Published on April 4, 2022

Running a small business often means that in order to save money, you need to do a lot of the tasks that come with business ownership by yourself. However, certain tasks are always best left to the professionals, especially accounting. While there are several accounting software tools on the market now that you can take advantage of for doing your own books, it’s always best to have a professional accountant by your side who can ensure that everything is accurate and provide you with solid financial advice for your business.

Hiring an accountant might be an extra expense for your business, but it is definitely an expense that will be well worth it in the long run. The right accountant will be able to give your business the financial support that it needs to ensure success, along with helping you avoid the risk of fines and other problems when submitting tax returns and financial records.

Eliminate Errors

Accounting is something that professionals train for years in order to be able to do successfully. It’s quite a specialised field, and even if you are really good at maths, if you don’t have a solid understanding of how the UK tax system works, you could be setting yourself up for trouble by trying to do your business accounting by yourself. One small error could turn out to be a grave mistake that could cost you a lot of money to fix, so don’t chance it — hire experienced accountants instead like Hodge Bakshi, who are family-run accountants in Cardiff with more than 35 years’ experience. If you want to ensure the job is done correctly, experience is everything; this is why this company comes highly recommended. Try to avoid firms who are relatively new and have no reviews or testimonials to back them up.

Less Stress

Doing your own bookkeeping and accountancy can be an added stress that you don’t need on top of running your own business. Remembering to keep records of everything, enter details into the accounting software or system that you use, and keep track of deadlines for tax returns and more might not seem like such a big deal at first glance, but when you are busy with running and trying to grow your business, it can turn into a mammoth task that you don’t really need on top of everything else. When you work with an accountant, they will be able to take on the bulk of this work for you. You don’t need to remember to log your expenses and incomings or remember when the deadlines are coming up, as the accountant will have it all under control.

Financial Advice

Accountants are financial experts, and they are often an excellent source of advice to have by your side when you are starting a new business. Opt for an accountant who has experience of working with small businesses in your industry, so that they can provide you with tailored financial advice based on their own experiences with businesses that are similar to yours. When you’re on your own, big financial decisions can often be risky, as there’s a lot of trial and error involved, but on the other hand, when you have an accountant, you can go to them for guidance and get informed advice that you can use to drive the decision-making process and get better results.

Happier Employees

Some accountants will also take on tasks such as payroll and making sure that employees’ pensions are set up, for example. Rather than doing it all yourself, your accountant will be able to make sure that your employees are paid the right amount on time and that the right deductions are taken from your pay. When you’re doing it all yourself, there’s a lot of room for errors, and employees could end up paying too much tax or waiting to be paid if you’re busy. Reliable payroll is one of the best ways to keep employee stress down and make sure that the people who work for you are happy.

Business Plan Support

If you are in the early stages of starting a brand-new business, your accountant can be an excellent source of support when it comes to putting together a business plan. You might know what you want to sell, who your competitors are and how you want to market your business, but if you’re not sure how much money you should be making over the next five years, this is where your accountant can come in handy. They will be able to draw on their past experience of working with businesses like yours in order to give you informed advice when putting together the financial section of your business plan and setting realistic goals in terms of profits and cash flow.

Improve Business Funding Acceptance

If you are planning to apply for a business loan, the lender will want to see that you are able to manage that money wisely — and having a good business accountant by your side could help to sway the decision in your favour. In addition, your accountant will be able to provide you with invaluable advice on the best business finance options to apply for based on your business needs and current situation. They will have extensive knowledge on which business finance options you are the most likely to get accepted for and will be able to help you put together an application that gives you a good chance of acceptance.

Better Business Decisions

Making a business decision means that you need to take finances into account, and whatever decision you’re making — whether it’s adding a new product line, moving premises or hiring a new manager, you’ll need to think about how much it’s going to cost and the potential return on your investment. Consulting with your accountant before making a business decision is crucial, as they will be able to give their informed input on what to do based on the current and future financial state of your business.

Save Time

Time is your best asset as a business owner, and with so much to do, you will want to make sure that you’re saving as much time as possible so that you can be free to get on with the important business tasks and growing your company. Taking on accounting yourself means that you’ll be solely responsible for lots of admin tasks that can be really time-consuming and hinder your ability to get other things done when it comes to your business. From learning how to use a new accounting software program to keeping records, doing your own accounting can really eat up your time and leave you struggling to get everything done, so hire an accountant to do it for you.

Save Money

Many business owners think that hiring an accountant is just another added expense for their business, but while this might be true in the short term, over the long term, it can save you some serious money. Working with a professional, experienced accountant means that you will reduce your risk of making costly errors when it comes to tax and financial records. And, your accountant will be able to provide you with sound advice when making any business decision, which will help you save money and gather more information to point you in the direction of making the most cost-effective choice.

Doing your own accounting might seem appealing as a new business owner, but is it really worth it?

Original Article: 9 Reasons You Should Hire an Accountant for Your Small Business