How to market your accounting business

Marketing can play a pivotal role in attracting new clients to your accounting firm. Here are four tips to help you grow your accountancy practice. Facebook advertising on the social media site can be a valuable tool for growing your business. Encourage clients to refer your services via word-of-mouth. SEO is a strategy to improve your website's position on search engines.

If done correctly, an SEO strategy can help your accounting practise grow exponentially. Take breaks throughout the day to grab a coffee, go for a walk, or get outside. If possible, delegate tasks to those with smaller workloads. Say 'no' to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and Instagram while you're at work.

Double-entry accounting requires you to post debits on the left side and credits on the right side of a ledger.

The dollar amount of assets must equal the sum of liabilities and equity.

The Break-even point tells you how much you need to sell to cover your costs and make a profit. A high profit margin indicates a very healthy company, whereas a low margin could indicate that your business does not handle expenses well.

If you have high sales revenue but still have a low-profit margin, it might be time to look at the figures making up your net income. Knowing how to calculate retained earnings allows owners to perform a more in-depth financial analysis.

The statement of retained earnings will enable owners to analyse net income after accounting for dividend payouts. There are many more formulas that you can use, but these are some of the most important.

When it comes to bringing in new customers for your accounting business, marketing can be a critical factor. You might be able to increase the size of your customer base and realise your ambitions for business expansion if you invest some of your time and resources strategically. The following are four suggestions that will help you market your accounting business effectively:

1. Learn more about Facebook advertising

When it comes to expanding your accounting practice, Facebook may be an extremely helpful tool.

Not only does it offer prospective customers relevant information about your services, but it also encourages people to interact with your company on the platform, whether it be to ask a question or to answer an advertisement.

Your medical practice can also be taken to the next level with the assistance of advertising on Facebook. Because it is so widely used and collects such massive amounts of user data, virtually any company can identify its ideal customers while maintaining control over its marketing expenditures through the utilisation of this platform.

2. Partner with your accounting software provider

If business use accounting software, it can be worthwhile to find out how your provider might help you bring in new customers. This is especially true if you use QuickBooks. For instance, QuickBooks offers a programme called ProAdvisor that provides accounting professionals with the resources and training they require to migrate their practises to the cloud and assist customers in operating their businesses more effectively.

If you become a ProAdvisor, you will have the ability to post your profile to QuickBooks' professional listing. This listing is accessed on a monthly basis by hundreds of small businesses who are looking for an accountant. You will also get access to a wide variety of additional helpful tools, such as training that can improve your skills or the skills of your team, as well as pre-made marketing materials that can be used to inform your customers about your new ProAdvisor status.

3. Encourage clients to refer your services

There is absolutely no method of advertising that is more effective than word-of-mouth marketing. According to a number of studies, the likelihood of a person trusting a company that has been recommended to them by a person they already know is approximately ninety per cent. For this reason, it is a good idea to encourage your clients to refer their relatives, friends, and coworkers to your accounting practise.

Providing outstanding service to customers is the most effective strategy for achieving this goal. You may then approach your most reliable customers and request that they post a favourable review of your business either on your Facebook page or on Google. Reviews like this are quite valuable.

4. Optimise your website

It is absolutely necessary for your accounting practise to have its own website. In addition to elevating the level of professionalism at which your company operates, doing so makes room for the possibility of acquiring new customers. It's possible that search engines like Google will be a big factor in determining how successful you are.

Search engine optimisation, sometimes known as SEO, is a tactic that may be used to increase the position of your website in search engines.

The way in which you optimise your website has a direct bearing on the criteria that search engine algorithms use to determine the relevance of your website. These criteria include things like the website's content, links, user experience (UX), design, and functionality. An SEO plan, when implemented effectively, has the potential to contribute immensely to the expansion of your firm.

Six time-saving tips to transform your accounting business

The operation of a business such as an accounting firm presents its own special set of obstacles. Almost every single person who works as an accountant will, at some point, find themselves wishing there were additional hours in a day. Even though travelling through time is not possible (at least not yet), there are some easy things you can do to make the most of the time you have available to work.

1. Prioritise your workload

Whenever you start a new workday, set aside a few minutes to write down the tasks that you need to do before the end of the day. Make a to-do list for yourself, prioritising the activities in terms of their level of importance, and then work your way down the list. If you are faced with a task that appears particularly overwhelming, try breaking it down into a series of smaller, more manageable steps. This will assist you in visualising your workload and will make it much simpler for you to go through it.

2. Work with your calendar

It is a fantastic approach to keep yourself focused and on track to organise your day so that it revolves around what you have planned and any deadlines that are coming up in the near future. Put everything on your calendar, including events, meetings, work lunches, and due dates, and then build your work plan around those things. Think about the times of day when you get the most done; for instance, if you're at your most productive in the morning, make sure you arrange enough time to do the activities that are at the top of your to-do list before lunch.

