By Sylvia Jaumann

Copyright 2009-2010
http://www.1stRateBoos.!om
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
1
"#out the "uthor
Sylvia Jaumann is quickly becoming known as the go-to gal in
the bookkeeping business field. Her 18 years of
bookkeeping e!perience has enabled her to successfully run
her own bookkeeping business.
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Copyright 2009-2010 Sylia !au"ann
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(he author and publisher of this report have used their best efforts in preparing
this program. (he author and publisher make no representation or warranties
with respect to the accuracy& applicability& fitness& or completeness of the
contents of this information. (hey disclaim any warranties )e!pressed or
implied*& merchantability& or fitness for any particular purpose. (he author and
publisher shall in no event be held liable for any loss or other damages& including
but not limited to special& incidental& consequential& or other damages. #s
always& the advice of a competent legal& ta! and accounting or other professional
should be sought.
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
2
$ntro%u!tion
2elco"e to the &20 'asy Steps to Starting (our Booeeping
Business)*
#s an e3perience4 5ookkeeper you know that 5ookkeeping is one o6
the "ost challenging7 rewar4ing an4 necessary 6unctions o6 operating
a 5usiness,
%6 8the 5ooks9 are not in or4er a co"pany can :uickly go out o6
5usiness an4 6in4 the"seles in hot water with the goern"ent, So
accurately keeping track o6 reenue an4 e3penses is the key to all
success6ul 5usinesses,
# 5ookkeeping 5usiness is consi4ere4 an 8eergreen9 5usiness, (his is
5ecause as long as there are 5usinesses7 there is a nee4 6or
5ookkeepers, (his leaes the 4oor wi4e open 6or you to reap the
rewar4s with this ongoing tren4 5y helping these 5usinesses with their
5ookkeeping,
You;ll 6in4 that your 5ookkeeping 5usiness will 5e setup ery :uickly 5y
6ollowing the steps lai4 out in this report, So let;s get starte4<
Step 1:
(our Booeeping Business +ame
You;ll nee4 a great na"e 6or your 5ookkeeping 5usiness, -ake sure
you consi4er all aspects o6 the na"e you choose an4 that there are no
negatie un4ertones to the na"e,
0se 4escriptie wor4s such as 8#ccurate9 or 8Relia5le9, Or you can try
a play on accounting-type wor4s such as 8Capital9 or 8Botto" $ine9,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
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You can also use your own na"e as your 5usiness na"e, >or
e3a"ple1 8Susan !ones Bookkeeping Serices9,
#6ter you;e co"e up with three possi5le 5usiness na"es7 contact your
local goern"ent authority,
Step 2:
,#tain -i!enses / .ermits
#6ter your 5usiness na"e has 5een 6inali?e47 contact your local city
hall to in:uire a5out a 5usiness license an4 any per"its that are
re:uire4 to operate your 5ookkeeping 5usiness,
%6 you;re running a ho"e-5ase4 5ookkeeping 5usiness "ake sure you
state this in your application with the local authority,
You nee4 to 6in4 out all the ?oning re:uire"ents 6or ho"e-5ase4
5usinesses an4 whether @or notA clients can co"e to your ho"e, +o
not "iss this step,
Step /:
Resear!h (our 0ourly Rate
(o 4eter"ine the going hourly rate in your area7 contact at least three
or "ore local 5ookkeeping 5usinesses an4 ask the" what they charge
per hour,
You nee4 to 6actor in your oerhea4 costs when 4eter"ining your
hourly rate, So 4on;t Bust auto"atically charge per hour what you;e
5een "aking as an e"ployee,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
