For the vast majority of small businesses getting up and running for the first time, the idea of taking on a professional accountant is one with painful connotations to say the least. While there’s absolutely no denying the way in which the right accountant can make things more convenient on the whole, these kinds of professional services do no come free of charge…or even cheap, for that matter. As such, it’s the kind of thing that’s often left very much on the back burner until things take a turn for the worse and there’s really no choice but to look into where to find a good accountant without spending a fortune.
The good news however is that while accountancy will never be free, there are ways and means by which such costs can be brought down to absolute minimums. It’s all about being as proactive as possible when going about the search process in the first place and also taking a long and hard look at what you need and want.
Here’s a quick overview of just a few tips for making sure you get the very most out of your money:
1 – Shop Around
First of all, regardless of how much of a hurry, you may be in to get your accounts in order you will never benefit by rushing into a decision. In fact, chances are you’ll come to regret it in a big way when you find yourself spending more than you need on services you really do not need at all. Shopping around is the number one rule when it comes to finding an accountant as there are simply thousands of them gunning for your business. And where there’s this level of competition you’ll find that so many are willing to undercut the prices of one another to win your business, so take as much time as necessary to shop around.
2 – Consider All Options
While some small businesses will inherently gravitate toward smaller accountancy firms, others see more sense in going with the more gigantic brands and firms on the market. The truth however is that there is no ‘better’ choice between the two as it all comes down to the deal you’re offered with regard to whether it’s a good deal or not. As such, it’s never a good idea to write off any one side of the market or the other without first checking out what’s on offer as you never know what kinds of special deals you might be overlooking. And as mentioned above, you can always ask for a price-match deal if need be.
3 – Do it Yourself
There will come a time in the running of your business when it is simply impossible for you yourself to take care of every aspect of accountancy due to how incredibly complicated and time-consuming it becomes over time. That being said, however, there will always be bits and pieces you can indeed choose to do yourself if you’d prefer to limit the involvement of your accountant for the sake of saving money. This isn’t always the most advisable way to go for the long-term stability of the business, but in certain smaller settings has the potential to work.
4 – Go Remote
One of the major costs associated with accountancy can be eliminated altogether by choosing to do business with a remote accountant who takes care of everything via the web. You’ll speak in person, via video chat and all work will be done in real-time as normal, but as you won’t actually meet up in person or be visited by the accountant in a physical sense, the whole package is made endlessly more affordable.
5 – Start Early
Last but not least, it’s often fair to say that the earlier you get yourself involved with a quality accountant, the better. The reason being that if you allow your accounts to fall into a state of disrepair by overlooking or shunning them for any period of time, it’s going to take a hell of a lot longer to get them back in order and then begin to start managing them from then on in. This will inevitably add up to a much larger accountancy bill than would otherwise be necessary, so do yourself and your business a favour by involving an accountant from the earliest possible stage. You might think it’s an unnecessary expense, but chances are it will save you money long term.
