Want to make outsourcing accounting a success for your restaurant? Follow a weekly accounting system

 The restaurant industry is a harsh one, with more changes in ownership than most businesses. In such a tough situation, you need to make your restaurant business strong financially by outsourcing accounting. Handing over your books of accounts to an accounting firm ensures that your financials are in good hands so that you can focus on your business better. However, even after you have selected the firm for outsourcing accounting, your role as the owner of the restaurant doesn’t end; you need to ensure that the accounting service provider you have hired is taking steps in the best interest of your restaurant.

The turnover of a restaurant is very fast, with income, expenses and inventory coming in and going out each day. So even when you are outsourcing accounting, you need to keep close tabs on such details so that you can avoid a month-end chaotic situation. Having a weekly accounting system for your restaurant will benefit you in this case. In case you have a small staff, you won’t be able to handle a weekly accounting system easily. The decision to outsource accounting can be in your best interest in that situation.

Industry experts believe that outsourcing accounting and having a weekly accounting system is the best step for a restaurant business. Getting weekly updates on accounting of your restaurant will allow you to respond quickly to any financial situation your business faces, which in turn, will help you stay stable in the restaurant business. While outsourcing accounting functions to an expert firm, ensure that they can follow the weekly accounting system, through which you can get the relevant updates and reports for your restaurant.

There are a number of accounting service providers today which specialize in the restaurant industry. Such outsourced accounting firms have an exact idea as to the requirements of a restaurant, so they will be able to help you out with your finances. You can make inquiries with various firms who provide accounting services and check out the packages and the services they include in them.

A good firm for outsourcing accounting will be able to customize its package according to the requirement of your restaurant. Getting a weekly accounting report from such a firm will be an easy task and will help you in running a profitable restaurant for a long time.

Outsourcing accounting: Is it good or bad for your small business?

Outsourcing is a bit of a dilemma to many small businesses. Small business owners wonder whether outsourcing non-core functions can bring them enough benefits or whether it is too great a risk to take. A major issue for small businesses is to decide whether outsourcing accounting and bookkeeping, which takes up a major chunk of their time, is the right step for their business. In order to determine whether outsourcing accounting to a professional accounting firm is the best step for a small business, it is necessary to analyze the advantages and risks associated with it. If you are one of those small business owners facing the same dilemma, read on.

The advantages of outsourcing accounting for small businesses are many:

Focus on revenue-generating activities
The main advantage of outsourcing accounting for a small business is that it allows the small business owner to focus on the core business activities without worrying about the state of books of accounts. The major problem faced by many small business owners is the inability to dedicate enough time to revenue-generating activities. With an accounting firm taking care of all accounting and bookkeeping functions, the small business owner can rest assured that business finances are being taken care of, and can hence dedicate his/her full focus on business activities.

Leave the accounting functions to experts
Outsourcing accounting to a professional accounting firm ensures that experts are working on your accounting. This reduces the chances of errors in your books of accounts. This also means that your books will remain up to date at any given point of time, so that you get the true picture of your business profitability and can take business decisions accordingly.

Save costs
Outsourcing accounting to a professional is cheaper than hiring in-house resources. By outsourcing accounting, small businesses can save up to 40% of costs. This is a significant amount of saving for a small business. This amount can be re-invested into the business. With the many accounting firms in the market today, you can select a service provider who has experience in your industry.

Customized accounting services
Accounting firms provide customized accounting services, which meet specific small business requirements. You can ask for specific reports at regular intervals so that you get the correct picture of your business’ profitability. You can also omit those accounting services your business doesn’t require. Outsourcing accounting functions hence ensures that your business has the solution most suitable for it.

There are also certain disadvantages of outsourcing accounting that need to be taken into consideration:

Confidentiality
Outsourcing accounting means that you have to send confidential accounting information to the accounting firm. If proper security measures are not taken by the accounting firm in question, confidentiality of the accounting information may be breached. Small business owners need to double check on what security measures are being taken to protect their confidential information to avoid a breach.

