Home Business Idea: Bookkeeping

Is your checkbook balanced? Do you like paying attention to details? Then a bookkeeping service may be the business for you. Bookkeeping is a recession proof business because in good times and bad businesses need to have up-to-date, accurate accountings of their income and expenses.

The best clients are small businesses that are too big and too busy to take care of the bookkeeping themselves and yet too small to hire someone full time to take care of it. These can include small and medium sized, locally owned retail stores and service businesses (such as lawyers or counselors). Also, you can approach CPA firms, financial planners, and larger bookkeeping firms for referrals or overload clients.

You don’t need to be an accountant to be a bookkeeper. Accountants provide feedback and advice as well as track the money. Bookkeepers don’t provide financial expertise or advice. Instead, they add and subtract income and expenses, make deposits, reconcile bank statements, handle the payroll, do billing, and prepare reports.

To be a bookkeeper, you should have an understanding of bookkeeping as well as current tax laws and procedures. You should be able to use spreadsheet or bookkeeping software. Attention to details is a must as well as honesty particularly if a client asks you to hide details about his finances. That’s a no-no.

Bookkeepers charge anywhere from $20 to $50 per hour for regular services and more for specialized services such as creating tax reports or financial statements. Some bookkeepers charge a flat fee of $200 to $800 per month depending on the complexity of the business’ accounts.

To get started:

1. You should have some knowledge in bookkeeping either by taking a course or through experience. Check with your local community college or the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers for course information.
2. Take care of businesses start-up requirements such as creating a business and marketing plan, and getting permits and licenses. Visit Work-At-Home Success for business start-up information.
3. Set up your office. While you can do this business from home, you will need to visit clients’ offices to pick up information and deliver reports. For that reason, you may want to consider getting a laptop with bookkeeping software. Further, you should have easy to transport tote boxes or bags to carry supplies you may need while visiting clients.
4. Get business. Network with business and trade organizations in your area. Send information to local merchants and other potential clients and follow up with a phone call. Consider offering a special promotion to entice people to try your services. Offer workshops on business bookkeeping. Contact larger bookkeeping or accounting firms and let them know you can take extra work.
5. Once you begin to get business, be sure you offer the highest quality of service. Money is serious business and can lead to lots of heartache and trouble if not handled carefully. Client’s may not like how their books look. You will need lots of tact to work with these clients. Also, reward on-going clients with special services particularly if they refer new business your way.

For more information on starting a bookkeeping service, check out:

The American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers