive or personal expenses like souvenirs are not deductible.

Can I write off a family vacation if I conduct business activities during the trip?

Yes, if the trip meets IRS criteria and you maintain proper documentation. You can deduct your portion of expenses related to business activities, but not those of family members.

What are common mistakes to avoid when attempting to write off a business trip?

Common mistakes include lacking a strong business purpose, failing to keep proper documentation, not using a business bank account for expenses, attempting to deduct excessive expenses, and not considering weekends as business days.

Interested in Learning More?

Schedule a free consultation with our team!

Business Owner

Charging Your Worth as a Business Owner

From location to branding, to management, and everything in between, there’s no question that business ownership comes with an array of difficult decisions. But settling on the right price to charge for the services you provide can be one of the most overwhelming decisions for many business owners.

Pricing will play an incredibly important role and prompting factor for your customers. At a glance, the price of your services will suggest the quality of service customers can expect from your business and may be the reason many clients will choose your business over your competitors.

Given the importance of charging your worth as a business owner, here are some points to consider when setting your prices:

Understand your value

1. Understand your value

Understanding your value comes down to the nature of your expertise. ‌Your expertise consists of your professional qualifications, such as your continual professional development and the experience you have putting it all into practice.

Depending on how long you’ve been in the field, you might find that certain aspects of your work will come easily — almost automatically. Those are called unconscious competencies — what you are good at without even thinking about it. Don’t discount them. Being unconsciously competent is a value you bring to your business and something you should consider when determining a price.

The concept of understanding your value is particularly important for businesses that charge on an hourly basis because the better you get at something, the less time it will take for you to do the task. If you charge an hourly fee you can end up billing less than what your work is worth and end up losing out on big earnings. That’s why it’s important to understand your value and charge accordingly.

In the same vein, it’s also critical to know your competition and not overvalue yourself. If every business in your field is charging less than you, it may be challenging to market your services and persuade customers to choose your business.

2. Understand the pain points of your clients

The fact of the matter is that people use professional services to solve problems. When you’re determining what prices to charge for your services, it’s important to consider why your customers are hiring you. Ask your clients what they need to be done and why they are inquiring about your services. Consider what it’ll cost your customers if they don’t fix the problem. Soon you’ll begin to understand where your customers see your value and how much they are willing to pay for it. Remember that some customers will have an easier time seeing and understanding your worth and others won’t, and that’s okay!

3. Understand the difference between value and price

If you center your business around price, you will attract clients who focus on price. Determine how you want your services to be seen, do the upfront work, and help the clients understand the value of working with you. This approach will require some work on your part, but it’ll help customers become acquainted with your work and what you bring to the table. Consider implementing marketing tactics that will help drive this point to consumers, such as free trials, strategy sessions, consultations, and so forth.

If potential clients understand the value, potential ROI, and how your services solve their pain points, they will be ready and willing to make an investment in your business.

4. Understand how to communicate your value to your clients

This point is especially tricky for businesses in the service industry. One common issue is that business owners often get so good at solving a problem that clients often think they are overpaying for their services. It’s understandable. The customer may only see the short amount it took to fix something and not the amount of practice and experience it took to get to that point.

Remind your clients of their problems and how badly they needed them solved. You can communicate this message through clever marketing or by simply stating it in a professional manner. However you choose to communicate your worth, just remember that those who can’t understand the value of your work will never be your clients.

talk about money, fees, and services

5. Understand money

It’s human nature to navigate away from the things that make us uneasy, so if you are uncomfortable with money, you’ll have a hard time charging your worth. You’ll have to be willing to talk about money, fees, and services without feeling guilty about what you are charging because, as time goes on, your rates will increase or you may add new services. This is why it’s important to take the time to understand your worth and evaluate your work, as well as keep an eye on the rate of the competition.

Final Warning — “Pigs get fed, hogs get slaughtered.”

In business, the meaning of this phrase is that it’s okay to make a profit, but when that profit is the result of price gouging or taking advantage of people, you’ll eventually lose in the end. No one likes to be taken advantage of, and that includes your clients. Keep your business honest and professional and you’ll see how much growth you’ll be able to achieve along with a good reputation. Being a pig (eating, or doing what is necessary for your business to survive, grow, and succeed) is good. Being a hog (overeating, or focusing solely on profits at the expense of the clients and quality) is bad.

