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E-Myth – “Why most small businesses don’t work & what to do about it”

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Edmonton Accountant | Accounting Fees Explained


Cash flow is a major challenge for almost all business owners says Edmonton accountant. 50% of all entrepreneurs close the doors to their business within five years, and 29% of the entrepreneurs that failed will cite that they ran out of cash as a reason why they failed. Choosing the right accountant to work with in their business, is extremely important for a variety of reasons. But the most important reason is because a great accountant will help the business owner with planning in their business that includes how they can minimize paying taxes. By minimizing taxes, business owners can save far more money overall then they would be able to save for hiring an inexpensive accountant.

Even though accountants are very vital to a business, if how to hire the right accountant for their business, they can end up paying much higher fees, for services that don’t give them what they are expecting. Helping business owners understand how accountants price their services, can help a business owner choose the right accountant for their needs. The first way accountants charge for their services, is by the hour. This is the typical pricing structure where every hour that the accountant works on a job, they charge out and set price. Even though this is by far and away the most popular method of billing, it’s not necessarily the most advantageous. What ends up happening is the accountant being in charge of how long it takes them to finish a file, and the longer they take the more they get paid. The business owner end up wanting to cut services in order to save the money.

The next pricing structure that accountants use is the flat fee per service. This can be attractive to a lot of business owners because they can see the menu of all the various services, and a price. They believe that they will be able to anticipate their bill, Edmonton accountant cautions business owners because there is usually things that are excluded from those flat fees such as making phone calls, photocopies or filing. Accountants like this pricing structure, because it allows them to quote the business owner low, and then increase the amount they get build later.

The third way is the least commonly says Edmonton accountant, is the flat fee per month. The accountant must be very confident in their pricing, they will be able to do all of the services that they single monthly fee that they charge, knowing that if they provide a bad service, the clients will leave, and if they quote to low they end up losing money. This often builds a great working relationship between the business owner and the accountant. The business owner knows that all of the services that they’re getting is essential, and they don’t have to choose between paying higher fee and getting necessary business planning.

Edmonton accountant says that once business owners know how pricing structures work, they can make great decisions about how to hire accountants for their business in the future.

What happens when business owners trying to get the lowest price accountant to work on the business, it ends up costing them far more down the road says Edmonton accountant. If business owners new how much inadequate services would cost them in terms of additional tax, they might make different decisions about what accountant they hired to work on their business. Read they are specialized in extinguishing and capping off oil well fires, and his famous quote is “if you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur.”

One of the most advantageous pricing structures that business owners can look for when they are hiring an accountant is a flat monthly fee says Edmonton accountant. This is where the accountant bills a specified amount every single month, and all the work that they do in the month is included in price. This is extremely beneficial to business owners because they know that all of the services that the accountant is providing for them is included in the price, and having a bill that is the same for month-to-month can help them plan their cash flow in their business. It also demonstrates the accountant’s confidence in their services as well as their pricing, if the price to low the end up losing money, and if they provide terrible service, the business owners will leave. This is a great pricing structure that business owners should look for when they are hiring their accountant.

Another thing that business owners should consider when it comes to hiring an accountant, is hiring one that is very good at planning. Edmonton accountant says planning is exceptionally important to business owners, because it can help them make great tax decisions that will allow their business to minimize the taxes that they pay. Often, business owners who have great tax planning, can save more in taxes than they would pay an accountant. Business owners should also realize, that not all CPAs provide planning service. And those that say they do it, don’t do it on a regular basis. Entrepreneurs should find an accountant that not only does planning, but does planning on a regular basis. The more often accountant does it, the better they will be at it.

Once a business owner has identified which accountants do business plans, they should be able to ask each firm to take a look at what they’re finished business plans look like. Business owners should understand they are looking for a meaningful document with meaningful deliverables. The business document should be more than just a couple of pages, most great business plans start at 30 to 40 pages. Accountant should be able to point out all of the recommendations as well as all of the deliverables. If there are no deliverables in the business plan a business owner won’t know how to tell if the plan is working or not. We hop to have the pleasure of doing business with you!