Bookkeeping is not a new science. Historical records indicate bookkeeping existed as early as 6000 B.C. Ancient Babylonian kingdoms recorded inventory from crops. Bookkeepers in Greek and Roman societies counted and noted agricultural crops, as well as payments to farmers. While bookkeeping may have been around for thousands of years, they are just as important now as they were in the ancient past.

Not only do bookkeepers remain important, but they have branched into specializations.

In fact, there are many different types of bookkeepers with different specializations. While a general bookkeeper is great for a small business, you may reach a point when you need a bookkeeper with areas of specialization. One area of specialization that bookkeepers can have is with computer technology for bookkeeping, such as QuickBooks. Here is some information on why you want to hire a bookkeeper with QuickBooks experience for your business.

What Does a Bookkeeper Do?

The term bookkeeper is short for bookkeeping clerk. Bookkeepers keep the financial records of a business. In fact, bookkeepers are vital for the history of a business, because it is only when a business’ records are precisely kept can information help a business survive. For example, if you don’t have a bookkeeper, but you vaguely remember paying a vendor for your business, how can you prove it, if you don’t keep accurate records?

One of the most important tasks of a bookkeeper is to keep the accounting books of a business, which means they track the income that comes into the business, as well as outgoing expenses from the business. Usually, this means that a bookkeeper tracks the business’ inventory as well, because inventory can be related to outgoing expenses as well as income from the sale of inventory. Depending on the size of your business, bookkeeping may involve using accounting software, spreadsheets and databases.

Bookkeepers also track all of the money, usually through postings to accounting software, on a daily basis. It is through posting each transaction daily that bookkeepers can regulate the amount of money a business uses to operate. Without a bookkeeper, many business owners would have no idea what their monthly expenses and income is, which prevents any business from growing, developing a budget, forecasting future expenses and income, or even securing additional financing.

While bookkeepers do not deal with hiring, onboarding, or other aspects of Human Resources (or HR), they may process payroll, and they will keep records regarding pay, taxes, and other employee withdrawals on payroll, such as Social Security and Medicaid, insurance and retirement benefits. No matter what the payroll deduction is, a bookkeeper can keep track of it.

Because bookkeepers are record keepers, it is essential that they are versed in how to keep the most accurate records possible. Bookkeepers who are excellent at their chosen profession already know all of the best ways to keep records. In the past, record keeping happened in large ledgers, leather-bound, that bookkeepers stored on shelves behind them for authenticity. Now, the best bookkeepers use accounting software to keep the most accurate records possible. One example of accounting software that bookkeepers use is QuickBooks.

What QuickBooks Does

In the early 1980s, two computer software programmers decided to move from designing an individual expenses and accounting program (Quicken) to designing double entry ledger books for small businesses—which became QuickBooks. QuickBooks is the predominant bookkeeping software for businesses, with a 95% saturation in the market.

QuickBooks is an important financial tool. Through the QuickBooks program, bookkeepers can keep track of a ton of business financial information—all in one program. QuickBooks can help businesses manage:

• Accounting. One of the most important functions of the QuickBooks program is to manage income and expenses daily. With QuickBooks, each line of income and expenses are tracked electronically. The importance of having a daily income and expense tally can’t be overestimated.
• Payroll. QuickBooks can help businesses track the amount of money outgoing for payroll, taxes and employee benefits. This is extremely important for the state and federal business taxes you owe, either quarterly or yearly.
• Inventory Management. If you have a business where inventory is important because you are selling a product, you need inventory management. Even if you sell a service instead of a product in your business, you still have to manage inventory such as printer paper, ink, pencils, and cleaning supplies. QuickBooks can help you keep track of your inventory.
• Taxes. QuickBooks keeps track of the taxes (state, local, and federal) that you have paid in, as well as tracking payroll taxes.
• Invoices. You can make invoices and send them to client, accept payments, and even pay your invoices via QuickBooks.
• Bank account tracking and balancing (reconciliation). You no longer need to balance your books, because QuickBooks keeps track of all of your incoming and outgoing expenses and income via your bank accounts. Bank reconciliations are no longer an issue.
• Budgets and expenses monitoring. Because QuickBooks can manage your incoming and outgoing money, you will find budgeting easy to do electronically, and monitoring your expenses will be less taxing as well.
• Managing accounts payable and receivable. QuickBooks allows you more control over your accounts payable and receivable by setting reminders and due dates for you to keep your money flowing smoothly.