Watch co-founder of Mazuma, Greg Nielson, explain the importance of charging your worth in the webinar below, and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more business advice!

Ready to see what your business can accomplish when you don’t have to worry about dealing with taxes and the IRS? Try Vyde FREE for 30 days!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Charging Your Worth as a Business Owner

1. Why is understanding my value crucial for setting prices?
Understanding your value, including unconscious competencies, helps ensure you charge adequately, especially for hourly-based services.
2. How can I grasp the pain points of my clients when determining prices?
Ask clients about their needs and the cost of not solving their problems. This insight guides you in understanding the perceived value of your services.
3. What’s the difference between value and price in business?
Centering your business around value attracts clients focused on quality. Communicate the value of your services to shift the focus from price.
4. How do I effectively communicate my value to clients?
Remind clients of the problems you solve and the expertise behind it. Use marketing tactics like free trials or consultations to showcase your worth.
5. Why is understanding money crucial for charging my worth?
Being comfortable discussing money is vital. Regularly evaluate your worth, track competition, and be mindful of rates to confidently set and adjust prices.

Top 4 Numbers That Drive Your Business Success

Are you looking to build your business?

As small business owners, it is easy to get distracted by the length of our to-do list and lose sight of the important factors that drive our business’ success. It’s also easy to ignore financial reports when we don’t know how to translate the numbers on the report into key insights about the health and value of our business.

As a certified public accountant and founder of Vyde, I wanted to provide you with some of these key insights that can drive your business success.

1. Sales

Let’s start with the business basics—sales, also known as revenue. As business owners, we understand that the money we generate is our lifeblood. This is what allows us to function from day to day, earn a comfortable living, pay our employees, and invest in growing and improving our business.

But what do we do with those sales numbers after we see the reports? Increasing sales and revenue is important, but if that is the only number we focus on, we could run into problems in the long run. Driving up sales will not impact the bottom line if we have to increase spending to get there. That’s why the next numbers are important to evaluate as well.

2. Gross Margin

When you look at a profit and loss statement, you will see your revenue, your variable expenses (also known as cost of goods sold or cost of sales), your fixed expenses (expenses that don’t change from month to month, such as rent), your total expenses, and your net profit.

Gross profit is what you are left with when you take your total revenue and subtract your variable expenses. In effect, you are taking your sales and subtracting what it costs to make and sell your product or service. While this is an important number to keep tabs on, a much more telling number is your gross margin.

Gross margin helps you gauge your efficiency so you can work toward a healthier bottom line.

You can figure out your gross margin by dividing your gross profit (total revenue minus cost of goods sold) by your total revenue and multiplying that by 100 to get a percentage.

Gross Margin = (Total Revenue – Cost of Goods Sold)/Total Revenue x 100

A low gross margin means you will want to make some adjustments to reduce your costs; a high gross margin means you are maximizing your profits.

Another way you can calculate gross margin is to simply divide your cost of goods sold (or variable expenses) by your revenue. You can then subtract that number from 1 and multiply it by 100 to get your gross margin.

Gross Margin = 1 – (Cost of Goods Sold/Total Revenue) x 100

As both your gross profit and gross margin increase, you will start to see improvement in your business. There is no one percentage that represents the ideal gross margin. Driving your gross margin higher at the expense of quality or customer service will have negative repercussions. As you are setting your goals, research healthy gross margins in your industry and look at the ways other businesses improve their efficiency. Understanding these numbers will help you set goals and work toward a healthier bottom line.

3. Net Profit

This is your bottom line. Your profit and loss statements should provide you with a net profit, but you can also easily calculate this by subtracting all your expenses (variable and fixed) from your revenue.

Net Profit = Revenue – All Expenses

Your net profit is the money you have available to pay yourself and invest in future ventures. It is also the money you will be taxed on at the end of the year, which leads us to the fourth number you should be tracking.

4. Taxes

One problem many first-time business owners run into is not properly preparing for their taxes. No one wants a surprise bill come tax season.

