Choosing or becoming the best bookkeeper can be tough. There are many choices and lots of advice out there, so you probably need some direction. We will make that decision easier for you by doing your research for you. First we will present the research from the web, and then we will go into how to become that bookkeeper.
If you are looking for a bookkeeper or would like to be a better bookkeeper, I would encourage you to read on. When you start looking for a bookkeeper, do some research and understand what you, as an entrepreneur ,should be looking for.
Research – Choosing or Becoming the Best Bookkeeper
Intuit.com:
Elizabeth Joyce of Intuit.com suggests a few things in her article entitled, How to Help your Clients Choose the Best Bookkeeper that I wanted to share.
1. A great bookkeeper has passion for learning and developing as a bookkeeper.
If you find a bookkeeper who has achieved an advanced certification and who has used their certification to help small businesses, you have achieved the first step. Look for the words, “QuickBooks ProAdvisor” attached to the person’s name.
2. A great bookkeeper has experience that can be used to help you grow your small business.
Bookkeepers come from all different backgrounds. If you are considering cost as your main concern, the range for a bookkeeper is between $40 and $70.
Consider carefully a bookkeepers experience and ask multiple questions to understand their experience. Finally, ask yourself if that experience would be a great fit for you.
3. A great bookkeeper should help you grow your business.
During the interview process, ask questions about the kind of work the bookkeeper has done to answer the question:
- Does the bookkeeper have the ability to look beyond the numbers and help your small business grow?
- Can they look at the numbers and make suggestions that would improve your business operations?
- Does the bookkeeper have the ability to understand your companies billing and collections?
- Can they suggest opportunities for improvement?
4. Great bookkeepers are hardworking and trustworthy.
First impressions go along way in determining if the bookkeeper is hardworking and trustworthy.
- Did the bookkeeper research your company?
- What was your first impression about their dress, and their handshake.
- Were they confident when they spoke about the work they have done or they are doing.
- What did their shoes look like?
- Did you feel like they were approachable?
Benilyn Formoso-Suralta from Fit Small Business has a whole list of things that you should consider when hiring the best bookkeeper:
Among those things, I would note that these qualities popped out:
1. Attention to Detail
Your bookkeeper should annoy you trying to balance your books. If they don’t annoy you, you have the wrong person. The best bookkeeper is bothered by the books being off by one penny.
2. Understands your Business
They need to know your business inside and out. For example, they should know what your biggest expenses are and who you bill.
3. Organized
Great bookkeepers are organized and meticulous. You might consider how they keep their office or how fast they retrieve information. Look for systems to be in place to get things done.
4. Not Cheap
You do get what you pay for. While hiring an expensive bookkeeper might be difficult, hiring a cheap bookkeeper will cost you more in the end.
5. Local
Meeting with someone face to face may be necessary.
6. Contractor Instead of Full-time
This saves you money in the long run because your bookkeeping needs are not always fixed. There are times that you need more work done, for example, around tax season or the end of the year.
7. Someone in your Industry
Because you do need someone who understands your business, find a bookkeeper that has worked with clients in your industry before.
8. Accounting Degree
You need someone who understands and is interested in finance and accounting. If that person has a 2-4 year degree in accounting, that is preferable.
9. Problem Solvers
The best bookkeepers are awesome problem solvers, so ask the perspective bookkeeper: How have you solved a problem for your business or another business?
10. Good Communication Skills
A great bookkeeper not only can crunch the numbers, but can communicate with a whole team, so ask the perspective bookkeeper: What do you do to ensure that you are being understood when you communicate with your team or your clients?
11. Up to Date on Bookkeeping/Accounting Practices
Although the fundamentals of bookkeeping stay the same, software and applications, like QuickBooks are always changing.
12. Strong Commitment
Make sure that your business is a priority to your bookkeeper. Some bookkeepers take on more than they can handle. You need a bookkeeper who has made a commitment to your company.
The team at the Wizxpert.com had some great advice.
1. Customer Reviews
You can tell a lot about the bookkeepers out there by reading customers reviews. Check out their Google reviews.
2. Accessable
Get a bookkeeper who is available, even at high need times. You also want to hire a smaller firm, where you can get more personalized service.
3. Understands Cloud Technology
Your bookkeeper might use Box or Dropbox. Ask them which cloud storage database they are familiar with so that you can easily send documents to them.
Meryl Johnston of Bean Jinas had some great questions that you should ask your bookkeeper that I wanted to share with you.
1. What is the scope of your bookkeeping work?
So in other words, do you only help me with keeping my books or could you help me run my business?