Advantages of Hiring a Bookkeeper

With all of the advantages to a QuickBooks program, why would you need to hire a bookkeeper? The most important reason you need a bookkeeper is for financial record keeping. The larger your business grows, the harder it is to keep accurate, up-to-date records. When you hire a bookkeeper, you are able to turn over all of your financial recordkeeping headaches to them.

Another important reason to hire a bookkeeper is to give you an outside perspective on effectively managing the financial side of your business. You have tons of expertise when it comes to creating a business and making it successful, but the financial needs of your business may not be in your wheelhouse. Bookkeepers have tons of experience on financial record keeping and managing your incoming and outgoing expenses.

Although bookkeepers may cost you money up front, they will save you money in the long run, because they will be able to give you tips to save money on the expense side of your ledger. This may mean everything from trimming your office products budget to regulating the amount of inventory you keep on hand. Bookkeepers are invaluable for money-saving tips.

If you want to have time to really manage your business, concentrate on your clients, and focus on marketing and business growth, you need to hire a bookkeeper. While the bookkeeper focuses on the expenses and income side of your business, you can concentrate on making sure your business stays profitable.

Why Your Bookkeeper Needs QuickBooks Skills

Hiring a great bookkeeper is essential to growing your business. If you hire a bookkeeper, you need to make sure your newly-hired employee has QuickBooks skills. There are several reasons your bookkeeper needs to have QuickBooks experience.

First, one of the most important skills a bookkeeper can have is computer literacy. Although bookkeepers used to keep ledgers on income and expenses in ledger books, financial management has been working in the digital age for decades. Your bookkeeper needs to be literate in computers and computer programs, such as QuickBooks. If your new bookkeeper has knowledge of QuickBooks, and uses it regularly, you’ll know they can handle other skills on the computer as well, such as documents and presentations.

Bookkeepers must have numerical literacy as well as computer literacy. In fact, numerical literacy may be just as important as computer literacy for bookkeepers. Because bookkeepers need to have extensive attention to detail, numerical literacy is critical for budgeting and forecasting expenses and income. Your bookkeeper who has QuickBooks knowledge will have the skills to go into the program and problem solve when a mistake occurs with either income or expenses to quickly correct the error.

Bookkeepers sometimes use financial calculators for their business, in order to project future income, expenses by the month or by the year. These calculators will help you forecast when you could make changes to your business, such as adding new products or services, or adding new employees. Although QuickBooks has a ton of features to help business owners, bookkeepers with QuickBooks experience are vital for businesses. Along with financial tools, QuickBooks allows bookkeepers to utilize spreadsheets. Spreadsheets have been a part of a bookkeeper’s experience for decades, because they allow bookkeepers to lay out both past and present expenses. If your bookkeeper has QuickBooks experience, he or she will be able to keep your books accurately.

Protea Financial Has a Bookkeeper with QuickBooks Experience for Your Needs

Hiring a bookkeeper is one of the most important hires you will ever make. Be sure that the bookkeeper you hire has QuickBooks skills in addition to the requisite financial recordkeeping knowledge. Not sure how to hire a bookkeeper? You can begin by posting the job on job search websites. You can also ask friends or colleagues for recommendations as well. When you’re ready to hire a bookkeeper, be sure they have all the skills you’re looking for. That way, your business will continue to grow and thrive.

To find out more, reach out to us here at Protea Financial. We can help set up QuickBooks, or we can work with an existing account. Let us know how we can help!