The best way to prepare is to meet with a tax professional to create a plan. We encourage all our clients at Vyde to meet with us twice per year to plan for the upcoming tax season. There are many variables that go into calculating your taxes, including spouses, dependents, what other jobs you hold, self-employment tax, deductions, tax credits, your tax bracket, etc. That’s why you can make a more accurate plan by sitting down with a professional. However, if that is not an option for you, the general rule of thumb is to set aside 25% to 30% of your net profit for taxes.

As you track these four different numbers over long periods of time, you will start to generate month-over-month and year-over-year comparisons that allow you to identify trends, strengths, and weaknesses in your organization.

Evaluating these numbers regularly will help you drive your business success to the next level.

Have questions? We’d love to answer them and talk to you about setting up a financial strategy for your business. Contact us today! 

Business With Your Significant Other

3 Things to Consider Before Starting a Business With Your Significant Other

If you’re in a committed relationship you may have found yourself considering the idea of starting a business together. And why not? You love each other, you work well together, and if you have to work, why not work alongside your favorite person? Especially if you share a common interest! But, just like you would if you were starting a family or buying a house together, it’s a good idea to consider how starting a business could create challenges in your relationship; especially if you’re really enjoying the way things are now. Here are three things to think about, and discuss, before diving into this great journey together:

1. Home and Work Intertwine

It’s no secret that starting a business from scratch can take an incredible amount of effort. And depending on what industry you’re diving into, the workload can start even before you officially open!

It’s important to consider that work may bleed into your home and relationship. You could find yourselves talking about work or working more often than you’d like. Date nights could turn into business meetings and late-night talks might revolve around your business plans for the next quarter. It can all be exciting at the beginning, but as time goes on, you could find yourselves burning out or losing aspects of the relationship that you used to love.

To combat the potential drain on your relationship, it’s a good idea to determine now how both of you want to communicate about the business. Consider setting boundaries that you’re both comfortable with and that allow you to continue to have a romantic relationship while still being great business partners. You could decide to set aside certain days that are strictly off limits to work, or maybe you’ll determine that work talk is not allowed after a specified time.

Whatever you both determine, remember to respect each other and consider your partner’s perspective the same way you would with a colleague in any professional setting.

2. The Bad Days

Remember that there can be a lot of difficult days in business ownership. If both of your incomes rely on the success of this endeavor, it can become incredibly stressful if it feels like things are a little slow at times.

The good thing is you will have each other, and each of you can provide support when the other starts to feel overwhelmed. Additionally, both of you should keep in mind that you are not alone in this journey; there are countless businesses that are owned and operated by couples. Look to them for guidance and ask for advice when possible. Check out our Keep Going Podcast for inspiration from other business owners who share a similar story, like Suzy and her husband who started Grounds for Coffee in Ogden, Utah together.

The most important thing is to remember that you and your sweetheart are on the same team. When business problems arise, it’s not you and your partner against each other, it’s you and your partner against the problem. Always prioritize having a healthy relationship with each other! Having a good relationship (even if the romance fizzles) will help keep your business afloat for years to come.

3. Set a Clear Outline of How the Business Will Operate

Setting a clear outline or plan of how the business will operate will help if, and when, you disagree about how things ought to run. Business partnerships should share equal responsibility when it comes to management (unless you decide otherwise), but these responsibilities can easily tumble out of alignment.

There may come a point when one of you feels that they are bearing a heavier load than the other, and these business disagreements can easily become a slippery slope into relationship quarrels. An outline will help define all the specifics to avoid potential issues, from who owns what percentage of the business, what responsibilities pertain to each of you, the compensation structure, or what will happen in case of a dissolution.

It can seem tedious and even difficult to outline every aspect of the business with your significant other, but it will save you a lot of time and headache (or even heartache) in the future. When you do have a disagreement, you can refer to the outline to remember the business purpose and how you both decided things would run, then you can correct and pivot accordingly.

Starting a business can be both an exciting and an overwhelming experience for anyone, but you’ll find that being on this journey with your significant other can also be incredibly rewarding to your relationship. The most important thing for both of you to remember is that 1) open and honest communication can make all the difference, 2) neither of you is alone in this, and 3) that mutual respect is the key factor in keeping any business or relationship triumphant.

