As a small business owner, every penny counts. But sometimes pinching pennies in the wrong places can put your business at risk or put extra stress on your plate that might be avoidable if you invest more at the front end.

For example, you might be tempted to either do your own bookkeeping to save on expenses as much as possible or hire a bookkeeper who you can pay part time at as low of a rate as possible. While weighing your options, however, it’s important to also consider hiring a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to take care of the bookkeeping for your business.

Bookkeeping itself can be done by an accountant or anyone with accounting experience, but let’s take a look at why there are major short- and long-term benefits to hiring a CPA in order to do your bookkeeping instead.

Bookkeeping and Beyond

CPAs not only have an accounting degree, but they will have also passed the uniform CPA exam and obtained a state license with character and ethics requirements. CPAs also take ongoing professional educational courses in order to maintain their licensure, so you know that they are current on tax and financial compliance laws which are constantly changing.

A CPA is likely to have more education than a general bookkeeper, as well as the knowledge to set up a database or management system to record the financial transactions of your business from scratch.

Typically, when you hire a bookkeeper, they track information in a database or spreadsheet that has already been selected and set up by an accountant, so by hiring a CPA right off the bat, you may be able to skip some steps in setting up this process and even customize it to fit your preferences. For example, this might enable you to set up a payroll software for your employees that fits the specific needs of your business rather than having to learn and work within a common template.

If your business is new and you feel overwhelmed by how to begin keeping your own books, a CPA can spear-head this process for you and walk you through the upkeep involved.

Additionally, while a bookkeeper must be able to accurately record financial transactions and organize records, a CPA has specific training that goes beyond just recording transactions, they also know how to accurately summarize and interpret them as well.

What this means is that CPAs already have experience in keeping track of the financial state of a business and presenting this information in digestible reports to business owners. In essence, they are able to perform a double function as your both your bookkeeper and the person who can make sense of it and explain it in a meaningful way.

Most bookkeepers are not responsible for creating financial statements and many do not have the knowledge or training to do this, but a CPA can—this can be very helpful in order to help you make budget-informed business decisions. Ultimately, using a CPA in this position gives you more than a bookkeeper—it gives you a financial advisor who is intimately familiar with the ins and outs of your business.

Save Your Money and Protect Yourself

Even though at first glance a CPA might cost more for your company to hire than a traditional accountant, the long-term benefits in savings often outweigh that paycheck. These savings amount to financial benefits but also a peace of mind that comes from knowing your business has protection.

CPAs are accountants who are tax experts. A CPA can offer advice on which type of business structure can save you the most money on taxes, and if your business is ever audited, they can represent you with the IRS. They can file the taxes for your business, help maximize the profits for your company, and protect you from potential extra fees.

It’s quite common for small businesses to rack up hundreds of dollars a year in extra tax fines from things like claiming too many deductions they aren’t eligible for or making payroll mistakes. A CPA can minimize these errors and also likely catch deductions you’re eligible for that you may not have been aware of.

Keeping track of constantly changing tax laws can be difficult. Hiring a CPA can free up more time for you during tax season (and all year round) to focus on building your business rather than trying to navigate the complicated world of tax laws.

Additionally, CPAs can provide important information about business decisions and protections like financial risk management and budgeting, fraud prevention, taking out business loans, and understanding and complying with tax changes.

They can even advise you during business changes such as acquirements, mergers, or selling your business. Even during slow and calm periods with your business, a CPA can provide great benefit as a financial consultant.

Focus on Your Business Plan

Looking for ways to plan long-term transitions in your business? Hoping to reduce your budget, or find a way to increase it? Or perhaps you’re looking to hire a new employee but have questions about the tax implications? A CPA can help you through all of these challenges.

Protect your own peace of mind and your business by hiring a CPA as your bookkeeper to be sure that your financial business is being handled by an expert with your best interests in mind.

As a small business owner, your valuable time and energy should be spent investing in the growth of your business and ensuring its mission and values are carried forward—not in bookkeeping, doing taxes, and worrying about finances.

Hiring a CPA puts the power back into your hands to focus your passion on the growth of your business and the success of your employees. By having an expert handle the financial aspect of your business who also has the skills to communicate and explain these finances in detail, you can be free to focus fully on your business plan.

Give Our Bookkeeping Team a call today to schedule a complimentary phone consultation to discuss how your business can benefit from our services. We can help you make sound business decisions, avoid costly mistakes, and save you time.