Inexperienced accounting service providers
Inexperienced accounting firms are a major issue for outsourcing accounting. Outsourcing accounting to an inexperienced service provider can damage the profitability of your business as well as take up extra time for correcting the mistakes that accounting firm makes. While outsourcing accounting, check the experience of the accounting firm and talk to past clients in order to get an idea about the skills of the firm.

The advantages of outsourcing accounting far out-number the possible disadvantages of the same. If small business owners select the accounting firm carefully, their business can prosper steadily even in a tough market.

Accounting Services: An Integral Part Of Your Small Business Growth

Are you an expert accountant? Most small business owners aren't, and that's why they need the help of a professional who provides accounting services. Hiring such professionals for accounting services can ensure that your books of accounts are in the right hands, so that you can focus on your business. Small business owners are generally tempted to take care of their own accounting. However, hiring a professional for small business accounting services holds some aces over do-it-yourself accounting.

Why a professional for accounting services?

Until recently, small businesses used to hire in-house staff to take care of their accounting for them. This was the only option available to small businesses, as there were few professional accounting service providers available. However, small business owners are increasingly starting to use outsourced accounting services due to the various advantages it offers. The number of service providers for small business accounting has also increased exponentially in the past few years.

Using accounting services can save precious resources, especially for small businesses. The cost of hiring and training an in-house accountant is huge, and an accounting service provider may help save as much as 40% of the cost of such recruitment. A professional company for small business accounting is an expert at what it does, so you need not worry about the quality of work being done. Such an accounting firm is also available 24x7 through phone, email, teleconferencing etc., so accessibility is also not an issue. If an accounting service provider is giving you a cheaper deal and taking care of all your accounting requirements efficiently, why should you hire in-house staff for accounting?

What to expect when you use accounting services?

A professional accounting service provider will be completely dedicated to maintaining your books of accounts. So instead of one single accountant in-house, you will have a whole company at your service. Most accounting service providers provide customized accounting services, which will be completely tailored as per your requirements. A company specializing in small business accounting will also have the latest software and experts to make sure the job is completed properly.

Most accounting service providers offer other services as well. For example, an accounting firm may also be offering bookkeeping services, tax preparation services etc. When you are checking out the company's service portfolio, see other service offerings they have over and above accounting services. If you see anything that applies to your business in addition to small business accounting, have that added in your package.

Accounting firms also provide completely scalable services, so you can change your package or requirements at any time you want. However, you need to discuss the scalability of services with the accounting service provider in question. You may also be thinking about the security of your financial information when you use accounting services from a third party. But you can rest assured that an experienced company providing accounting services will have adequate security measures to keep all your data safe. Ask your accounting service provider about the security measure it takes to keep all your data safe.

Online Accounting: How small businesses can benefit from it

As a small business owner, you may be facing a tough task of managing all departments of your business at once. Running a small business is a tough task as it is; add to that the responsibility of handling small business accounting and bookkeeping, and it may become an impossible one. If hiring in-house staff for handling your books of accounts is not an option for you, consider hiring the services of an online accounting service provider. Online accounting is known for its benefits, especially for small businesses. Some of the benefits of online accounting are as mentioned below:

Cost Effective
The first, foremost and most important advantage of online accounting is its cost effectiveness. Not only does hiring online bookkeeping service save you the cost of hiring in-house resources, it also ensures that additional resources like office space, rent etc. are not wasted. You can then invest the money and resources saved through online accounting into the business to ensure its profitability.

Quick Turnaround
Online accounting service providers provide a very quick turnaround as they have dedicated personnel working on your books of accounts. In many cases, the online bookkeeping service provider gives an assurance of updating your books of accounts within 24 hours of receipt of the documents. Such speedy work ensures that accounting and bookkeeping of your small business is up to date at all times.

Experts at Work
Let’s admit it: you do business well, but maintaining books of accounts like a pro is not your cup of tea. When you hire online accounting services, you can rest assured that there is an experienced professional working on your books. Such experts also ensure that the work done is impeccable and there are less chances of any mistake in your small business accounting.