C
Step 1:
Setup (our ,22i!e
You nee4 to set up your o66ice to get it rea4y 6or 5usiness, (his "eans
haing your co"puter7 4esk an4 work area all setup an4 rea4y to go,
You;ll also hae to 4eci4e on whether you want a separate phone line
6or your 5ookkeeping 5usiness,
(his can 5e costly7 so a cheaper alternatie is to use a 8s"art ring9
serice aaila5le 6ro" "ost phone co"panies, You;ll get a separate
phone nu"5er an4 all your 5usiness calls will hae a special ring7
letting you know it;s a 5usiness call,
You;ll also pro5a5ly want to setup a 6a3 line 6or your 5usiness, One
way to han4le this is to use an online 86a3 to e"ail9 serice which
gies you a uni:ue 6a3 nu"5er that auto"atically 6orwar4s to your
e"ail account, (his works :uite well,
%6 you hae the "oney in your 5u4get7 you;ll also want to inest in a
co"6orta5le o66ice chair7 large 6lat screen "onitor7 shre44er an4 "ulti-
6unction scanner/copier/6a3 "achine,
Step 3:
Setup (our 4iling System
#n organi?e4 6iling syste" is critical 6or storing clients; paperwork in
your o66ice, You nee4 a syste" that allows 6or easy retrieal at a
"o"ent;s notice,

Setup a 6ile syste" 6or your clients 6iles, You can use 6ile 5o3es or a
6ile ca5inet 6or this, You;ll want to 4ii4e up sections to keep each
client;s 6iles together,
You "ay want to color-co4e your 6iles in 4i66erent categories such as
8#ccounts Receia5le97 8#ccount Daya5le97 8Bank State"ents97 etc, to
"ake 6in4ing paperwork een easier,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
E
Step 5:
Sele!t a Ba!up System
#s a 5ookkeeper7 it;s critical to hae seeral 5ackup syste"s in place
in case o6 a har4 4rie crash,
%t;s 5een sai4 that har4 4rie crashes an4 "other5oar4 6ailures are a
certainty at so"e point with all co"puters, So 5e aware that it will
happen eentually an4 hae a 5ackup syste" in place 6or when this
occurs,
+eci4e on which 5ackup syste" you;ll 5e using, % suggest 5acking up
onto a C+ 6or each client,
You will also nee4 a secon4ary 4ata 5ackup syste", You "ay want to
5ack up online or onto a 6lash/thu"5 4rie syste" 6or this,
Step 6:
Choose (our 7arget 8aret:
%n or4er to 5eco"e a 8specialist9 in your 5ookkeeping niche7 you nee4
to 4eter"ine what types o6 5ookkeeping you pre6er 4oing,
(o 4o this7 6irst 4eci4e what type o6 co"pany structures you pre6er to
4o 5ookkeeping in1 proprietorships7 corporations7 or partnerships,
(his is i"portant 5ecause these 5usinesses hae slightly 4i66erent
accounting nee4s,
(hen7 5reak that 4own 6urther to what types o6 5usinesses you enBoy
or hae e3perience in1 retail7 serice7 construction7 non-pro6it,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
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Step 9:
Choose the S!ope o2 (our Servi!es
#s a 5ookkeeper7 there are "any serices you can proi4e to your
clients, So"e will 5e "an4atory as a 5ookkeeper an4 others will 5e
optional 4epen4ing upon your e3perience,
-ake a list o6 all the 5ookkeeping serices you;4 like to proi4e in your
5ookkeeping 5usiness,
'ere;s an e3a"ple o6 the 5ookkeeping serices you coul4 proi4e1
>ull charge 5ookkeeping
#ccounts receia5le
#ccounts paya5le
Dayroll & payroll re"ittances
Bank reconciliation
&oern"ent reports & re"ittances
Bu4geting
Cash 6low analysis
>inancial State"ent preparation @%nco"e State"ent
& Balance SheetA
#ccounting so6tware training an4 installation
%nco"e ta3 returns
Step 9:
Create -etterhea% : Business Car%s
%n or4er to pro"ote your 5ookkeeping 5usiness7 you;ll nee4 5usiness
stationery such as letterhea4 an4 5usiness car4s,
(his can 5e as ine3pensie as creating your own stationery using 2or4