Are you and your beau ready to start that business you’ve been dreaming about? Eliminate the hassle of dealing with small business taxes and bookkeeping. Just let Vyde take care of it for you! Try our services FREE for 30 days to see what you can accomplish together and let us deal with the IRS!


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Accountant

What to Look for in an Accountant

Accounting and tax software have made it possible for small businesses to get along without having an in-house accountant. Depending on the business’s complexity and the owner’s appetite for accounting tasks, small businesses can thrive for years with just an occasional phone call with an accounting software’s customer support line.

However, as businesses grow, accounting issues get more complex, and tax filings become too cumbersome for owners to handle. That’s when you hire an accountant — either a firm or an employee — to take on the financial tasks that eat up your spare time.

Accountants can alleviate the administrative burden of running a business, leaving owners with more time to focus on doing what they love. But with so many options available for accounting services, how do you know what to look for in an accountant and what’s best for your business needs?

Follow these tips and get your small business accounting in order with the right accountant!

Overview: What Does a Small Business Accountant Do?

With all the help accountants can provide, it’s no wonder why accountants are a business owner’s best friend. A small business accountant can maintain the books, analyze financial results, file business taxes, and consult with owners to expand the business’s bottom line.

Small business accountants are best known for carrying out day-to-day bookkeeping. They track sales and expenses, and keep an eye on cash flow. Some small business accountants also run payroll.

At the end of the accounting period, accountants produce financial statements — balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements — to give you an overall picture of your company’s financial health. Experienced accountants use the financial data to prepare your business taxes, a task most business owners would be happy to get off their plate.

Aside from rote bookkeeping and tax filing, the most significant value-add from a small business accountant is financial analysis and teaching basic accounting concepts. Through financial ratio analysis, accountants pinpoint the areas where your business could improve efficiency, boosting your bottom line. Business owners lean on their accountants to suggest changes to the business model that can yield profits.

Budgeting also falls within a small business accountant’s wheelhouse. Integral to creating a realistic growth plan is a financial forecast to reel in your unwieldy dream sequence. A small business accountant tends to be a jack-of-all-trades able to answer most financial questions you have. However, you can find accountants who specialize in the areas that meet your business needs. For example, if you need someone to maintain your accounting software, you’ll want to hire an experienced bookkeeper. If you’ve decided you’re never filling out another tax document, find yourself a small business tax accountant.

4 Things to Consider When Looking for a Small Business Accountant

Ask yourself the following questions before starting your search.

1. What Accounting Services Are You Looking For?

Make a priority list for the tasks you’d like the accountant to take on. Searching for an accountant is easier when you have a job description for the role.

A small business accountant’s task list could include:

  • Audit preparation
  • Day-to-day bookkeeping
  • Accounts payable
  • Accounts receivable
  • Tax preparation
  • Payroll
  • Financial statement drafting
  • Financial planning and analysis
  • Budgeting

Consider not only your company’s current needs but also those in the near future. For example, don’t search for a bookkeeper when you think you’d eventually like to turn over payroll duties to someone else. You can likely combine these two tasks into an accounting clerk position.

2. Hiring a Firm or an Employee

You’ll want to determine whether you want an in-house accountant or a firm to manage your business’s accounting workload. Each has benefits and drawbacks, and it comes down to how much accounting help you need.

For example, hiring an in-house accountant, either part-time or full-time, ensures a certain dedication of your accountant’s time. However, small businesses that don’t have a constant need for accounting work might find that a firm can bring 360-degree service at a fraction of the cost. Hiring an employee can be costly when you add wages, employer payroll taxes, and other benefits.

If you’re unsure which route to take, put your feelers out to firms first. You can test-drive a firm by giving them just a portion of your total accounting workload before deciding whether to continue. Hiring an employee requires commitment.

3. Determining Your Budget

Knowing your budget might also help to answer my previous question. As you search for an accountant, consider how much you’d like to spend on accounting services.

Your budget should reflect the services and expertise your business requires, considering the complexity of its accounting issues. Where your business is located also influence the going rate for accounting services.

Research is the best way to build a budget for accounting help. If you’re looking to hire a firm, get some quotes. When looking for an in-house accountant, check out websites such as Glassdoor.com to see what accountants in similar companies earn. Another way of gaining information is asking a peer or other small business owners and gaining insight through them.

