As a small business or startup owner in Sydney, cost-effectiveness and efficiency are no doubt at the forefront of your priorities. Engaging an accountant for your small business may seem like a superfluous expense, particularly when considering today’s business environment which seems to demand unwavering costs. However, engaging a professional accounting firm can help you save money and drive business productivity in several ways.
In this blog, we outline ten benefits of engaging an accounting firm for your small business and argue that by spending money, you will be saving money.
10 Benefits of engaging an Accounting Firm for your Small Business
1. Accounting firms can manage your employees' Payroll
Managing Payroll necessitates an understanding of a myriad of employee obligations relating to tax withheld, due dates and superannuation. Payroll can be laborious in itself, not to mention that payroll laws and regulations are often changing, creating an even more time-consuming process for business owners. Business owners that neglect to invest time into implementing Payroll proficiently may oversee important employee obligations, and can consequently become subject to significant penalties.
Outsourcing Payroll to an accounting firm is an effective way for small business owners to save time, avoid hefty fines and subsequently save money.
Related: Why it's Time to Outsource Payroll
2. Accountants utilise Automated Software that improves business efficiencies and productivity
You should be after an accounting firm that utilises the most up-to-date accounting software, which will enable them to enhance business efficiency and productivity for your small business. While many of these software’s are accessible to small businesses, they can be complex to navigate, consequently consuming valuable time and creating costly inefficiencies for small business owners.
3. Accountants can provide advice on best Business Structure for your business
Business structure can be crucial to a business owner’s long-term objectives. Should business owners neglect to consider whether their business structure appropriately reflects their future goals, they may jeopardise the outcome of these objectives. Given the complexities around tax, accountants are essential in ensuring that you optimise tax efficiency and long-term opportunities by utilising the appropriate business structure.
Related: Why Tax Planning strategies are an integral part of business growth
4. Accountants provide Business Growth Strategies
Business Accountants strategise astute ways to boost revenue and preserve cash inflow to achieve business growth. Accountants analyse operating expenses and suggest necessary ways to cut costs based on bench-marking intelligence, or generate more income. Accountants assess opportunities for growth by utilising an accurate, rigorous and regularly updated budget that aligns with business goals.
Accountants are also an indispensable resource given the skills that they possess in loan management. Not only can an accountant collate the necessary financial statements to obtain a loan, but they will also assist in ways to restructure your business to save interest, and manage the succeeding ongoing obligations that you are subject to.
5. Engaging an Accountant can help you stay organised and on top of your finances
Many small business owners that manage their own finances often struggle to keep abreast of them. This is understandable, given the demands of their day-to-day operational activities. However, business owners that don’t prioritise organising their finances can often encounter future challenges.
Engaging an accounting firm to keep your business’s finances organised can end up being more economical than if you were to attempt to undertake this work yourself. Firstly, by monitoring cash flow consistently, you can predict shortfalls and avoid foreseeable financial challenges. Additionally, accountants will prepare financial statements and update budgets, allowing you to cut needless costs, assess risk and take corrective action where necessary.
Related: How to Improve your Business Cash Flow During Periods of Instability
6. Accountants provide Financial Planning and budgeting guidance
In addition to organisational benefits, accountants provide financial planning, strategy and budgeting guidance. Financial planning and budgeting require invested time and in-depth knowledge, which enables informed and accurate decision-making.
Investing in an accountant that can lead strategic decision-making through their understanding of key financial drivers in your business will have long-term economical benefits.
7. Accountants will help you Save Time and focus on other areas of your business
By entrusting your financial records to a professional accountant, you can allow yourself more time to do what you do best. We often find with new clients, that if their employees lack financial expertise, the finance function aspect of their business can absorb too much of their valuable time. In other cases, business owners get bogged down in the day-to-day demands of their business, that their finances are neglected, consequently creating financial problems.
Either way, hiring an accounting firm that will undertake the work that you may otherwise find laborious, time consuming and complex, in an efficient manner, will save both your time and money.
Related: 4 Reason why you should Consider Outsourced Finance
8. Accountants will help you avoid costly mistakes and undergo Risk Management
As all small businesses would understand, maintaining the financial health of a business is the most important aspect of operations. Common small business financial mistakes such as failing to keep track of expenses, not saving enough for taxes, and overspending can easily be avoided by hiring an accounting firm.
In addition to this, accountants facilitate risk management to avoid foreseeable business challenges and seize opportunities that may present themselves. The benefit of an accounting firm, is that they have worked with an array of clients, and therefore hold experience recognising and dealing with risk in several different industries.
9. Accountants can develop Business Plans
Whilst an indirect saving, having a flexible business plan that establishes key goals and direction for future profit growth will certainly save you money in the long-run. Not only does this unify employees by providing a sense of motivation, but it also allows your business to monitor progress and make necessary adjustments to operations. Developing a business plan also enables you to proactively find opportunities for improvement to help to maximise profits.
10. An Accounting firm can help you Minimise Tax
Small business accountants are well-versed in the myriad of ways that your business can minimise tax. Whether that be through deductions and credits that you mightn’t be aware of, business structure adjustments or government incentives such as the R&D tax incentive. 
Business accountants will keep financial records abreast and well-organised throughout the year, while tax accountants will optimise your time by ensuring that taxes have been filed correctly, which can significantly improve business efficiencies.
Business owners that utilise accountants save significant amounts of time at the end of the financial year, and this thorough organisation means no potential tax reduction opportunities are missed.
Accountants understand that entrepreneurs and small business owners need to spend their time and financial capital wisely, hence a good startup accountant will always be looking for ways to save costs through tax benefits. Lastly, an accountant will provide tax planning and business structure advice, which, if executed correctly and early in the financial year, can save you valuable time and money.
Get in touch
Azure Group is an accounting firm with head office based in Sydney, CBD and is easy walking distance to Town Hall station. We uphold a reputation for being a proactive, hands-on firm that delivers innovative and revolutionary services to match the demanding needs of today's business.
We believe in delivering remarkable outcomes for our clients by taking the time to understand where they have been, where they are now and where they want to be. Our team of accounting professionals, each with their own unique specialist skills and expertise, have the backing of both our professional partner network and CFO Australia.
If you're on the hunt for a Sydney Accountant, get in touch today!
Have you noticed our #FridayExpertTips... here's one that relates to Accounting
“It's important to keep track of your financial data on a monthly basis. It can help you see what areas of your business are increasing (or) decreasing. It will help you invest more in areas where your ROI is higher.”
Comment