3. Invest in the time-saving tools

There are a number of tools that are available to accounting professionals that are designed to save them time. For instance, the accounting software known as QuickBooks Online Accountant is hosted in the cloud and provides users with increased control over the finances of their job, their teams, and their clients.

You may create tasks, evaluate deadlines, and distribute work to other members of your team all from its straightforward interface. You may even preserve all of your prefered accounting and bookkeeping tools and generate reports in a format that is both individualised and automatic.

4. Delegate

Even while it's flattering to be thought of as indispensable, there should never be only one person on your team who is knowledgeable about a particular skill. Make sure that other people working in your practise are capable of filling in for you or another person should the need arise.

When it is feasible to do so, assign jobs to others who have lighter loads. This will enable you to free up more of your own time, which you can then use to concentrate on acquiring new clients or expanding your firm.

5. Take breaks to avoid burnout

You are not a machine, despite how diligent of a worker you may be. You and your team require downtime in order to regain your energy and be ready to perform at maximum capacity whenever it is required of you.

Take a few minutes here and there throughout the day to get some fresh air, stretch your legs, and grab a cup of coffee. If you give yourself some "me time" to break away from the pressures of work, you will find that you are better able to concentrate when you return to your desk, which will save you time in the long run.

6. Say ‘no’ to social media

The use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and Instagram can assist you in expanding your practise by allowing you to connect with new audiences. Nevertheless, when you are attempting to work, they might be a significant source of distraction. If you need to be active on your company accounts during the day, make sure to arrange the time, and do your best to avoid checking your personal social media accounts until after business hours.

Eight accounting formulas that every company should understand

Because the management of your company's finances and revenue can be a full-time job in and of itself, you may find it necessary to establish a financial function inside your organisation so that you can delegate these obligations to an employee who can take care of them for you.

However, the majority of small businesses, particularly those businesses that are just getting started, prefer to handle this aspect of their business on their own. As a result, they forego the assistance of an accountant to manage the balance sheet of the company and the transactions of the business.

There are some financial accounting formulae that you should be familiar with if you are the owner of a small business who would rather monitor the cash flow of your firm with your own two eyes and would like to do so.

Because these fundamental accounting equations are very generic, it should be possible to apply them to a wide variety of businesses, even though they were developed specifically for accounting purposes. In conjunction with a fundamental understanding of how accounting procedures are carried out, the equations will provide you with the numerical data you require to comprehend the state of the financial well-being and viability of your company. This will enable you to make more informed decisions pertaining to the operations of your company.

When recording a transaction, you should always employ double-entry accounting because doing so is an industry standard that should be adhered to. This is a best practise that should be followed. When utilising double-entry accounting, you will be needed to post debits on the left side of a ledger and credits on the right side of a ledger. This is done to ensure that all transactions are accurately recorded. It is of the utmost importance that the total monetary amount of debits and credits maintain a state of equilibrium with one another at all times. Each of the equations that are shown below places an emphasis on the significance of utilising double-entry bookkeeping, which can be found below. This can be seen in each equation's attention on the significance of the use of double-entry bookkeeping.

1. General worth

The equation:

Total assets = liabilities + equity

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• Your company's assets consist of all of its stuff, such as its property, cash, inventory, accounts receivable, and any equipment that will allow it to provide a benefit in the future.
• The commitments that the corporation is obligated to pay are known as liabilities. Examples of liabilities include merchant service fees, account payables, lease payments, and any other form of debt service.
• The owner's share of a firm is referred to as their equity stake in the business. If the business is owned by its shareholders, then the equity held by those shareholders would be considered part of this group as well.

This is an equation that pertains to the balance sheet. The total of the dollar amounts that represent the liabilities and equity on the right side of the equation must be equal to the dollar amount that represents the assets on the left side of the equation.

2. Net profit

The equation:

Net income = revenue – expenses

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• Your company brings in revenue in the form of sales or other positive cash inflows through several means.
• Expenses are the out-of-pocket charges that must be met in order to create income.

Your net income can be calculated by taking your revenue and deducting your expenses from that total. This is the money that you have earned as a reward for all of your hard work at the end of the day. This statistic may suggest that your company, which is still in its early stages of development, is operating at a loss on a nett basis. Any organisation should strive to achieve a positive nett income as their ultimate objective, as this metric demonstrates that the business is successful and profitable.

3. Break-even point

The equation:

Break-even point = (sales – fixed costs – variable costs = $xx.xx profit)

What this accounting equation includes:

• You are required to make payments towards fixed costs on a recurrent and predictable basis in order to run your company. These expenditures can include insurance fees, rent, employees' salary, etc.
• The term "sales" refers to the total amount earned by multiplying "sales price charged" by "number of units sold."
• The term "variable costs" refers to any expenses incurred by your business that vary according on the quantity of units produced or sold.