Easy to Use
Online accounting services make your work very easy with a simple procedure. You just need to send your documents to your online bookkeeping service provider via email; the rest is all taken care of by online accounting professionals on the other end. You can hence stop worrying about your business financials the minute you email the document and concentrate on running your small business.

Efficient Record-Keeping
Online accounting or online bookkeeping gives a lot of importance to record-keeping. When you hire a professional for online accounting, you need not maintain separate records for your own reference. The latest and most accurate accounting information will be maintained by professionals when you decide to use online bookkeeping services. You can get access to these records 24x7, which is a facility given by most service providers today.

Online accounting has the potential of aiding you in running your business efficiently and reducing your overall responsibilities. There are many online bookkeeping service providers today which offer customized packages. You can select the one that best suits your small business requirements.

Does your accounting firm adhere to these best practices? Important tips for new restaurant owners.

You may have read about the basics of restaurant accounting and bookkeeping in one of our previous posts. Owing to the large amount of queries that we receive from the new and existing restaurant owners, we thought of touching base with the other elements that are directly or indirectly connected with restaurant accounting and bookkeeping. There is a very thin line which separates the success or failure of a restaurant business; accounting and bookkeeping is a major part of the success path for a restaurant. Small discrepancies in books of accounts can force even an experienced restaurateur to close shop. We hence thought of listing down some best practices applicable to restaurants so that you can ensure that your accounting firm can follow them.

Monthly Profit and Loss Statement
A monthly P&L statement helps restaurateurs be aware of just where their restaurant stands profit-wise. If you have an accounting firm which prepares your books for you, ask it to prepare a P&L statement monthly and send it to you so that you know month-by-month progress your restaurant is making. Just looking at the statement, you will get an overall idea of the profit or loss of your restaurant, and take steps to improve accordingly.

Inventory Management
Most restaurants incur losses because the owners don’t have any idea of their inventory and how it is being used. Many restaurateurs assume that the inventory is being used properly and do not manage it properly. This can be a costly mistake for the business. Most accounting firms now provide inventory management as part of their accounting services. Ask your bookkeeping firm to include inventory management in its services offering for your restaurant.

4-week Accounting Period
Accounting and bookkeeping experts recommend a 4-week accounting period for restaurants simply because it holds many advantages for it. Restaurateurs can compare performance of the business with the week or month of last year if they follow a 4-week accounting period. If your accounting firm is an expert in the restaurant industry, it will be aware of this fact and will recommend a 4-week accounting period to you.

Weekly Cost Reporting
Also ensure that your accounting firm provides weekly reports of all the costs your restaurant business incurs. Restaurants have a lot of costs that they incur weekly, like labor, food etc. Being aware of the weekly costs of labor, food etc. will help you cut down unnecessary expenditures and remain profitable.

Designate a Professional for Accounting and Bookkeeping
If all of the above sounds too complicated for you to keep track of, designate a dedicated professional for all your accounting and bookkeeping. Ideally, it should be an accounting firm which specializes in restaurant accounting, as it will know the tricks of the trade from the beginning.

Following the above-mentioned best practices for accounting and bookkeeping of your restaurant will not only help it stay afloat in this tough economy, it will also help make sure that it remains profitable. Your accounting firm can become your partner in your goal of ensuring the profitability of your restaurant.

Outsourcing Accounting Services: 3 Things you Should Know

Accounting and bookkeeping for small businesses had changed drastically in the past few years. The rules for accounting remain the same; however, paper-based accounting has been replaced by virtual accounting. Outsourcing accounting services is hence a popular choice of business owners now. Using an accounting service provider and outsourcing accounting functions saves costs as well as gets accounting done effectively. Using the services of a professional accounting service provider eases a lot of burden of business owners. However, as a business owner, you need to know some things before outsourcing accounting services. The following are 3 essential points you need to know before outsourcing accounting services:

Local or Offshore
The advantage of outsourcing accounting services is that you can select the service provider you want, according to your terms and conditions. If the accounting and bookkeeping service provider is based locally, it will be easy for you to get in touch with him/her in case you need to. However, the disadvantage is that local accounting service providers may not be as cost-effective as offshore ones. Offshore accounting service providers, on the other hand, offer significant cuts in costs, but may be unavailable personally when needs arises. The ideal company you can use for outsourcing accounting services is one which works virtually but has a local presence. That way, it will be able to offer cost-effective rates as well as be available personally.

