If this is my first time visiting my blog, or you stop by often, please please please let me impart one piece of advice.
Hiring a bad bookkeeper can be really expensive.
Many time clients land in my office after a bad bookkeeping experience. Some of the disasters I have seen them face are:
- Straight up theft
- Inaccurate data entry
- Poor QuickBooks or accounting software setup
- Inconsistent coding of expenses
- Not being aware of compliance issues
- Poor accounts receivable tracking
The most obvious problem here is theft – it’s easy to see how much harm can come to you when someone steals money from you. But what is harder to visualize are the other disasters I mentioned. And those issues are often more long lasting and costly.
Inaccurate data entry or inconsistent coding of expenses may seem like….meh….not such a big deal.
Bookkeeping is a Big Deal
When you are face to face with an auditor with little way to explain to them the numbers on your tax return; it can cost you 1,000s of dollars in taxes and penalties. Not to mention all the money you will have to spend to have your CPA represent you, and manage, the audit.
Nearly all business owners I know what it means to be compliant. These A-Game entrepreneurs rely on their team of professionals – lawyers, accountants and bookkeepers – to make sure these details are handled. If your bookkeeper doesn’t know that you can be fined BIG BUCKS for not having Workers Comp insurance in NYS for example, they might let the policy lapse and your left holding the bag for a fine as high as TEN GRAND.
If your bookkeeper is in charge of managing your Accounts Receivable (your money coming IN), you better keep an eye on it closely. I’ve had a ton of clients who have outstanding invoices on their books that they can’t explain and “swear they have been paid for”. More often than not, bad bookkeepers don’t follow up on money owed to you, which means you eliminated any profit on that job, and probably eaten into the profit of others.
The moral of the story here is hire qualified professionals, especially qualified bookkeepers. Lucky for you, you are in the right place. Learn more of how we can help you here.
