Grow Your Bookkeeping Or Accounting Business

The field of bookkeeping in Australia is now seeing robust growth, and it is only expected to continue to expand. Only in the past year, bookkeepers all throughout Australia have seen sales increase by more than 10%. This development has been steady. Therefore, if you want to improve your bookkeeping abilities, it is essential to remain current with the most recent trends and practises. We will be starting a blog post series discussing how you may expand your own bookkeeping firm in this booming market as a result.

It is essential that you have the ability to ensure that your bookkeeping firm remains profitable. People frequently confide in us that they are interested in launching their own bookkeeping company but are unsure how to get started in the industry. You are going to require a plan first and foremost! This post is perfect for you if you are located in Australia and are interested in expanding your bookkeeping firm and would need some advice on how to do so. Continue reading to discover how simple it is to accomplish with the correct guidance!

This article will outline four strategies for being a successful bookkeeper in Australia, including word-of-mouth marketing, social media marketing, service expansion, and the possibility of introducing new products or services.

Beginning a New Business in Bookkeeping

You are prepared and excited to take the next step and launch your own bookkeeping firm, but you are unsure of where to turn or what steps to do next. And, what is of the utmost importance, how? We are confident that you will find the material that is provided below to be helpful in assisting anyone who is considering beginning their own bookkeeping firm and in assisting in the process of helping the pieces fall into place.

How to Become an Accredited Bookkeeper

A. Structure

• Make a decision regarding the identity of your company and its trading name (may trade under your own name initially) - Prepare a Business Plan
• Create a Business Name Account and Register with ASIC
• Create an ABN and a GST account - ABN Essentials, Register for GST
• Take a look at a company structure (Company either with or without a discretionary trust)
• Recognise and take into account the ATO's perspective on launching a new firm - ATO checklist for new businesses
• Recognise and take into account the ATO GST Checklist for Small Businesses - ATO GST Checklist for Small Business
• Choose your charging strategy (Result based or time-based) - Calculators for Charge Rates

B. Education

• Take a look at Bookkeeping for Dummies to get started, Bookkeeping education reference material.
• Choose and be familiar with the software platforms you will use, such as MYOB, Xero, Reckon, and Saasu
• Ask the software companies for some introductory training (see above)
• Get a Certificate IV in Bookkeeping (including the BAS Agent skill set)
• Obtain ICB Student Membership (ICB Student Membership), which is offered by your RTO or ICB Certificate IV Accredited Training Provider.
• Obtain ICB certification by passing the practical bookkeeping assessments.

C. Starting a Business (May Occur While the Above Takes Place)

• Register Your Company (see above)
• Obtain Professional Indemnity (PI) Insurance
• Submit an application for ICB Membership and select the appropriate level of membership from the list of ICB Membership levels.
• Obtain an ICB practising certificate after gaining expertise in bookkeeping of at least one year.
• You must qualify as a BAS Agent if you are offering BAS services. - What is a BAS Service, What can a bookkeeper do? What can a BAS Agent do?
• Understand and consider the "How to Engage with a Client" from ICB

D. Maintaining Certification

• Maintain the aforementioned insurance and registrations
• Undertake the required CPE (Continuing Professional Education) each year
• Undertake the ICB Annual Skill Review assessment

Where to Locate Customers

After receiving the Practising Certificate from the Institute, there are a variety of ways in which you can begin to attract clients; however, it is important to note that none of these methods are guaranteed to be successful. Your level of success will be determined by a number of factors, including the location in which you live, the kinds of businesses that are active in your area, and the average hourly rates for work of this kind. If you take all of these aspects into account, you should be able to achieve a certain level of success.

The first step is, without a doubt, to spread advertising. Have a look in the classified ads section of the newspapers in your area. You are going to need to investigate whether or not any other bookkeepers consistently advertise their services. If so, you might discover that there is increased rivalry for your business. This is not necessarily a negative development; it just indicates that you will need to market yourself and your level of professionalism in a more convincing manner than the other individuals. You can get a general notion of the kinds of services that rival businesses provide and even the "going rate" for your region by perusing the advertisements of such businesses. There is no guarantee that undercutting will be successful. After all, businesses require accurate bookkeeping in order to function successfully.

Price to Charge

The most challenging aspect of beginning any kind of business is coming up with an appropriate pricing structure. This is dependent on a variety of things, including the expertise you have, the location you live in, the amount of other bookkeepers that are available in your area, and the present financial situation of your client. For the majority of your bookkeeping services, we recommend that you begin by setting your hourly rate anywhere between $45 and $55 dollars. It can be challenging to earn $30 per hour in certain parts of the country, and some customers have the expectation that they will pay no more than $25. However, keep in mind that you are providing a professional service, which means that you should be compensated appropriately. There are a variety of services, including consultation, problem resolution, and troubleshooting, that should charge up to $100 per hour.