Experience
If you are thinking of Outsourcing accounting services, you will obviously look for someone who has relevant experience and has expertise enough to handle your books of accounts. Even if the accounting service provider in question has years of experience in accounting and bookkeeping, ask whether it has enough experience in your industry and cross check the references. If the service provider has a good record with past clients, you can rest assured that outsourcing accounting services to him/her is a wise decision. The kind of staff the accounting service provider hires is also an important factor in the way your outsourced accounting will fare, so be sure to ask about the qualifications and availability of accounting staff.

Add-ons
As said before, accounting doesn’t involve only debit and credit anymore. Professional service providers for outsourced accounting services now provide management reports in addition to the standard accounting and bookkeeping reports like P&L statements and Balance Sheets, which can help you take care of your business in a more efficient way. Such accounting service providers have also started providing weekly reports instead of the monthly or quarterly reports which were prevalent before. These are valuable add-ons which are associated with Outsourcing accounting services, which will help your business do well and grow.

Is Using Outsourced Accounting Services the Right Step for Your Small Business?

For a long time, using outsourced accounting services was an option only for larger corporations. However, of late, the cost effectiveness of outsourcing accounting functionalities has made it an attractive prospect for small businesses as well. A small business owner is generally burdened with taking care of all the functions of the business with very little resources at his/her disposal. Outsourcing to expert accounting service providers has the potential of saving a lot of resources and hence is an attractive proposition for small business owners.

But the question most small business owners are pondering over is: Does hiring a bookkeeping and accounting service provider make sense for small businesses? Judging the answer to this question is tricky and requires evaluating the pros and cons of outsourcing accounting.

There are advantages attached to hiring an outsourced accounting service provider which are especially applicable to small businesses:

1. The main advantage of outsourcing accounting functions is its cost effectiveness, which can save your small business up to 40% costs as compared to in-house staff
2. Accounting service providers have expert staff who can handle all your small business accounting requirements with ease
3. You can choose to hire only those services which are applicable to your business
4. Outsourcing accounting frees up valuable time which you can dedicate to the core business activities
5. You are relieved from the hassles of hiring, training and retaining in-house staff

There is only one small disadvantage when it comes to hiring outsourced accounting services: Too many companies providing accounting services which makes it tough to decide which one to hire. If you hire an inefficient service provider, it may cost your business a lot more. So select an accounting service provider with a lot of care, taking into consideration the following factors:

1. Is the bookkeeping and accounting service provider experienced in your industry?
2. Can the firm give valid references of its current/past clients?
3. Does the firm have a reputation of providing accounting services for small businesses?
4. Can the firm assure a doorstep service if required or is it purely outsourcing company based miles away within US or outside US?
5. Is the accounting firm ready to give written documents regarding guarantee of service, terms and conditions etc?
6. Is the accounting service provider flexible enough to allow you to scale your bookkeeping and accounting requirements up or down?
7. Does the firm providing outsourced accounting service have suitable data security measures to protect sensitive information related to your small business?

If you get satisfactory replies to all of the above questions, you should rest assured that the accounting service provider you are considering to hire is suitable for your small business.

The advantages of outsourcing small business accounting far surpass the disadvantages of outsourcing accounting functionalities. If you work with the right service provider, it can become a valuable asset to your small business. As a small business owner, you should hence consider availing the services of a professional bookkeeping and accounting service provider so that they can focus on the core activities of the business and grow it appropriately.