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Outsourced Bookkeeping Services Tips to Manage Your Books

Managing books is not an easy-going business to most small business owners. However, it is one of the most important task that can make or break your business in the long run. If you are a small business with lots of books to manage but don’t have a robust system in place for tracing your day to day financials, then this blog has some useful tips for you so that you can effectively manage your books in the coming years.

But what are the tasks and services that can be outsourced to an external accounting firm in the UK? If you are not sure, then kindly read the concluding paragraph.

Also Read: Outsourced Bookkeeping Services – Here’s How It Works

#Tip 1: Select a Bookkeeping Method:

There are 2 bookkeeping methods – the single and the double-entry methods. However, the former ideal for a business that has a very simple structure and a low volume of activity.

Most businesses use single-entry method to maintain the records of the financial transactions in a simple spreadsheet, with a single entry for each transaction. However, it is necessary to note that this method does allow you to anticipate your cash flow needs as it does not track accounts like inventory, accounts payable or accounts receivable.

If you wish to benefit from these insights then you need to use double-entry bookkeeping. With this methodology, every transaction affects two accounts — in other words, for every debit in one account, there must be an equal credit in another.

#Tip 2: Properly Categorize Transactions:

Maintaining business transactions in a proper account is one of the most fundamental principles for small businesses that use the double-entry method.

There are five account types; hence, classify your accounts accordingly;

  1. Assets
  2. Liabilities
  3. Equity
  4. Revenue
  5. Expense

To avoid any missteps, we strongly suggest you in investing in accounting software like QuickBooks which will help you to select the right accounts based on your industry and transaction type.

#Tip 3: Track Accounts Receivable:

More than likely, your business does not always collect payment the very instant you deliver a product or service to a customer. And without a strong accounts receivable system, you may run into cash flow problems very quickly. The accounts receivables management process must include:

  • An efficient invoicing platform that allows you to bill customers quickly; and
  • A robust collections system to follow up with late paying clients.

Working with an online bookkeeper will help you to streamline the steps involved in billing your clients. For example, Outsourced Quality Bookkeeping can customize and send out invoices on your behalf in a timely manner. Furthermore, we can send collection notices to delinquent customers so you don’t have to spend precious time chasing payments each month.

#Tip 4: Reconcile Your Accounts:

Whether you use a bookkeeping program like Quickbooks, an Excel spreadsheet or just a good old-fashioned ledger book, the ultimate goal of bookkeeping is to reconcile a trial balance, which means the final total of debits and credits must match.

This can be a tedious process since it involves comparing your record of transactions to your bank statement and being able to explain any discrepancies but it is essential if you want to have an accurate view of your cash flow position and know exactly where your business stands each week or month. In addition, it also provides an important starting point for you to forecast cash flow and plan for future expenses. Finally, bank reconciliation also helps you to detect fraud, prevent overdrafts and identify any banking errors.

Time to Consider Outsourced Bookkeeping Services:

For some business owners, keeping up with the steps described above might sound like a fun challenge; but for most, it sounds like a nightmare. If you fall into the latter category, the good news is that you can consider Outsourced Bookkeeping Services at Affinity Outsourcing. We can take these small business bookkeeping tasks off your plate so you can focus on forging a lasting competitive advantage in your industry.