What’s the difference between your business now and your business when you decide the outsource your accounting and bookkeeping? Well, you have a lot more time when you find an excellent accounting and bookkeeping service! We know it’s super overwhelming to find the right service to outsource your books to, which is why we put together this blog.
The information we’ve put together below will help you understand what a professional outsourced bookkeeper and accounting service should offer. It will also show you how to compare these providers to achieve the best fit for your business. We will go over questions that you should ask and measure the value of these outsourced services. We will even go over some of the things to steer clear of.
Here at TenKey, our business is helping our clients succeed by taking on the burden of their books and accounting duties. Give us a call today at 971-220-6416.
The Guide to Finding the Best Outsourced Accounting and Bookkeeping Service
Create a list of your needs in bookkeeping and accounting. Figuring out what you need can help you dial in the conversation you will have with the services when you find them and will give them a more accurate way to provide you with a price and let you know if they are a good fit for you. Do you need someone to do your payroll? Maybe you want your bank and credit card accounts balanced and nothing more? What if you only want quarterly reports done by an outside entity? Figure out your needs first.
Make a list of the questions that you will ask your prospective partners. If you need help figuring out what kind of questions will work – this will depend on your needs, but here are some examples:
How quickly can you adjust the scale if our transaction volume increases or decreases significantly and without warning? If your business has heavy seasonality, this is a must-ask question.
How does partnering with you to handle my accounting and bookkeeping needs help to save me money – or what is my Return on Investment (ROI). Price plays a huge role in the equation, but it’s certainly not the end of the line. If the cost of an accounting and bookkeeping service seems high, but they can save you tremendous amounts of time and money, they net you a great ROI. This plays to the old adage, “You get what you pay for.” Yes, the price of the lowest contractor may seem the best, but the things they miss, their lack of respect for the job, or their lack of knowledge in how to make themselves helpful to you can end up costing you a lot.
How do you ensure privacy for our clients and us? Discretion is critical to your business and the clients that you serve, and you will want to make sure that your bookkeeper is up to the job of protecting your privacy.
Measuring True Cost vs Value
Once you’ve sat down and talked with a few accounting providers, it’s time to re-examine whether this is a move that will provide good value to your business over time. If it just ends up looking like an added expense, then consider keeping the accounting and bookkeeping in-house. Depending on the size and scope of your business, a high-quality in-house bookkeeper can set you back roughly $50,000 per year. That figure doesn’t include the cost of training, hiring, benefits, or a long-term track for that employee.
Compare that to the cost of a high-quality outsourced bookkeeper, which can run between $500 and $6000(is this the correct range you were intending? Just making sure) per month, and well, you see how this pans out.
It can be difficult to accurately understand the amount of value that an outsourced bookkeeper can add to your business. Start asking yourself the following questions to understand how we can provide value to you:
What’s it worth to you not to have to go over dozens of resumes?
What’s it worth not having to check references for new employees?
What‘s it worth not to have to train a new employee?
What’s it worth to have a professional team hit the ground running who never has to take a vacation or take sick days?
How quickly can you replace a new employee if it doesn’t work out?
How much will it cost to pay for office space to house this new employee?
Final Steps of Choosing
The actual value that we here at TenKey provide to our clients depends on their current situation and the job market in their area. We are able to take on clients anywhere in the US and are ready for whatever challenges you can throw at us!
The final step to finding the perfect outsourced accounting and bookkeeping professional is to compare the price, services, value, and fit. Create a chart that compares contractors in a side-by-side fashion and highlights all the benefits of each. Also, highlight each contractor's costs, and you will have a much easier time breaking down who you should go with if it isn’t already apparent.
Sometimes you just click with someone, and that’s often more powerful than any of the other factors. Never underestimate how well you like or get along with someone because you will want to build a long-term relationship with them that will last in the long run.
If you are looking for the right service to help your business with its bookkeeping and accounting needs, consider giving TenKey a call at 971-220-6416 or email us at HELLO@TENKEYLLC.COM. We have been in the business for decades and know exactly what it takes to help you succeed!
