As a business owner, you might be tempted to manage your own bookkeeping in an effort to save money, but you could save cash in the long run if you outsource this work to an experienced professional.
The role of the bookkeeper
A bookkeeper isn’t the same as an accountant. While an accountant overviews the wider picture of your financial affairs, a bookkeeper is more concerned with the day-to-day financial transactions of your business. A bookkeeper will organise and record your financial data, as well as prepare and send invoices, keep an eye on your cashflow and prepare the books for an accountant at the end of the financial year. They might also train businesses to use financial software so they can input data themselves.
Accurate bookkeeping is essential to ensure your accounts are valid and up to date. According to Virgin StartUp, your business is required by law to keep accurate records and file financial returns with HMRC. A professional bookkeeper can ensure this happens.
Using a bookkeeper
How do you know when you need to call in the services of a professional bookkeeper? If you don’t possess much financial expertise, then it makes sense to outsource this work to someone who knows what they’re doing.
Whether you’re looking for bookkeeping services in Gloucestershire or elsewhere, if you don’t have time to dedicate to your daily financial affairs, this is where a bookkeeper can help. It’s much better to have someone organising your finances on a daily basis, rather than letting the work pile up at the end of the month or even tax year, where you could easily become overwhelmed or make mistakes in your record keeping.
If you’re only a small business with less than 30 employees, if you decide to Hire a bookkeeper in Gloucestershire or elsewhere, it probably makes sense to seek help as and when you need it, rather than employing a full-time bookkeeper. However, if you find that a part-time bookkeeper is struggling to get your finances in order on the odd days that they help out, you might need to consider employing them full-time.
Bookkeepers and accountants tend to work together, so even if you’ve got an accountant to keep track of the financial health of your company, you might still find a bookkeeper’s services come in handy.