The Institute's Crest May Be Used

You have the right as a practising member to display the Institute's crest on all of your stationery, business cards, pamphlets, and advertising; don't forget to include your website in this category as well. If you use the crest on your website, it should connect to the website of the Institute; if you require assistance with this, please contact us here at the Institute. It has been brought to our attention that the Institute's permission is required for any usage of the crest prior to its publication or transmission. In every instance where the crest is used, your membership number needs to be displayed just below it. It is important that you do not place the crest in the upper right-hand corner of your letterheads since doing so can lead to confusion; it is possible that your letterheads will appear to be too similar to those used by the Institute.

Set aside time to expand your accounting business

Each accountancy firm needs to set aside some time each week to work on expanding their customer base. Increasing the size of your customer base is one of the most crucial steps you can take to build a long-term, sustainable business that will be able to succeed in spite of challenges it faces along the way. The following are five suggestions for busy accountants who are interested in expanding their practise.

Make long-term marketing investments

Investing in marketing does not constitute a single-time expense. You need to continue to focus on and spend in marketing initiatives that have a long-term perspective if you want to maintain a steady flow of new customers through your doors. The first thing you need to do is establish a comprehensive marketing plan. This plan should describe your marketing objectives and the methods you intend to employ to attain them.

You should make sure that a search engine optimisation (SEO) plan is incorporated into this, as it is likely that your website will play a leading position in the digital age. When prospective clients of your accounting firm look for accounting services online, it will help ensure that your website has a good ranking.

Establish a network of business referrals

Creating a partnership with a local company that offers a product or service that is complimentary to your own can provide you with access to a large number of new customers at a relatively modest cost. Create a professional referral network by getting in touch with other local firms that provide professional services such as attorneys, financial advisors, and suppliers of information technology. But before you do that, make sure you do your research; if you recommend poor-quality service providers to your customers, their faith in you could suffer as a result.

Create a Profile

You are surely familiar with the concept of a "thought leader." These are individuals who have developed a significant personal presence within their sector through the use of blogging, appearances in the media, and public speaking engagements. To get started, you should make a fantastic LinkedIn profile, go to networking events, share your expertise in a series of blog pieces, and send out media releases that market you as an expert who is available for interviews.

Upsell Your Current Customers

Increasing the size of your client base is only one aspect of growing your practise. It's possible that you're already benefiting from a mountain of untapped revenue potential that might propel the expansion of your company. Conduct an analysis of your current customer base to look for chances to upsell additional services. For instance, a client who initially came to you as a humble startup may now have evolved into a profitable small business and may want extra accounting services. If this is the case, you should consider expanding the scope of your services to meet their needs.

Improve Your Work Procedures

If you want to continue providing excellent service to your customers despite the influx of new customers, you might need to raise your capacity. Instead of immediately recruiting new workers, it is recommended that you evaluate your existing work procedures and locate any bottlenecks in the workflow that may be limiting production. Best-practice accounting software, such as QuickBooks Online, can be helpful for automating repetitive chores. This will allow you to grow your client base without sacrificing your profit margin on needless new recruits, which will help you extend your client base.

A Strategy for Improvement in Accounting Practice

Accounting firms that are effective and driven make their clients their first concern. These companies are modifying their business structures and procedures, making investments in new technology, and training and educating their employees in order to facilitate proactive and forward-looking partnerships with their clients. The companies that are outperforming their rivals also have a presence in specialised market segments. They have a crystal clear understanding of their target market as well as who fits within and who does not fit within their service model.

It is possible that it is time to reevaluate your business approach in order to maximise the chances presented by the developing accounting sector in Australia and the shifting requirements of your clientele.

Who are the perfect customers for your business?

What is it that motivates them? What makes them so aggravated? What exactly are they trying to find? Is this something that your company can provide?

Take into consideration the market positioning of your company's brand. What makes your product or service unique in comparison to those of your competitors? What sets you apart from other service providers and makes it likely that your ideal customer will choose you?

You should be able to express this in what's called an elevator statement, which is a single sentence that you can use to represent your company to someone in the amount of time it takes for them to ride an elevator. This statement can serve as the prism through which you evaluate all of your future company choices.

You should think about the values you desire to portray to your customers as part of your positioning, and you should make sure that your personnel is aware of these values and demonstrates them while interacting with customers.

What Are Your Strategic Goals, Long and Short Term?

Which of the following should be considered a strategic goal for the next one, three, or five years? Should we expect to see any changes in your goals?

It is not always necessary for strategic objectives to be financially focused; nonetheless, they should always be quantified so that progress can be measured against them as time goes on.

Think about include goals about the pleasure of customers and the retention of employees, as well as goals regarding the amount of money and profit the company hopes to earn in a given time period.

Different Strategies

How exactly can the use of these diverse tactics assist you in achieving your goals?

To ensure that there is as little room for misunderstanding as possible on the objectives of each division of the company (such as marketing or human resources, for instance), it is recommended that you give some thought to the creation of strategic road maps.

This will not only assist you in actively engaging each team but also in effectively communicating your approach throughout the entire organisation.

Resources

To put your strategies into action, what kinds of resources do you require?