or Du5lisher or haing the" 4eelope4 using the serices o6 a
pro6essional printer7 which will cost "ore,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
G
% 4on;t suggest you "ake a huge inest"ent in 5usiness stationery7 at
least 4uring your startup phase as this "oney can 5e use4 towar4s
other costs such as postage an4 other a4ertising,
But you 4o want your stationery to 5e clean looking7 pro6essional an4
6ree 6ro" any errors,
Step 10:
Create a Sales -etter
2riting a sales letter to potential clients is an e3tre"ely e66ectie way
to i""e4iately let potential clients 4iscoer your 5ookkeeping
serices,
# sales letter gies you the opportunity to let your potential clients 6in4
out who you are7 what you can 4o an4 @"ost i"portantly to the"A
how it will 5ene6it the",
0sing a wor4 processing progra" such as -icroso6t 2or47 you can
:uickly 4o a "ail "erge to sen4 out personali?e4 letters to hun4re4s
o6 5usinesses at a ti"e,
Step 11:
Buil% (our 8ailing -ist
%n or4er to sen4 out your sales letters7 you;ll nee4 to put together a
"ailing list, (his can easily 5e 4one 5y spen4ing the ti"e to create
one yoursel6, &enerally7 you shoul4 5e a5le to access "ost o6 this
in6or"ation online,
You can put together this list using1
Your local telephone 5ook
Cha"5er o6 Co""erce "e"5er list
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
H
City 'all 5usiness license 4irectory
You "ay nee4 to use a co"5ination o6 all three to get all the
in6or"ation you nee4, You shoul4 hae the 6ollowing 6or your "ailing
list1
Contact .a"e
Business .a"e
#44ress
Iip / Dostal Co4e
(elephone .u"5er @i6 you plan to 6ollow up with a phone callA
Step 12:
Conta!t "!!ountants
(he 6astest way to get your 5ookkeeping 5usiness going is though
re6errals, So 5y 4eeloping a relationship with the accountants in your
area7 you will :uickly 5e the 6irst person the accountant calls when
their clients nee4 help with their 4ay to 4ay 5ookkeeping,
#ccountants are always looking 6or goo4 5ookkeepers to re6er their
clients to, .ot only 4oes it "ake the accountant look goo4 5ut it saes
the" 6ro" an accounting night"are at year en4,
Contact your local accounting 6ir"s to 6in4 out which accountant
han4les su5contracting an4 re6errals 6or 5ookkeeping serices,
Step 1/:
.repare &'levator Spee!h)
You shoul4 hae an 8eleator speech9 rea4y 6or when you "eet a
prospectie client, #n eleator speech is your =0 secon4 soun4 5yte
intro4ucing who you are an4 what you 4o,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
9
>or e3a"ple1
My name is Susan Jones. I am a bookkeeper who assists small
businesses by handling their finances so they can relax and take
care of their business.
(he i4ea is to list a 5ene6it your client will enBoy 5y 4oing 5usiness with
you, %n the e3a"ple a5oe the 5ene6it woul4 5e 8so they can rela3
an4 take care o6 their 5usiness9,
Step 11:
Create a Classi2ie% "%
Deople loe to rea4 the classi6ie4 a4 section o6 the newspaper, By
listing your classi6ie4 a4 un4er 8Serices 6or 'ire9 6or e3a"ple7
potential clients will easily 6in4 your 5ookkeeping a4,
(he trick7 howeer is to write a catchy hea4line that will "ake people
stop to rea4 your a4, You also nee4 to get your point across in as 6ew
wor4s as possi5le 5ecause you are 5eing charge4 5y the wor4,
Step 13:
Setup (our Booeeping ;e#site
'aing a we5site to showcase your 5ookkeeping 5usiness is i"portant
in seeral ways1
%t;s e3tre"ely cheap a4ertising @you Bust pay "onthly we5
hosting 6ees a6ter you;e purchase4 your 4o"ain na"eA
You can post in6or"ation on your serices7 rates an4 other
