Accountants vs. CPAs vs. Bookkeepers

Accountants, CPAs, and bookkeepers- We’re sure that you hear these words all the time. In the world of accounting, these titles are often bounced around and sometimes interchangeably. Even though they all do many of the same tasks, they are different and it’s important to know their differences.

Accountants, CPAs, and Bookkeepers – What’s the difference?

Let’s start with bookkeepers. Bookkeepers are usually the basis for accounting in business. There is no formal training required to become a bookkeeper and they typically work under accountants. Bookkeepers handle the daily financial transactions and usually other tasks like: payroll, loan payments, creating invoices, and billing. They also create financial reports that an accountant can then review with a client. So onto accountants, accountants can do everything a bookkeeper does but they also have other responsibilities. Primarily, they are there to help with long-term financial planning and any other financial consulting advice. This means that atop of overseeing bookkeeping tasks, they can: create and review budgets, correct any accounting discrepancies, calculate tax liabilities, and give tax advice. Finally, we have CPAs. CPAs are also known as certified public accountants. They can do any tasks that a bookkeeper or accountant can do but CPAs are the only ones who work with the IRS which means they are the only ones that can file yearly taxes for you. Not all accountants are CPAs but all CPAs are accountants. This is because in order to become a CPA, one must have a bachelor’s degree in accounting, a certain amount of hours under a CPA (hours dependent on the state), and pass the CPA exam.

It may be time to consider hiring a professional if your taxes are too complex, accounting is taking up too much of your time, or if the business is growing up. When it comes to choosing the right professional for you, most people go with an accountant. This is because accountants are usually more cost-effective than a CPA and more often than not, they already work with a bookkeeper. Although this does mean you still have to have someone file your end of the year taxes (or you can do it yourself), it can make it a lot easier when you have an accountant who is taking care of your books all year.

The benefits of Accountants

Many of us love to save money any way we can by doing things ourselves. If your business is small enough, this may not be a problem when it comes to accounting for you. In general though, it is always a good idea to have an accountant for your company. For starters, having an accountant can actually save you money because they can let you know where money is being overspent and what software/programs could save you when doing payroll, inventory, and more. Not having immense knowledge in accounting could also cost you more when it comes to taxes. Common reasons people lose more money in taxes is because they file late, miscalculate their tax bill, or lose out on tax breaks by not claiming them. Next, one of the biggest upsides to having an accountant is that they save you time. If you make any mistakes, it could take hours to fix that could be avoided or handled by an accountant. Also, when you have more time, you can focus on generating more sales or simply putting more time into needed areas of your business. Furthermore, many people use their free time at home to crunch numbers and do all their accounting. This free time could now be used to focus on their families even more or their personal life in general. After this, having a long-term accountant comes with its own set of advantages. If your accountant has been in the industry for a long time, they usually have a vast network of different business professionals. This means that the accountant may have more knowledge on your profession and if they don’t, they can reach out to a specialist in their network and get the help they need to help you. Finally, as the accountant learns more about your books, they become a specialist for your business. They will start to see trends, places to improve, and what could be damaging if continued. They grow with your business and will be able to better predict how new products (or other big business changes) will affect your business.

In Summary

No matter what accounting professional you choose, spend time picking the right one as they save you time, money, and peace of mind!

Advertising & Marketing For You and Your Business

When it comes to owning a business, or even trying to branch out as yourself, everyone knows that you must do some advertising and marketing. Though this can feel like a daunting task, it doesn’t have to be! There’s a multitude of ways to advertise yourself and your business whether it be for free or if you have the freedom to spend a little cash.

Marketing Yourself

Before we start with advertising your business, it’s important you market yourself just as well! As a business owner, the way you present yourself has an impact on your business. Even if you are not a business owner, it’s just as important to create a good name for yourself. First and foremost, you want to be yourself! Being authentic allows those similar to you to find you and gives way to the kind of company you want to be a part of/are a part of. Next, become a master in your field. Although a big part of being a professional in a job comes with experience, you can still take time to study, read, or even watch videos about different topics in your field. Having a wide range of knowledge and lesser known information in your field can give better insight to more problems and helps you to stand out from everyone else.

In our digital age, social media is a necessity that can expand you (and your business) anywhere you want it to go! If you are creating a new social media, there are various choices in picking the right platform, so think about your target audience and what you think will reach them best. Stay true to yourself as customers will be more likely to bond with you/your company when they see a genuine side to you. Another way to stay online is to join an online community. This may help you expand out more and/or learn more from others all over. Outside of the digital world, don’t be afraid to network! Going to tradeshows, local events, or skill workshops can open an opportunity to meet like-minded people and talk about you and your business even more.

Advertising your Business

When it comes to advertising for your business, there are many ways to make your business more distinguishable than the rest. For starters, everything begins with a quality website. Even though having a website will usually cost you money, it is a must have expense. Websites are your home base for everything; it shows what your business has to offer, ways to reach out to you, and gives an idea of what your company is like. In your website, consider creating a blog. The blog should center around answering questions or giving advice to certain topics that are in your field. Having a blog grants the opportunity for more clients to find you when searching for information related to what you’re writing. This is because search engines pull keywords from the text you write; so the more you write, the more likely you are to be seen. According to a study done by First Page Sage, consistent publication of high-quality content is the number one factor in high search engine optimization (SEO). Additionally, think about having an email marketing campaign. You can send your blogs out in the email campaign or simply update customers on the newest things that are happening. Don’t forget to add a call to action in your emails! A call to action prompts customers to get in touch with you quickly and efficiently about any questions, comments, or concerns they may have.

