If you want to get accurate and updated financial documents, hiring a bookkeeper is the key. There are three ways in which you can get one. First, you can hire an in-house bookkeeper but this means additional staffing that entails additional benefits, salary, and training costs. Second, you can hire a freelance bookkeeper to avoid the costs of hiring a regular employee.
But the downside is, they may not be able to update your ledger daily. They can only do so during their set schedule to handle your accounts. The third choice is the cheapest and most efficient option. It is hiring an outsource bookkeeper to maintain a digital ledger.
Typically, outsource bookkeepers from developing countries charges a lower labour cost. You also don’t need to worry about regular benefits and training. Like a regular bookkeeper, they’ll update your financial documents daily. Although these are done online through shared documents. So, how an outsource bookkeeper works?
Benefits of Getting an Outsource Bookkeeper
The benefits of getting an outsource bookkeeper are very obvious and straightforward. For startups, a bookkeeper relieves you from the repetitive task of recording your financial transactions. As such, you can focus more on other important functions of your business.
You will also be assured that the records are accurate because they are handled by an expert in financial management and recording. Once you need to file a tax return or raise money for expansion, your books are complete and updated.
An outsource bookkeeper is also cost-effective and flexible. They cause lower than paying a regular bookkeeper reporting to your office every business day. Their contracts are also flexible. You can scale down or scale up their services as needed.
Task an Outsource Bookkeeper Can Handle
Outsource bookkeepers can handle a specific set of tasks depending on what you will need. Here are some of the most important services they can cover for you.
- Automatic importation of financial information like a bank statement, credit card statement, invoices, payroll records, etc.
- Categorizing financial transactions into income and expenses plus putting notes to support each transaction that you can clearly understand
- Ensuring that your books are accurate and updated for accounting, investment, and tax purposes
- Providing accurate financial statements with every month end including balance sheets, cash flows, and profit & loss statement
- Tracking of accounts payable and accounts receivable
How Does an Outsource Bookkeeper Work?
There are lots of websites that offer outsource bookkeeper services. You need to identify the type of services you need. It’s also important to get a trusted 3rd party vendor. You can try checking for online reviews. Or you can referrals from business colleagues, family, and friends. It will also be best to have an idea of how to do an outsource bookkeeper works.
First, after entering a contract, there’s a need to set up integrations of your financial accounts and software with the outsource bookkeeper. All your financial data will be pooled in one software that you and the bookkeeper can view.
Second, the bookkeeper will update the software daily. He or she will categorize, record, and reconcile the daily transaction of your business.
Third, the bookkeeper will send you accurate and clean financial statements at the end of every month. These statements are financially clear, enough to serve as a reference to accounting, investment, and taxation.