If you only hear from your accountant at tax time, you are likely settling for a business accountant relationship that is not serving you or your business well. Don’t think of your CPA as just a necessary expense required for tax preparation. You will need to invest a bit more throughout the year, but a proactive accountant should be a valuable business advisor that pays for themselves over time by finding ways to reduce your expenses (taxes and otherwise) and increase your revenue.
You are great at what you do, but you are not likely a financial expert. You don’t need a full time CFO, but you will benefit from someone who understands your business and can guide you on ways to handle major financial decisions and help you plan throughout the year to minimize your tax liability. This is especially true when the business gets more complicated – if you are buying equipment or deciding whether to rent or buy office space, purchasing vehicles, or considering a loan.
At the very least, your business accountant relationship provides a good sounding board and reality check for your own thinking. It’s often lonely at the top – business owners need a trusted confidant they can speak to about critical business decisions. And one who understands your financial picture and our tax laws, can be particularly valuable.
Your business accountant relationship should also help you make sure you have the right systems in place – from a streamlined chart of accounts to efficient bookkeeping processes. These days, data security and reducing fraud risk is also an area they should be able to help with as well. By virtue of working with many small businesses, an accountant can bring you great perspective on your business.
Valerie, Christy and the rest of the team at Emerald Financial Partners have built their business over the last 40 years with the goal of delivering real value to each client – through all of the support outlined above. They work with businesses located up and down the east coast, but particularly here in Anne Arundel County serving owners in Annapolis, Severna Park, Arnold, and surrounding areas. Contact Emerald Financial for a no-cost initial consultation. They look forward to learning about your business!