Stressed About Business Finances?

I don’t know about you, but when I come across a job or task that feels too big or is unfamiliar, I often put it off. I sometimes get overwhelmed and then don’t know where to start.

Unfortunately, whatever the task or job, it doesn’t go away or complete itself. Instead, despite spending all sorts of  time thinking about it and worrying about it, that task still needs to be completed.

For many business owners, bookkeeping is the thing that they get overwhelmed with, and then just don’t know where to start. Maybe it’s because they don’t want to mess it up, or they simply get busy working on the rest of their business - the things they love to do and are passionate about.

When I met one of my clients, they were incredibly stressed about their finances, and in particular government filings and payments. They had tried to do it all on their own, but became overwhelmed. Then they started putting it off.

Once we started to get caught up and get things filed, they felt better just for knowing what they owed. We were able to make a plan and get caught up within two years of starting to work together.

If you feel like you're in over your head, know that you’re not alone. Many business owners feel this way.

This may be the time that you start looking to hire a bookkeeper. Whether it’s just to get you caught up, or to have someone start to work with you on an ongoing basis.

Hiring a bookkeeper has many advantages. First it allows you to focus on your passion - the service or product that made you want to go into business in the first place! Second, it allows you to utilize the expertise of someone else and be able to know how your business is doing financially throughout the year, not just at tax time.

The right bookkeeper will do more than just help you keep your books up-to-date. They will help you make a plan to get out of debt and then keep moving your business forward. At Duet, getting your books organized is just the first step. We know that the important part is to help you understand what all the numbers mean for you and your business and how you can use them to make improvements.

Whether you’re just beginning or you’ve been in business a while, if you haven’t got your finances organized, remember there’s no time like the present to get started.

Duet Bookkeeping would love to hear from you. If you’d like to find out what it would be like to work with us, click below to book a call.

Bookkeeping - What To Use

When you start a business, there are so many decisions to make. I’m hoping to make one decision a little easier. 

Bookkeeping is something that most business owners don’t enjoy doing, and that can make it easy to ignore. But accurate bookkeeping is a vital part of having a successful business. If you don’t know how much money you’re spending, or where all of your money is being spent, you can’t possibly know if your business is making money.

Many programs claim to be able to help you track your finances. Even your customer management system may want you to use their tracking. The key is to figure out if the system you choose is going to be helpful long-term. You can choose to start out with something basic, such as a spreadsheet or basic expense tracker, but if you're looking to be in business for the long-haul, you may want to invest in something more robust that can grow with your business. 

Quickbooks Online (QBO) is the option that I recommend for my clients as it can grow with your business, and be helpful no matter what stage of business you’re in. It may feel a bit intimidating at first, but you can have a bookkeeper or accountant help you set it up and teach you the basics to get you going. Then when you’re ready to have someone else do your bookkeeping it can be a smoother transition.

QBO allows you to set up your Chart of Accounts (a list of categories that your revenue and expenses get organized into), as well as payroll and tax tracking to allow for easy and accurate reporting to the government. Accurate use of QBO allows you to easily hand over your information to your accountant at the end of the year when it is time to file your taxes. It also allows you to pull up reports to look at whether you’re making a profit or not, and compare that report to a previous month, quarter, or year.

Did you know that you can use QBO to organize the bills you owe? You can enter any bills you get that you aren’t going to pay right away, showing who you owe, when they’re due, and how much. If you’re tracking HST you enter that as well. Then you can set aside a time each week to go into QBO and figure out who you need to pay that day. Once the payment is made, you can mark it as paid in QBO. This helps avoid late or missed payments, and is a great way to track your expenses.

Ultimately, the important thing is to make a decision about how you will track your revenue and expenses, and then stick to it. The worst thing you can do is not keep a record, because when it comes time to do your taxes you will be scrambling to find all of the information. Plus you won’t have any idea how much money you made or lost.

If you’d like help getting your bookkeeping setup, please reach out. Duet Bookkeeping is here to help!

Tax Season Preparation

If you haven’t already, it is soon time to send all your businesses financial records to your accountant. Are you ready? Have you got all of your spending tracked? Can you easily send them a report with your sales and any HST charged? Are all of your receipts and invoices organized?.

This time of year often causes stress for business owners. It is the time when you can no longer ignore your finances. Even if it is your least favourite thing to do, it still has to get done.

This is often when people have to admit that they are not keeping up with their bookkeeping or their tax filings and payments, and that they need help.

Duet Bookkeeping has experience working with clients who have a year or more of bookkeeping to catch up. We can help you get your records up-to-date and then come up with a plan to get everything filed and paid.

Even though it may not feel like it, the best thing you can do is know what your numbers actually are so you can develop a real plan of action. You may owe money, but often people feel relieved when they know it’s all in order and all of their government filings are up-to-date.

Remember, you are not alone. Many business owners get caught up doing what they do best and their bookkeeping gets behind. It is ok to ask for help - that’s what we’re here for!