4. How Software Can Lighten Your Accounting Workload

If your business doesn’t already have accounting, payroll, and tax software, now might be a great time to introduce it. Software can take on most of the automated aspects of accounting.

It’s not a perfect solution: There will still be many aspects of your accounting you will have to manage yourself. It might be worth paying extra to have a professional handle your financial statements and taxes to ensure accuracy and save you the hassle.

How to Find an Accountant For Your Small Business

Like in all professions, reputation is paramount. Ask your trusted family, friends, and colleagues for accounting firm recommendations.

Make sure you’re talking to people who have hired these accountants to do similar work. For example, a great personal tax accountant might not have the specialty or interest in running your S corporation’s payroll.

Use the local society of CPAs directory.

If you’re looking for the expertise of a CPA, check out the website of your local society of CPAs. They commonly have directories of local individuals and firms with filters to help you find professionals with a specialization in your industry who can meet your accounting needs.

Search online.

Perhaps nobody you know has a recommendation. You can still find a great accountant for your business with an online search.

If you’re looking to hire an employee, create a recruitment plan and post your job description on a few online job boards.

When searching for an accounting firm, make sure to checkout clients’ online reviews before you call for a quote. But take online reviews with a grain of salt: People usually only find time to share glowing and hateful reviews, with little to nothing in between. But if you find a firm with nothing but bad reviews, consider striking it from your list.

3 Best Practices When Hiring a Small Business Accountant

Keep these tips in mind when hiring your accountant.

1. Look For Experience That Fits Your Needs Now and In The Future

Say you need a bookkeeper today, but you know that tax season is coming up. Hire an employee or accounting firm with the skill set to do both.

You want an accountant who can grow with you and help you tackle any accounting needs that may come your way. When you’re interviewing potential accountants, ask them about the type of accounting software they’re comfortable using and what they do to stay up to date with the latest accounting and tax laws.

Business owners who’ve aced Accounting 101 can ask targeted questions during an interview to assess whether the candidate is ready to take on all they’re looking for.

2. Shop Around

Interview at least three firms before choosing one. Accounting firms can differ greatly on price, and you don’t want to get into a situation where you realize only years later that you’ve been overpaying for services.

Likewise, interview multiple candidates before hiring an in-house accountant. Make sure you’re making the job posting widely available so people from different backgrounds can apply. A diverse pool of applicants is essential in any hiring process.

3. Conduct Background Checks and Check References

Accountants have access to your business’s most private information, from employee records to bank account information. You’ll want to run a background check and ask for references before turning your books over to someone new.

Get Back to Business By Hiring an Accountant

Not everyone is like us at Vyde and loves talking about and practicing accounting. That’s probably for the best. By hiring an accountant, or using accounting services, you’ll be able to get back to doing what you love and have more time to focus on growing your business. If you’re still unsure of where to start, here’s an easy option: try Vyde free for 30 days and see why hundreds of businesses choose our services everyday!


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Small Business Dreams a Reality

How to Make Your Small Business Big Dreams a Reality

Starting a business is a dream that many people have. The idea of creating something that is your own, being your own boss, and being able to turn your passion into a full-time job is compelling. In order to be successful and make your small business idea come to life, you have to take time to figure out all aspects of your business to see if it has potential. While starting a business can be challenging, watching your dream come to life is beyond rewarding. Below, we share some advice on how to get you on your way to making your small business dreams a reality.

Conduct Research

Conduct Research

When building a business, it’s important to do your research. Taking the time to figure out what you want your business to be and where it will fit into a competitive market is vital to the overall success of your business. When doing your research, you should look into the type of companies that currently exist in the market that you’re trying to enter to see if and why they have been successful. Is there so much competition you might struggle to gain your footing? How can you stand out from the competition? You should also look into potential consumers to see how your business can help them.

Take some time to gain more insight as to whether or not your business can make an impact within that industry. Understanding your potential market will allow you to better form your business plan. It can also help to fine-tune your business idea so that you are not starting a business around something that is already well-saturated within that market.

You should also consider your potential competitors.  It’s important to be able to diversify your business, so taking the time to research all aspects of your potential market and competitors will allow you to better understand where your business can fit in and how you can be successful in that space.

