Benefits to Outsourcing Your Bookkeeping

Outsourcing your bookkeeping tasks is a simple, cost-effective way to aid the small business owner in maintaining accurate accounting records without having to constantly employ a high-cost CPA. Additionally, outsourcing your bookkeeping is an excellent way to ensure that the smaller accounting tasks are completed as they need to be done.

Often times the small business owner doesn’t have enough bookkeeping work to keep a bookkeeper busy on even a part-time basis which will make it difficult to fill such a position within the company.  Freelance bookkeepers offer a variety of services to the business owner, including customer invoicing and statements, whether monthly or as needed; processing accounts payables, preparing Form 1099 and year end Form W-2’s, payroll services; preparing monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements; bank account reconciliations; and a variety of other services.

Some freelance bookkeeping services provide any forms that you may need and even computer software, such as QuickBooks, that you may want to use. By outsourcing the bookkeeping duties, the business owner can focus on marketing, growth in sales and even the human relations within the company. Although the business owner may not have the time or maybe the knowledge to handle the bookkeeping duties themselves, by outsourcing, they can rest easy knowing their day-to-day accounting needs are being met and are accurate. Additionally, outsourcing the bookkeeping tasks can save the business owner up to 40% in costs. There would be no need to provide office, space, additional office supplies, or pay for other costs that are not typically considered on a regular basis such as electric, water and other utilities, etc. Such costs are still paid for in the fees that are paid to the freelance bookkeeping company; however, they are typically less costly than if the business was absorbing all the costs in all the areas associated with bookkeeping themselves. These costs would be minimal because they are possibly divided between several businesses using the same freelance bookkeeping company, or maybe the small business owner chooses to employ the services of an individual who works from their home. Those overhead expenses would then be shared with the regular operation of the freelance bookkeeper’s home office. Freelance bookkeepers are sometimes trained by CPA’s and/or have completed a college education with a focus on accounting.

It is important for the business owner to remember that although the outsourcing bookkeeping service is most likely qualified to complete tax returns, most do not offer this service. The preparation and filing of annual tax returns is typically the responsibility of the CPA or financial advisor of the company. Additionally, most do not offer a review of the financial statements that they prepare for the company.  Freelance bookkeeping services realize that businesses come in all sizes and they are equipped and able to handle businesses of all sizes, from only one or two individuals to many employees in a variety of different departments. The opportunities and benefits that outsourcing bookkeeping tasks are endless, but the most important is probably the fact that necessary tasks are being completed as needed in a timely manner and the work performed will be accurate.

Contributed by:
Joy Phelan
Magical Bookkeeping Solutions, LLC
225 Union Blvd., Ste #150
Lakewood, CO 80228
303-974-6997 Office
720-221-0723 fax
www.lakewoodbookkeepingaccounting.com