When you reach the point at which you are profitable, you will know how much you need to sell in order to cover all of your expenses, as well as make a profit of $xx. xx. Every sale that is made that is higher than the moment when we reach financial equilibrium will result in a profit for us.

4. Cash ratio

The equation:

Cash ratio = cash ÷ current liabilities

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• Cash refers to the whole quantity of money that is currently in your possession. This may consist of physical cash as well as cash equivalents such as highly liquid investment assets.
• The debts that are still outstanding for the company are referred to as its current liabilities.

This ratio will offer you an estimate of how much cash you have available to you at the moment. In addition, it illustrates how successfully your company is able to pay off its existing debts and obligations. When that figure is greater, it indicates that your business is in better health.

5. Earnings margin

The equation:

Profit margin = net income ÷ sales

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• After deducting all of your company's outgoing costs, the total amount of money your company has produced is known as its nett income.
• The term "sales" refers to the operating revenue that is produced by the activities of a firm.

When you split your nett income by your sales, you'll receive your organisation's profit margin. Your profit margin is the ratio of the amount of nett income made to the total amount of sales revenue. If your firm has a low-profit margin, this may be an indication that you are not effectively managing your business's expenses. On the other hand, a large profit margin suggests that your company is in excellent health.

Keep in mind that your nett income is determined by subtracting your total expenses from your total revenue. If you have a high sales revenue but still have a poor profit margin, it's probably time to take a look at the figures that make up your nett income.

6. The ratio of debt to equity

The equation:

Debt-to-equity ratio = total liabilities ÷ total equity

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• Your total liabilities include all of the charges that you owe to third parties, such as the balances in your accounts payable and the payments that you make towards the principal and interest on your debt.
• The total equity of a corporation indicates what percentage of the business is owned by its shareholders. To put it another way, it refers to the sum of money that the proprietor has put into the business that he or she owns.

A high debt-to-equity ratio shows that a considerable portion of your company's funding derives from the issuance of debt as opposed to the issuance of stock to the shareholders. This is because the issuance of debt typically carries more risk than the issuance of stock does. The fact that the ratio is quite high exemplifies this point perfectly.

Imagine that you are in the midst of looking for investors or additional money for your business and that you are starting to get discouraged. If this is the case, you may have a more difficult time identifying creditors or investors who are willing to supply funding for your company if your debt-to-equity ratio is relatively high. This is because they may require a higher return on their investment.

7. Total cost of the items sold

The equation:

Cost of goods sold = beginning inventory + price of purchasing new

inventory – ending inventory

The following terms are included in this accounting equation:

• Beginning inventory refers to the total amount of goods that was available at the start of the accounting period.
• The amount of money that your company must spend in order to acquire the products or materials that are required in order to make your products is referred to as the cost of purchasing new inventory.
• The product that you still have in stock at the end of the accounting period is referred to as the ending inventory.

Using the equation for the cost of goods sold, you are able to determine how much money was spent on the production of the items that were sold. The amount of gross profit can be calculated by taking the revenue and deducting the cost of the goods sold from that total.

8. The retained profits formula

The equation:

Retained earnings = beginning had earnings + net income or net loss – cash dividends.

What the retained earnings formula includes:

• The total amount of a company's retained earnings is equal to the sum of all of its nett income since the commencement of the company minus the total amount of cash dividends paid since the beginning.
• Beginning retained earnings are the total amount of retained earnings from the accounting period before the current one.
• After deducting all of the company's expenses from their total revenue, the remaining amount is the company's nett income. It's also feasible that this will end up costing you money in the end.
• Those who own ordinary shares are eligible to receive cash dividends, sometimes known as cash distributions.

Owners are able to conduct a more in-depth financial study when they are knowledgeable about how to calculate retained earnings. After taking into account dividend payments, owners will be able to assess their share of the nett income using the statement of retained earnings. Even if there was no amount of dividends distributed during the accounting period, owners are still required to compute the statement of retained earnings at the conclusion of each accounting quarter.

Keep an eye on the finances of your business

To accurately evaluate the state of your company's finances, you need both a comprehensive accounting system and a general ledger that is kept in good condition. Even though there are a great deal more formulas at your disposal, the eight that we have presented here are among the most crucial ones.

In spite of the fact that these equations appear to be uncomplicated, in practice, they can end up becoming more convoluted. When considering the potentially hundreds of accounts that they have in their company, many owners of small businesses discover that it is difficult to properly assess the financial health of their company because it is difficult to strike a balance between the right side of the equation and the left side of the equation.

Fortunately, software designed specifically for small businesses might be of assistance. The only thing left to do is enter your company's financial transactions. After that, the accounting software you choose will crunch the data for you so that you may evaluate the state of your company. When it comes to managing your company effectively, having a deeper understanding of your financial situation is directly correlated to increased productivity.