2. What are your qualifications?
Are you a certified QuickBooks Pro Advisor or do you have an accounting degree?
3. What is your level of expertise?
In other words: can you clean up messes? Would you know how to fix a problem?
4. How familiar are you with my industry?
Have you worked with other clients who are in my industry?
5. How do you communicate with your clients?
Are you clear, concise, and when you write, does it make sense? Do you communicate with all of your clients regularly through phone or email?
6. How fast can you turn around my work?
What can you expect each week, month and year?
7. If the bookkeeper is away or sick, how will you get your work done?
Do you have a second person that can help with overflow work?
8. Is financial information protected sufficiently?
You need to make sure that the bookkeeper is taking the proper precautions to ensure that financial information is secure. You might ask if the bookkeeper has a secure fax by which to send information. Also, you could ask: how do you store my passwords?
9. How will you charge for your services?
Do you bill by the hour or is there a monthly flat rate?
Becoming the Best Bookkeeper
The way to become the best bookkeeper is to just take the research that I did for you and start making goals and adding to-dos for yourself.
To Dos:
- Communication – This week, I check in with my 2 of my clients to see how they are doing.
- Coverage – Hire someone to pick up my overflow.
- Certification – Get certified or trained in a new software.
- Organization – Set up a system for your work.
- Scope – Write down the scope of your bookkeeping experience, and try to broaden it through jobs and experience.
- Customer Reviews – Send out Google Reviews after a few months of working with a client. Put reminders in your calendar, so you get it done.
- Assessable – Have a time every day to answer all emails or texts related to your clients.
- Cloud Technology – Research and start using the popular cloud storage databases.
Goals:
- Problem solving – This week, if I have a problem, I won’t put off the problem, I will try to solve it right away.
- Attention to detail – This week, every time I finish writing an email, I will read it over two times to look for errors.
- Scope – Find mentors in business that can broaden your skills.
- Experienced in an industry – Read 1 book a week about the industries that you are focusing on.
If you don’t find yourself becoming the best bookkeeper, keep making goals and to-do lists. You will become the best bookkeeper you know.
Conclusions:
So, I am the Megan, the blogger for my papa, Lee Davis, the owner and bookkeeper at Lee Davis and Company, and I can say that my papa is an excellent choice if you are looking for a bookkeeper or small business manager in the Monadnock region of New Hampshire. He just fits the bill. After writing and researching this post, I can say that without a doubt.
While we are not taking on any straight bookkeeping clients, if you would like to level up in business, reach out to my Papa. He is made for bookkeeping and managing small businesses. He will do whatever he can to improve your bottom line. His persistence, dedication and skill are unparalleled.
Also, it looks like a lot of the qualities of the best bookkeeper are easy to cultivate. If you are looking to become the best bookkeeper, you can do it. You could start by taking our training course, which is held online periodically. You could also get in touch with my father. He is an awesome mentor to many business owners in the New Hampshire area. If you live in the Monadnock region, you could check out the Our Town Networking, which my Papa started.
Conclusions by Lee Davis, our bookkeeper and manager:
All in all it is challenging to find the right bookkeeper, but don’t overlook the importance of networking to find the best bookkeeper. The best candidate may come from a trusted advisor, like your accountant, a close friend or a fellow networker.
Finally, I want to encourage you to hire a bookkeeper and not rely on an accountant to keep your books. Your accountant can’t do your bookkeeping. A great bookkeeper and great accountant fill two different roles. Use them to your advantage.
How can Lee Davis and Company help you choose or become the best bookkeeper?
- We could train you to become the best bookkeeper.
- If you need someone to set up your QuickBooks, we could do that.
- While we are not taking on any straight bookkeeping clients, we would love to manage your business for you.
- If you live in the Peterborough, NH area, you could join our networking group, Our Town Networking.
What can you expect from Lee Davis and Company?
Lee Davis is the president of Lee Davis and Company. He prides himself in helping his clients make their dreams of running a successful business a reality. He has the tools, skills and advice that will help you, the client, get to the next level.
What services can you find at Lee Davis and Company?
- Bookkeeping Services (only in conjunction with Management Services)
- Small Business Advising
- QuickBooks Training
- Management Services
We are looking for a digital marketing expert.
Hello, if you are reading this post, perhaps you might know someone who could help us with digital marketing.
At Lee Davis and Company, we are looking to hire someone to be in charge of digital marketing. We are looking to grow our training business and soon will launch an e-book that we need someone to help promote.
If you would like to throw your hat into the ring, we would love to meet you. Contact us through our website or email [email protected]