Create a Business Plan

A business plan is important because it outlines your overall goals and shows how you plan to achieve them. Creating this plan in the early stages will allow you to better visualize how you want your business to operate, allowing you the freedom to make any changes that you want before fully moving forward in this process.

When creating your business plan, be sure to consider all aspects of your business. A business plan should highlight:

  • Your goals and objectives
  • Your product or service
  • Market  and industry research
  • Competitor research and how you plan to stand out
  • Consumer research and how you plan to solve their pain points
  • Your marketing strategy
  • Your financial approach

It’s important to address all of the major components of your business so that when you are at the financing stage of the process, there will be a clear explanation of what your objectives are and what you plan to accomplish with your business.

A business plan will also help you stay organized throughout the entire startup process.

Determine Your Financial Strategy

Determine Your Financial Strategy

Figure out your finances early on so that you can ensure you get your business off the ground. Without proper financing, it will be difficult to start your business. It’s important to create an outline of what your expected expenses will be so that you can budget your money wisely. Starting a business is expensive and there are many unexpected costs that will come up. It’s just a reality of being a business owner. When making your business plan, you should budget for not only the expected costs but also the unexpected costs so you are not overwhelmed or scrambling when they come up. That will also give you more flexibility when new opportunities arise.

There are many different ways to fund your business. Some people prefer to look into reaching out to investors for assistance, while others may consider taking out a loan.  If you’re someone who is looking to go the route of working with investors, then it’s vital that you have a sound business plan to show potential investors.

If you are considering a loan instead, then it may be worth considering a small business loan. A small business loan is partially guaranteed by the government, eliminating some of the risks for the financial institution issuing the loan, but it can be difficult to acquire. Small business loans have specific requirements that have to be met in order to qualify, but if those requirements are met, then it may be a good option for your small business. If not, another long-term option to consider is looking into refinancing your home to a 30-year fixed mortgage, which will lower your monthly mortgage payment, allowing you to allocate the extra funds toward financing your new business.

Consider Your Accounting and Taxes

Once you figure out how you will finance your small business, you should also consider how to handle your small business accounting and taxes. Having a detailed understanding of your financial reports will help you make informed decisions for your business, and you want to ensure your company does not have any surprise tax bills or compliance problems with the IRS.

If the idea of doing your own accounting makes your blood pressure rise, consider looking into small business accounting options. There are affordable options for small businesses that will take care of your accounting, bookkeeping, financial reports, and taxes. In fact, at Vyde we often save our clients more in their taxes than our services cost for an entire year. Utilizing the help of an accountant or accounting service will save you stress and provide the security of knowing your taxes are done right.

It’s important that you take the time to finalize all aspects of your business idea before moving forward. Starting a small business takes time and is a big commitment. Making sure that you are well prepared with what to expect, can allow the process to run smoothly and your business to be successful.

Consider Your Accounting and Taxes

Vyde Wants to Help

Vyde helps small business startups like yours with all their accounting, bookkeeping, and taxes. Our business is helping you stay in business. We’ve helped over 10,000 small businesses already! Contact us today to see how we can help you.

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bookkeeper if i have quickbooks

Do I Need an Accountant If I Use Quickbooks?

Do I Need an Accountant If I Use Quickbooks?

Yes. Yes, you do need a bookkeeper even if you have Quickbooks.  We understand that you’re a small business owner, and you want to save money where you can. But relying on software alone may cost you more in the long run. Accountants and bookkeepers can offer so much more than Quickbooks.

Why You Need a Bookkeeper Even If You Have Quickbooks

Here are just a handful of reasons that having a human touch is better than relying on Quickbooks alone. 

Catch More Mistakes

No matter how careful you are, mistakes happen. Whether you type the wrong number or write in the wrong column, errors can easily go overlooked until it’s too late to fix them. 

Quickbooks won’t let you know when you make a mistake simply because it won’t realize it either. While the software is helpful, it wasn’t created to see the big picture and can’t account for user error.  

A human being, on the other hand, can scan documents for intent and use logic and reasoning in ways that software can’t. Accountants or bookkeepers who have worked with you for a while are also familiar with your company’s history and processes and will intuit which areas may need careful inspection.

While software can seem like an affordable quick fix, financial mistakes often cost more than hiring an accountant. 

