Starting your own business can be a very exciting time. You have a brilliant idea or service and the business enquiries are rolling in. While you may be an expert in your chosen industry nobody told you that running a business would also require you to be a financial expert, a tax guru and a business planning extraordinaire all rolled into one. Or do you? An accountant can be your best friend when it comes to running a business and the right one for you will be a crucial support. This article will cover 6 benefits of hiring an accountant.
What Is An Accountant And How Can They Support My Business?
The dictionary definition of an account is “a person whose job is to keep, inspect, and analyse financial accounts.” This may have been the “only” job of an accountant once upon a time. Now however, modern day accountancy practices are able to offer a vast range of accountancy, financial and business advisory services which cater to every business size, from a one man band sole trader to a huge corporate firm with hundreds of employees. Everyone can benefit from having the support of an accountant.
Here at Onyx we offer all of the financial and business support you would expect and also appreciate that each business and individual is different. Our focus is to develop a combination of appropriate services and support for your business with a commitment to providing services that truly provide benefit.
Below is a selection of our services.
- Bookkeeping – offering advice on bookkeeping systems or providing a full bookkeeping service
- Accounting – quick, accurate year-end accounting
- Tax Planning – utilising allowances to minimise liabilities
- Management Accounts – interpreting data to produce useful management information
- VAT – completing VAT returns accurately and on time
- Budget Forecasting – managing resources to ensure cash flow and profitability
- Drawings Projections – helping to discover potential earnings
- Partnership Agreements – advice when changing partners or agreements
- Practice Premises – cost of rent, notional rent, tax allowances
- Capital and Re-financing – raising money for growth and development
- Payroll – staff payroll including pensions
- Statutory Compliance – confirmation statements, minutes and all Companies House forms as required
The beauty of having an accountant means you can choose which services you feel would best support your business. Whether you just need help with completing a tax return, or you are so overwhelmed you feel you need a full suite of services, an accountant can tailor a package to suit your business.
You may be sitting here thinking “but I am unsure of what it is I need?”, this is also very common with business owners. Whilst what you need might not be crystal clear to you, below are a list reasons why you should hire an accountant, and if any of these reasons resonate with you it is 100% worth you having the conversation.
List of points this article covers:
- 1. You are worried about Statutory Compliance and operating in accordance with HMRC
- 2. You are having problems with administrative time management
- 3. You find it hard to keep track receipts or struggle with bookkeeping
- 4. You find it hard to plan for the future of the business
- 5. You need support planning for your own future and the future of your family
- 6. You need funding for the business and do not know where to start
1. You are worried about Statutory Compliance and operating in accordance with HMRC
Getting your compliance in order is one of the basic fundamentals of running a business. You can have the best business in the world but if you are not complying with HMRC they will not take pitty on your lack of knowledge. Companies House and HMRC carry out a range of compliance checks on registered businesses and any failure to comply can result in fines, penalties and may even get your business struck off. Allowing an accountant to handle your business compliance will give you peace of mind accounts are prepared in the correct format, statutory books and other company secretarial records are kept up-to-date and that all statutory returns are prepared. This will relieve you of the regulatory burden and leave you more time to concentrate on your core business activities.
To learn more about the compliance services Onyx can offer please visit our Statutory Compliance web page here.
2. You are having problems with administrative time management
Running a business in itself is time consuming. You may not be in the position to hire extra staff to free up more time at this present moment. The last thing you want to do after a hard days work is get home and worry about completing hours of monotonous bookkeeping, or trying to calculate staff wages for the month. There are many administrative aspects to a business an accountant will happily take of your hands giving you the freedom to focus on a better work/life balance.
To learn more about Onyx Services please see our Services web page here.
3. You find it hard to keep track of receipts or struggle with bookkeeping
Do you find filling receipts overwhelming? Maybe you have a big complicated spreadsheet that gives you nightmares when you sleep. Hiring an accountant can take all the burden of bookkeeping off your hands. Onyx are partnered with a range of bookkeeping software providers and we offer software training sessions at your convenience.
Onyx are accredited partners with: Dext, Sage, Kashflow, Xero and Quickbooks. To find out more please visit our Accountancy Software Training Services web page here.
4. You find it hard to plan for the future of your business
Whilst you may have had a great business idea initially, you have been able to get off the ground and business is doing well, you may be wondering what next steps to take to scale up the business. Whether it’s taking the plunge and buying a new space for the business, employing more staff or investing in new equipment, having specialist advice at hand when you hire an accountant can reassure you that you are making the correct decision.
Here at Onyx we can offer monthly and quarterly Management Accounts reporting which measures performance during the year, keeping you up to date on your financial position, allowing us to help you make informed business decisions you have peace of mind will help your business grow.
For more information on Management Accounts please visit our Management Accounts web page here. We also have a range of demo packs which relate to a range of dedicated industry sectors, to find your sector please click here.
5. You need support planning for your own future and the future of your family
You may have a great business plan for the right now, and maybe even 2/3 years into the future, but have you thought about how you can safeguard your families interest way into the distant future? When you hire an accountant you can ensure you have the correct business structure in place which will not only bring immediate tax incentives but will also cover you for things such as inheritance tax in the future.
Onyx can advise you on the correct way to structure your business so you and your family are all protected under any eventuality and ensure you are taking advantage of any tax incentives which could benefit all.
6. You need funding for the business and do not know where to start
Securing funding for your business can be a confusing and drawn out process when trying to complete applications without any support. There are often many hoops to jump through and any funding provider often requires in-depth financial reporting to assess the businesses eligibility. Hiring an accountant to support you in your application will mean any financial reporting requirements will be submitted correct and in the right format needed for the application, and any further requirements or extra information needed can be passed straight on to your accountant to handle.
Here at Onyx we have a wealth of experience supporting our clients secure extra funding for their business, whether its business loans or grant funding the extensive financial reporting we can provide will ensure your application is approved.
For more information please see our Funding web page here.
GET IN TOUCH WITH ONYX
If you have any queries regarding information in this article, or want to discuss further, please give us a call or e-mail us at enquiries@onyx.accountants for a FREE no obligation consultation.
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