Earlier we brought up SEO. SEO can be extremely beneficial as a means for free advertising for your company. There are a considerable amount of ways to improve SEO as it is a collection of different algorithms that improve your ranking on Google. One way to help improve SEO is to make sure you fill out every category on your Google’s business page with the most important being your company’s name, address, and phone number. Furthermore, creating a (free) Google My Business account will allow you to verify your business page on Google, increasing your SEO as well. Another way to boost SEO is to create listings on major directories. Directories show off your business’s contact information. By adding yourself into the larger ones, the lesser known ones will automatically pull information from the bigger ones; thus, your business will show up in more places. Some examples of free and large directories include: Yelp, Bing, and the Better Business Bureau. Bear in mind, there are multiple ways to increase your SEO and it takes time to increase so don’t stress if it doesn’t all change immediately!

Now that we’ve talked about quite a few ways to advertise for free (for the most part), there are a few ways to advertise by spending some money. First off, and the most straightforward, Google, YouTube, and Facebook Ads. In Google, this puts you above organic listings; automatically giving you a headstart in advertising. Next, creating promotional merchandise can have a profound effect on your company. In a study done by the British Promotional Merchandise Association, 77% people said they appreciate promotional merchandise with 78% of people keeping their merchandise for a long time. When creating merchandise, keep in mind that you will want these products to serve your target audience well. Also, take into consideration if these items will be reusable or if they are eco-friendly as these factors impact customers. In addition to handing out promotional merchandise, you could also host giveaways or competitions to win them instead. This gets the word to spread about your business and creates excitement within your community.

In what other ways is advertising important?

Advertising is more than just how many sales you can bring in. It helps to inform customers of your products/services and introduces new products/services as well. Advertising influences the way people see your business too. By showing your values and having a strong mission statement, this enhances customer trust and magnifies your business’s identity. As your business grows and your advertising reaches more people, this makes it easier to monitor supply & demand as well as see your target audience more clearly. Last but not least, working for a business that is well received and talked about will make employees feel good about their jobs. All of this boosts employee morale and means employees are more likely to spread the word about their company.

Advertising and Marketing Comes in Many Forms

In regards to advertising and marketing, there are numerous ways to make your business stand out from all the rest! Don’t forget to check out the following blogs, from us: Business Models & Their Importance, Social Media Presence, and Kindness & Its Value In Your Business, as they tie into many things we talked about earlier. (Having a target audience, social media tips and why it’s important, and why having high employee morale is important alongside the significance of reviews!)

Small Businesses & Insurance

There are a million types of insurance out there. From medical to auto to renter’s, it seems like we are always shopping for insurance. Just like any other important insurance, business insurance is crucial to take care of your business.

Why insurance is important & Tips to pick the right insurance

Business insurance is extremely important because it protects the business from having to pay out-of-pocket for expensive damages via property damage or legal claims. Most insurance is not required for a business. Although, if you are of a certain size, you may have to pay different kinds of insurance. For example, employers with fifty or more employees are required to provide health insurance to their employees. Despite the fact that most states don’t require insurance, if you own or rent a workspace, there is a good chance you’ll need a business owner’s policy (BOP). BOP usually combines general liability insurance and commercial property insurance. Typically, these policies are flexible and you may add more types of insurance atop of this to get the coverage you desire. BOP is not the only type of insurance out there though, there are many different types of insurance out there for businesses. Finding the right insurance may take a lot of research but it will be well worth it!

When picking insurance out for the first time, it can seem really overwhelming. Remember to really take your time and now what your policies will cover. Although BOP may be a good general blanket for insurance, it has many of its own exceptions and additions you may have to make to cover your business perfectly for you. Furthermore, there may just be other types of coverages that work better for you. Consider a few different things when picking out insurance. For starters, different business industries require specific coverages- make sure you’re finding something that matches the type of work you do. Next, think about where your physical property is located and how much property and other equipment you have. Finally, assess your intellectual property and amount/type of employees and customers. After you’ve determined what you need, make sure you know the risks of the coverage you’ve decided on. Compare quotes to see what will give you the most for your money and the best protection. Last but definitely not least, find a good agent and review your policy regularly!

Working with Insurance Agents – Country Financial with Gabrielle Zenner

Finding a good insurance agent is vital as they are also responsible for helping to protect your business. Country Financial is a boutique, regional insurance carrier that writes coverage that serves homeowners, farmers/ranchers, and small business owners. Their vision is to enrich the lives in the communities they serve. Gabrielle Zenner at Country Financial loves putting together thoughtful recommendations for clients to meet their scope of needs which is essential in having a good insurance agent. She says that her business can sometimes be challenging during inflationary periods in the market because budgets could be made to cost a certain amount but end up being a higher total. Although they experience rates like everyone, their business has made changes to make the loss ratios reduced and continue to give clients the best coverage they can. The number one advice for clients is, “If you want a total loss claim to go smoothly, make a video walkthrough of your home belongings showing manufacturer’s labels every year. You never know exactly what you have when there is a fire, but a video record makes it easy for an adjuster to cut the personal property check.” says Gabrielle Zenner. Another important thing she mentions for clients is to update their insurance policies- especially after renovations. If you don’t update your value on your insurance, you would be getting the old version of something rather than your new, renovated one. Don’t leave your policy the same as the first time you bought it years ago! These are all extremely valuable tips and a good reason to have an insurance agent like this!

Overall Insurance Importance

Even though there are many different types of insurance and most aren’t required by law, it is still very important to insure your business. Having the right agent also plays a vital role in helping you find the right insurance and creating security in your business.