1. Offer Suggestions

Having a human accountant by your side is great because they can look at all your financial data and offer suggestions based on it. 

For example, they can make and share monthly statements with you. These statements will show how you spent your money, how much money you made, and if you’ve been profitable for the month or not. 

By having these monthly reports available, you can quickly fix any issues involving cash flow before they grow too big to handle. These reports also come in handy if there are any issues with the IRS. 

Accountants can also offer strategies to grow your business if you feel stuck. These strategies can include how to get more investors, what risky moves may be worth taking, and who to hire or partner with. 

2. Teach You How Money Works

We know that you know the basics of how money works, but how familiar are you with complex money flows? Many businesses start great but quickly run out of money because of mistakes, poor decisions, and bad luck.

A bookkeeper or accountant can guide you through the process of how money works when you run a business. While you can create a budget that includes products, payroll, and utilities, accountants will add things you may not have thought about.

Plus, their budgets will be much more precise than yours.  

3. Handle Taxes

Yes, it’s time to talk about the dreaded T-word. Doing taxes is already hard enough, but sometimes tax software can make it harder. Whether you’re a new business or a veteran, who doesn’t want support and reassurance that you’ve done everything right with your taxes? 

If your business had complex financial changes like takeovers, mergers, or expansions into a new industry, you’d definitely want assistance from a professional. 

Having a bookkeeper or accountant by your side will not only help you handle the IRS, but accountants will also keep you organized and make sure you receive all your deductions. 

4. Avoid Audits

One responsibility of a bookkeeper is to help you avoid audits. Audits can happen for a variety of reasons, like form mistakes, charitable deductions errors, or changes in tax laws. But they happen at random, too. 

Having an accountant as a teammate is a great asset should you be randomly selected for an audit. Not only will they have all the information the IRS needs readily available, but they will be able to communicate in a language that the IRS speaks, which can help expedite the process.

Give You One Less Thing to Worry About

5. Give You One Less Thing to Worry About 

You’re an overworked business owner with too much to worry about. A bookkeeper or accountant may not solve all your problems, but they can take many financial tasks off your plate. 

Bookkeepers can send and pay invoices, handle payroll, and track sales. They are the perfect partner for small businesses because they allow you to focus on more critical areas of your business. 

Mazuma Wants to Help You

While Quickbooks is convenient, it lacks a human touch. Keeping your business on track, catching mistakes, and offering helpful solutions are just a few things an accountant or bookkeeper can assist with. 

Mazuma wants to help small business owners like yourself with all their financial needs. We want to be more than just an accountant; we want to be a teammate who inspires you to grow your business more than ever. 

We’ve helped over 10,000 small businesses already! Contact us today to see how we can help yours. 

FAQs:

Why do I need a bookkeeper if I already use Quickbooks?

While Quickbooks is useful, it can’t catch all financial mistakes or offer personalized suggestions like a human bookkeeper can. A bookkeeper provides a holistic view of your finances and can identify areas needing attention that software might overlook.

What suggestions can a bookkeeper offer for my business?

A bookkeeper can analyze your financial data and offer suggestions such as creating monthly statements to track spending and profitability, providing strategies for business growth, and offering guidance on financial decisions like investments and partnerships.

How can a bookkeeper help me understand complex financial concepts?

Bookkeepers can teach you how money flows within your business, helping you understand budgeting, cash flow management, and financial planning in detail. Their expertise ensures that your budgets are accurate and comprehensive.

Why should I rely on a bookkeeper for handling taxes?

Handling taxes can be complex, and software may not always provide the necessary support. A bookkeeper can ensure accuracy, handle complex financial changes, maximize deductions, and help you avoid audits, providing peace of mind during tax season.

How does having a bookkeeper reduce my workload?

By handling tasks like invoicing, payroll, and sales tracking, a bookkeeper frees up your time to focus on core aspects of your business. They serve as a valuable partner, alleviating financial stress and allowing you to concentrate on business growth.

Interested in Learning More?

Schedule a free consultation with our team!

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Vyde is a licensed accounting firm (CPA) based in Provo, Utah, and members of the AICPA. We provide professional accounting services to businesses and individuals, with a focus on small business bookkeeping and taxes.

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