How To Start A Bookkeeping Business

We received an email yesterday from a lady who?s working fulltime as a bookkeeper for a company, and has now decided she wants to set up on her own.

Why spend (waste) money and time trying to reinvent the wheel?

So she contacted us for help. There?s nothing unusual about a request like this: We get many enquiries from bookkeepers who want to start their own business.

However, would those same bookkeepers be happy to help out a potential client to get them set-up with their bookkeeping, without expecting to receive commensurate renumeration from that client?

We are amazed by the number of bookkeepers who are not prepared to invest in our skills, knowledge and expertise in helping them get started. They would rather spend (waste) money and time trying to reinvent the wheel under the apprehension that they are saving themselves time and money.

Recently we discovered a leak in our mains water supply – we had been paying for water that we hadn?t been using, and were totally unaware of the leak until some work was being carried out in the front yard. So we called a plumber who was more than happy to attend to this problem.

Five minutes work and $160 later, we no longer had a leaking pipe! The next time we had a leaking pipe, guess what? We didn?t call out the plumber, we just went down to the local hardware store and purchased similar accessories that the plumber used to fix the first leak, and fifteen miutes later the job was fixed for around $25 dollars (plus our time)

If you are looking to start your own bookkeeping business, whether full-time or part-time then you should be prepared to set aside a budget to get started.

The lady yesterday was already considering yellow pages, business cards and other marketing strategies, and was more focused on ?trying a few things? rather than investing in a proven strategy that would bring her more clients than she could handle, giving her the option to pick and choose which clients she would want to work with

We have been helping bookkeepers get started in their own business very succesfully, and can show you how to save atime and money in getting started. When you contract us, you are investing in proven methods, with personal support, as well as our expertise and skills, just as we paid for the plumber?s knowledge and we learned from watching him.

If you are serious about getting Help Starting A Bookkeeping Business, read more here

Every Accountant and bookkeeper will find that clients come and go, for whatever reason. People sell their business. A business may expand and need a full time in house bookkeeper or accountant. So what happens when you look for new bookkeeping clients?

It’s tempting to take on every client that comes your way, but remember, you are working for YOU. You are self employed! And you have other clients that you are continuing to service.

You are not an employee, you do not do everything a client asks without question. What self employed professionals do is consider whether they can (or want to) provide what the client wants and if the answer is no they can decline to act for them at any time. (more…)

There’s a big difference between a client employing a part-time bookkeeper and having a bookkeeper part-time.

Many small business operators understand the benefit of engaging the services of a bookkeeper part-time. However, those same business owners do not necessarily want a bookkeeper who works part-time. A bookkeeper who works part time may not have all the skills needed, may not be conversant with current trends, or be sufficiently polished as a bookkeeper.

Small business owners need to know that when their bookkeeper is working on their books, the business owner is getting a professional service from someone who is thoroughly proficient, fast and accurate, and is efficient with their time

There’s bookkeepers who’ve chosen to reduce their hours and only wish to work part time. They may only have a couple of clients, and are very happy to do bookkeeping part-time.

Many of our bookkeeping clients like to be assured that there’s consistency, and that they will see the same bookkeeper regularly. They are looking for personal service. They want a bookkeeper that they can trust, a bookkeeper who is confident, and a bookkeeper that can provide the necessary skills to produce the results for which they were commissioned to do.

We’ve spoken to a number of individuals who think they quite like the idea of starting a bookkeeping business. They ask if we’ll can get them a coupe of clients just to see if the bookkeeper really wants to make a go of the business.

There’s not many clients who would appreciate being serviced by someone who “thinks they want to give bookkeeping a go”. If you’re thinking about being a bookkeeper, then ask yourself this question: “Do I want to be a part-time bookkeeper, or do I want to do bookkeeping Part-time?”

“I’ve been working in the industry for approx 5-6years as an Accounts Manager / Bookkeeper and would like to become more independent and work for myself rather than on a wage.

My contact number is work. So I would appreciate if I could be contacted via email. [her work email address]
Thank you for your time.”

You can only make a first impression once

We received this enquiry yesterday. They say you can only make a first impression once: The impression this bookkeeper has made is that it’s OK to use her employer’s resources to search for another bookkeeping opportunity.

One has to wonder about the integrity of this bookkeeper. How would you feel engaging the services of bookkeeper who is happy to use your resources to further their own means?

Our goal is to save our bookkeeping clients time and money

When working as an outsourced bookkeeper at a client’s premises, our focus is 100% on the work at hand. To complete the bookkeeping in a thoroughly efficient and professional manner with maximum accuracy in a short time. Our goal is to save our bookkeeping client time and money.

The bookkeeper that approached us is currently employed as the accounts manager. Her email suggests that she’s not happy where she is, and has no qualms about looking for other opportunities at her employer’s expense. One wonders how she would operate when working at a client’s premises as a contract bookkeeper

If we help this bookkeeper, would we be helping her potential clients? Would you employ this bookkeeper? Contact us for details