Factoring Blog - For Small Businesses

Michelle at Small Business Buzz has a good, easy-to-skim checklist for how to find a good accountant.  If you don’t have an accountant or just are not satisfied with the one you have, it’s time to take action.  Tax season is upon us. 

I have found that having a good accountant can help you grow your business.  Having a close relationship with an accountant does several things, beyond the obvious of helping you with your books and your taxes:

(1) A good accountant imposes fiscal accountability.  I don’t know about you, but when my accountant sends reminders about estimated tax filing deadlines and 1099 filing deadlines, for instance, it makes me pay attention and not let dates slide.  For some reason I am more inclined to pay attention than if I set reminders for myself in QuickBooks or in my calendar.

(2) Your accountant is a fabulous source of advice on a variety of topics.  Sometimes it helps to discuss an issue with your accountant.  For instance, discussing whether you should draw salary or take distributions.  Or discussing how to structure your business entities.  No matter how much you think you know, a good accountant often provides a new perspective that you haven’t thought of. 

(3)  A good accountant is an excellent source of important contacts in your local area, for important life and business transactions.  Good accountants often know who the “go to” people are in your town.  If you need to sell your business, start with your accountant for recommendations of a good local business broker.  If you need an attorney and don’t have one, your accountant often can recommend a good one.  Need some better health insurance options?  A good accountant can often make suggestions for a good insurance agent.

At this time of year, during their peak season, some accountants may not even be taking on new clients until after this tax season.  If you find that the accountant you want to hire tells you that, then make a reminder to yourself to find one AFTER tax season is over.  Don’t wait until tax season next year, when it will be too late.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 5:06 pm and is filed under Business Finance, Business Tax. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.