For those not enthusiastic about dealing with bookkeeping by themselves, outsourced bookkeeping is the recommended option. You will get more time to focus on growing your business. Thus, you should know more about bookkeeping outsourcing steps.
With bookkeeping outsourcing, you won’t need to be stressed about errors or falling behind on your books since an expert has got your back. By the time you need to file your tax return or raise cash, your books will already be complete, accurate, and well-managed. Apart from the obvious, an outsourced bookkeeping service can import financial details from your bank and make sure all transactions are accounted for too.
But how do you go about hiring an outsourced bookkeeping service? What should you ask and prepare before the process? This guide answers these questions & helps you be well-informed about the process.
First Step – Prepare Your Business for Outsourcing
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The first of the bookkeeping outsourcing steps requires you to get your business ready for outsourcing. Begin by assessing where your outsourcing fits into your business objectives. Go through your workflow and discuss the process from start to finish. Concentrate on the essential points and document the process.
Produce a training video or list of instructions for every step. You can even select an apt offshoring partner to help with this. Today, apps like Zoom and Snagit can help you produce videos that can be process-mapped by your offshore aides.
Second Step – Go Through Your Options Carefully
The second of the bookkeeping outsourcing steps is to find the outsourcing service that’s right for you. Today, there are hundreds of outsourcing companies in the market. All of them have their unique qualities, similarities, and differences. They come with distinct pros and cons of their own.
You must be patient and carefully invest time in researching details about these companies. Check their customer reviews and compare their rates with those charged by other companies. Make sure their employees are trained on the best procedures and practices for every aspect of bookkeeping.
A lot depends on whether you decide to outsource your bookkeeping to a human-only service, an independent professional bookkeeper, or a hybrid bookkeeping service. If you choose to hire a freelancer, you can look for the same on online job platforms or Facebook groups.
If you choose to go for managed bookkeeping services, you can book a discovery call or call back to learn more. Do not, however, go for a less experienced agency simply because of lower prices. An amateur’s mistakes are likely to hurt you much more than a professional’s charges. Even if you are running a small business, you need to hire someone who has experience doing the numbers.
Step Three – Interview The Bookkeeper
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Continuing with bookkeeping outsourcing steps, you need to interview each candidate on the shortlist provided by your agency individually. We recommend video calls because you can confirm their identity reliably. That comes in handy if you wish to be in regular contact. It will also help you assess the candidate’s communication skills.
After you hire your remote bookkeepers, ensure that you are in regular touch with them. You may not have time to examine everything under a microscope, of course. But still, you need to plan out periodic meetings as a bare minimum. It will help you keep yourself updated and put forth any queries to the team.
Step Four – Get Things Moving
The next of the bookkeeping outsourcing steps involves you getting everything in order. After all, the process is one that requires significant effort, concentration, and precision. Together with your dedicated account manager, you will have to put up integrations and connect all the software and financial accounts used by your company.
Then onwards, the process becomes relatively more uncomplicated, more accurate, and pretty much automatic. You will simply have to pull your financial data from all sources and into your service provider’s online platform.
Step Five – Let the Bookkeepers Do Their Job
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Once your bookkeepers have taken things into their hands, you need not worry about your books. They are experts who have been trained well regarding this task. They will work together with specially designed software to record, categorize, and reconcile transactions. You simply need to let them handle everything expertly.
Your bookkeepers will handle outgoing money, incoming payments and maintain your company’s records. They will ensure that the bookkeeping process is as per the government’s laws and best practices. They will also enter raw financial data into accounting software and assist your accountants in preparing financial reports and audits if you get a notice from the IRS.
At the end of every month, they will send you clean and reliable financial statements. Your dedicated account manager should always be ready to support you. He or she should also clear your doubts and queries properly, whether they are about your monthly financial statements or anything else.
Other Factors to Consider
When you outsource bookkeeping functions, you will be granted access to high-quality accounting software. That will help you manage your records and books, along with the experts who handle your account.
It is important to remember that bookkeeping needs and financial situations are quite variable for different businesses. Thus, it is hard to come up with a hard and fast guideline for outsourced bookkeeping costs.
Nevertheless, on average, it is safe enough to estimate that your bookkeeping costs to outsource will be anywhere around $500 to $2000 per month. Nonetheless, it could be worth it. Outsourced bookkeeping services allow you to get the best accounting experience that helps you pay your taxes.
From well-organized books and records to make your company ready for business audits, bookkeeping services are beneficial. People who possess a robust back-office for bookkeeping can focus on the growth of their business freely.
