Book Yoda. Business & Investing.

I have been studing bookkeeping and accounting also tax prep. i'm wanting to know if anyone know how to go by starting a small business. like grants, supplies, & ect

Education is great, but a few years of real-world experience will be invaluable.

Do you want to work with large corporations, small businesses or somewhere in between? You could find an existing firm that caters to that niche and learn what these businesses really need.

My experience is as a freelance bookkeeper for small businesses so here's a few tips for that type of service:

Specialize in something. Being an expert in a software (QuickBooks, MS Small Business Accounting, etc) or an industry (retail, contractors, service businesses) gives you instant authority even outside that area. It also gives you a focal point for your marketing.

Network in person. Give away useful information. Get known as someone who is easy to work with and involved in the community (business or local).

Supplies you'll need:
~ Computer & accounting software

Also useful
~ A flash (USB) drive for transferring client's files
~ Professional affiliations like www.aipb.com
~ Subscriptions to industry magazines, there are a couple free ones (Accounting Today is one)
~ Business Cards, Letterhead
~ General Office Supplies

For starting a simple freelance business you won't need a lot to get started. You can find clients who actually want you to work at their office and work your way to larger clients.

A couple of useful websites for aspiring bookkeepers and accountants:
(me) http://www.startabiz.knoxvillebookkeeper.com
http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/
http://www.accounting-and-bookkeeping-tips.com/ a division of http://universalaccounting.com , geared toward those that sign up for their training program but some useful information for others as well

2008-03-14 14:09:05 by sheena k

CollegeGrad.com - Career Videos, Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing. Clerks Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks have different ...

As my dad's not overly astute in the financial management side of things, I agreed that I would help him out in that respect. I'm a year 11 Accounting student so we've covered most of small business bookkeeping. I'm just wondering which accounting method would be most appropriate (and which software).

The business I only likely (at present) to consist wholly of himself (service business). I would probably be listed as an employee in these circumstances though.

Most small business cease to exist within a year which is usually good for tax avoidance, therefore I would say that minimium accounting should be required - probably the easiest and most understandable would be to build you own using the most well known Spread Sheet program (which I think most people already have loaded in their PC or laptop).
Cash flow is essential to monitor and you could plot some easy to read graphs to show progress - often more revealing than a columns of figures or pages of accounts.

2007-08-28 02:33:16 by Yes?

My husband has started a new business and I have to do all the paperwork and such. I need to find a free site or manual to help me figure out how to keep things in tackt and how to run this thing. Can anyone help me?
I have to get help as soon as possible in assisting me in running the paperwork for this new business of my husbands. Where can I get some free guidelines and help on doing this?

Look at your local government website, they usually have resources for small businesses. Also get a commercial/tax/corp lawyer who has experience and expertise with small businesses they are probably your best resource.

You might also want to seek the help of an accountant to help you set up an organized accounting system before your business is up and running.

2007-01-04 16:29:20 by Lynn T

I am in the process of starting my own bookkeeping and small accounting business from home or office. I want to learn Quickbooks but feel that if used Quickbooks it would make my billable hours significantly less than if I did the books manually. By using Quickbooks financial statements are a click away. This would eliminate billable hours. Any thoughts?....With you accounting professionals?

I don't see how you could be competitive without using Quickbooks (which I mostly use) or something similar, and only keeping the books manually.

Also, I know I'm not alone in charging fixed rates for certain services. E.g. I might engage a small client to do their monthly bookkeeping & writeup for a flat fee of $200. I'd rather spend 1-2 hours doing that with the help of QBs than 5-10 hours doing it by hand.

2008-06-26 16:42:13 by John

I need some creative ideas on how to market my accounting & bookkeeping company! We have so much to offer (accounting, bookkeeping, personal & business income taxes, new business setup assistance... etc.) and a great accountant on staff. Budget is slightly limited (no more than $1200). Any ideas?? Thanks!!

A billboard perhaps? You can also find local production companies and they can generally get you a commercial and airtime for around that price. You can also join local organizations such as rotary or even chamber of commerce to spread the word. Small ads in the financial section of the newspaper is always a winner in my opinion. Hope this helps.

2008-09-03 10:47:55 by Jules