Take into account the following:

• Services offered – Are the customers coming to you asking for additional perks that you do not now provide? In what ways may you increase the scope of your services to better meet their needs and so secure a larger portion of their spending money? Is it possible for you to build a referral arrangement with other firms that have a client base or values that are comparable to your own? Is it possible for you to purchase a business that aligns with your long-term strategic goals?
• Staffing – In order for you to successfully implement your new plan, which skills do the members of your staff need? Who are the kinds of people who might have these skills, and how can you bring them onto your team if the people who are already working for you don't have them? For instance, are you able to train your employees further and get them licenced, or do you need to bring in a professional for this role? When it comes to the retention of personnel, successful firms frequently consider new programmes or policies that can be implemented in order to recruit and maintain the finest quality employees.
• Technology – Which technological solutions are required to fulfil the requirements of your ideal customer? Should you think about the cloud and the potential benefits it could bring to your existing infrastructure, and should you consider using it? Or, is it possible that a technical solution could assist you in accomplishing other goals, such as being more responsive and proactive in the servicing of your client base through regular communications? Think about how you may make use of technology to make the processes of measurement and reporting more streamlined and to provide a more real-time perspective of the opportunities and challenges facing your business.
• Brand profile and marketing – Think about how you present your brand and who your ideal customer is. Where can you find your ideal customer and how can you approach them? How should you communicate with them, and how frequently should you do so, according to their preferences? Think about committing to a regular routine that will help you organise your customer communications and the information that you provide to them. Also, think of ways to increase your visibility in the market and how you can leverage your current customer base to bring in additional business. This is typically accomplished through the use of effective platforms, such as events; therefore, consider the events that you might organise and how they would be appropriate for your base.
• Measurement and review – Ensure that all of your activities have defined quantifiable key performance indicators (KPIs) at the beginning, and check in periodically to see how you're tracking against them. This will allow you to understand the impact of the adjustments you've made. The appropriate staff should conduct regular reviews of this reporting and look for chances to improve performance.

How to Expand Your Accounting Practice by Modifying Your Attitude

There are three different types of accountants, all of whom are in quite different situations but who have something in common:

• the newly established accountant and their business.
• The accountant has a business, but he has had trouble expanding it.
• The accountant who tried to grow their business but ran into a wall.

Three accountants, three very diverse locations, one common issue: the expansion of accounting firms.

Whatever stage of the business life cycle you are in, how do you expand your accounting firm? One theme that keeps coming up among accountants who are trying to advance their firms is mindset.

With the proper accounting mindset, expand your accounting practise.

It is common for seasoned firm owners and young accountants alike to be unaware of how significantly their perspective effects the expansion of their accounting practise. It's not just about racking up more potential customers. Obtaining a greater number of leads is, without a doubt, a component of the method that must be followed in order to expand your accounting firm; nonetheless, this is not the primary motivator.

You're probably familiar with the proverb that advises people not to "put the cart before the horse." In this scenario, the cart represents the leads. In order to successfully close new customers each month, you need to maintain a particular number of leads. Simple mathematics shows that X leads will result in Y customers.

Your mentality is the one who drives this sales machine, also known as the horse. Changing your perspective can have a more significant, overarching effect, which can resonate beyond merely getting more leads, which is one of the goals of growing your business. To build an accounting firm, a shift in mentality is necessary, in addition to other things. For instance, there is a process for acquiring leads.

You Must Maintain Tax and Superannuation Records

You are required to keep records of all transactions that pertain to the tax and superannuation affairs of your business. These records must include records that support the information that you include in your tax returns and reports- external site.

The tax and superannuation requirements of your business, as well as the form of your business, will determine the records that you are required to keep (sole trader, partnership, company or trust).

The Australian Taxation Office, sometimes known as the ATO, mandates that you:

• Your records should not be altered in any way, and they should be preserved in a manner that prevents the information from being altered or the record from being damaged.
• You are required to preserve the majority of records for a period of five years, beginning with the date on which you prepared or got the records or completed the transactions (or acts) that the records pertain to, whichever comes first.
• You must be able to provide the ATO with access to your records at any time they request them.
• Your records ought to be in English or easily convertible to English if they are to be accepted.

Tips For Record Keeping

You have the option of keeping records either digitally or on paper. Because electronic reporting for tax and super responsibilities is gradually becoming the standard, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) strongly suggests that businesses switch to electronic record-keeping if it is at all practical. In addition, maintaining your information online should, after you have your system set up, make certain duties simpler and save you time.

If you choose to retain your records electronically, you do not need to additionally keep paper copies of them unless a specific law or rule mandates that you do so.

You also have the option of storing and maintaining paper records online. The ATO will accept digital copies of business paper records that have been scanned and stored on an electronic storage media, provided that the digital copies are an accurate and clear duplicate of the paper records' originals and that they satisfy the standards for record-keeping. After you have scanned and stored an image of your initial paper documents, you are no longer required to physically preserve those data.

Make sure that your records are kept in a safe location no matter which option you decide to go with. For instance, you should make copies of your records and, if at all possible, store them in a safe location off-site. This location could even be in the cloud.

Additionally, the files need to be stored on a computer or other device that possesses the following characteristics:

• You are able to access (including all passwords)
• is stored elsewhere in the event that the machine fails
• permits you to exercise command over the information that is being processed, entered, and transmitted.