relate4 5ookkeeping in6or"ation so that when potential
custo"ers call7 "ost o6 their :uestions are alrea4y answere4,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
10
'aing your we5site liste4 an4 linke4 onto local 5usiness
4irectories is usually 6ree,
Step 15:
-ist (our ;e#site in <oogle
You can :uickly get yoursel6 liste4 in &oogle so your 5ookkeeping
we5site appears at the top o6 the listing 6or the keywor4s
85ookkeeping Jyour cityK9 alongsi4e &oogle -aps, (o 4o this7 si"ply
a44 your in6or"ation here,
Step 16:
Setup a Blog
(his step is optional, 'aing your own 5log is a goo4 way to generate
tra66ic to your we5site an4 gain a 6ollowing o6 loyal rea4ers, %6 you
hae a lot o6 in6or"ation you want to share a5out 5ookkeeping7
accounting7 or ta3es7 this woul4 5e a goo4 place to 4o that,
%6 you 4o 4eci4e to start a 5log you shoul4 plan on up4ating it
regularly to keep people co"ing 5ack,
Step 19:
;rite (our Business .lan
(his is where you;ll i"ple"ent the 4ecisions you;e "a4e a5out your
5ookkeeping 5usiness, You;ll put together eerything into your
5usiness plan1 your 5usiness na"e7 your target "arket7 sources o6
reenue an4 a4ertising strategies,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
11
(o "ost people7 writing a 5usiness plan is the "ost stress6ul part
a5out starting a 5usiness, 'aing to actually sit 4own an4 put all your
i4eas into printe4 6or" can 5e an inti"i4ating task,
%t 4oesn;t hae to 5e though, Once you hae all the 4etails that hae
5een running aroun4 your hea4 4own on paper7 you can 6inally rela3
an4 concentrate on the 5usiness itsel6 5ecause you;e esta5lishe4 the
roa4 "ap o6 where you want your 5usiness to go,
Step 19:
<etting Retainers 2rom Clients
Be6ore you 5egin work on any new set o6 5ooks you "ay want to
consi4er re:uesting a retainer 6ee up 6ront 6ro" the client, (his is to
ensure that you get pai4 until you 5eco"e 6a"iliar with the client;s
6inancial pay"ent practices,
&etting a retainer can sae you a great 4eal o6 ti"e an4 "oney i67
4own the roa47 you 4iscoer that your client has a ha5it o6 not paying
his cre4itors,
Step 20:
Billing (our Clients
%6 you are charging 5y the hour you will nee4 an accurate recor4 o6 the
hours spent on each client;s 5ooks,
# si"ple way to 4o this is 5y 5uying a 4aily 4iary that has one page
entry per 4ay,
)nter your start an4 6inish ti"es as you work on each client;s 5ooks,
#lso7 "ake a 5rie6 note o6 what you 4i4 4uring that session,
(hen7 at "onth en47 si"ply go through your 4iary an4 tally up your
hours onto a sprea4sheet,
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
12
4inal 7houghts
2ell7 you;e reache4 the en4 o6 the &20 'asy Steps to Starting
(our Booeeping Business), %6 you;e 6ollowe4 all the steps lai4
out7 you shoul4 hae create4 your own 6unctional 5ookkeeping
5usiness,
You shoul4 also hae a co"plete 5ookkeeping 5usiness plan which
outlines the 6ull scope o6 your 5usiness an4 will gui4e you on your
Bourney as a 6reelance 5ookkeeper, Congratulations<
R'C,88'+='= R'S,>RC'
4or !omplete? %etaile% in2ormation on starting your
#ooeeping #usiness? you owe it to yoursel2 to !he! out
&Se!rets to Starting : Running (our ,wn Booeeping
Business)
'ere;s Bust a sa"ple o6 what you;ll learn1
'ow to get "ore re6errals without resorting to nagging
12 $ow-Cost / .o-Cost -etho4s to Dro"ote Your Business
'ow to :uickly write your 5usiness plan
#n easy way to setup your 5ookkeeping we5site in one 4ay
Cli! 0ere to ,r%er
Secrets to Starting & Running Your Own Bookkeeping Business
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