Outsourced Bookkeeping “Accounting On-Line”
Outsource all or part of your bookkeeping to Real Accounting Online, Inc. Our goal is to make bookkeeping an invisible task that takes none of your time. What is Outsourced Bookkeeping? Outsourcing is the act of transferring a business process, and its problems, to an expert – Always retaining full control of your business. You probably already outsource several of your business processes. For example, most small businesses outsource their payroll processing to a Payroll Service Provider like Paychex, ADP or other payroll processing service. The process is safe, secure and very cost-effective and by outsourcing your payroll, you are sure it will be processed timely and accurately without having to think about it (and probably costs less than you could do it internally). This allows you to concentrate more resources on the things that you are good at, the things you enjoy doing and the things that make you money. In general, the outsourcing philosophy centers on concentrating your resources on those activities that are YOUR specialty - Those things that set you and your business apart from all of the other businesses in the world. These are the products and/or services that your customers or clients want to buy from YOU and not from anyone else. We call these activities your CORE TECHNOLOGY. Core technology differs from firm to firm, but we all know what our core technology is or is not. Another way of looking at your core technology is determining the things that are important to the people purchasing your products and/or services. For example, your customers really do not care about how your payroll is being processed, so payroll processing is NOT one of your core technologies. Therefore, outsourcing that activity to a professional is quite logical and very appropriate. Why should I outsource my bookkeeping? There are many reasons to outsource your bookkeeping, however, we believe the main reason is for you to not worry about your numbers and concentrate on your core technologies. We all know that having accurate and timely financial and operating information is critical to any business, large or small, but for all small business (except maybe accounting firms), bookkeeping is NOT a core technology and your customers really do not care about their bookkeeping system. Small business owners that spend time managing and administrating their bookkeeping function are taking time away from doing the things that can best move their business forward.
There are other, perhaps more tangible reasons to outsource your bookkeeping specific situation. Here are a couple of them: 1. Outsourcing can cut bookkeeping costs. Depending on your situation, a cost reduction of $10,000 or more per year is very realistic. We have seen savings of up to 40% of the internal bookkeeping cost. 2. Outsourcing the bookkeeping to a professional firm will assure that you have accurate, REAL numbers every day. 3. You can eliminate finding and hiring bookkeepers. The hiring process for new bookkeepers is extremely difficult. It is hard to hire someone that is out of your core technology. So hiring someone out of your core technology is usually difficult and ends up being done by “gut” reaction rather than by objective analysis. 4. Management time is eliminated. The business owner no longer needs to manage the bookkeeper. Again, managing someone out of your core technology area is difficult and in most cases can be time consuming. 5. The business owner has 100% control of all money. The outsourcing agency has no access to the cash account – only you can write checks. 6. Your system becomes more secure. Since you now have an independent third party (with no access to cash) reconciling all of your accounts you can be sure of the accuracy of your system. The fallacy of the “Bookkeeper”! What is a bookkeeper? The average business owner would simply say that the bookkeeper keeps the books. In reality, we look at bookkeeping differently. We have been working in the small business accounting/bookkeeping arena for nearly thirty years and see the “bookkeeper” as at least a three faceted position. First there is the “data entry” element of bookkeeping. This is the lowest skill-level associated with the position and includes using the software to enter the various data into the system. It may entail certain audit trail elements but generally requires little education and experience. The “bookkeeper” is a higher skill level element. The bookkeeper manages that data entry process and performs tasks like account reconciliation and detailed account analysis, usually interfacing with the vendors and customers as needed to resolve specific issues. Finally, the “accountant” or we sometime refer to this element as the “controller” takes the detailed account information that the “bookkeeper” reconciles and organizes it into useful information that the business can use for management purposes.
In a typical small business environment, each of these elements is the same person. Here are three scenarios: 1. If you hire a “data entry” level bookkeeper, then that individual is woefully unprepared to do the “bookkeeping” and “accounting” functions, although your payroll is kept to a minimum. The result is that your books take on a minimum of accuracy and you end up on the C.O.H. (Cash On Hand) method of accounting and you need to call the bank each morning to see if you have any money! 2. If you hire the middle of the road “bookkeeper” that individual is way over qualified (and over paid) to do the data entry, but again, woefully unqualified to do the “accountant” work. The result here is that you are paying a considerable amount of money and still not receiving the information that you need to run your business. 3. Finally, you hire an “accountant”. Now you finally have everything you need to get that quality management information. Unfortunately, your payroll costs are really high as the accountant is highly over qualified to do everything he/she does except the final reporting. And before you know it, your accountant is requesting to hire a data entry clerk to help with the data entry work. Most small businesses cannot afford that luxury. So what’s the answer? As we detailed above, outsourcing solves many, many problems, especially the dilemma just discussed. By outsourcing your bookkeeping to Real Accounting Online, you eliminate the problem of finding the right person to do your books. That becomes our problem. We have the proper staff to address all of your bookkeeping needs, from data entry, to bookkeeping, to accounting. In fact, if you need it, we have your CFO or CPA needs covered too. By outsourcing your books to RAO, you never have to worry about bookkeeping again. It will be done on time and extremely accurate. That’s all you need to know. You can go about your core technology activities knowing that your “backoffice” is properly handled.
How we do it. Every business is different. We personalize our services to meet your requirements. Depending on what you want or need, we can do all or only part of the bookkeeping. We have developed a number of steps that we take to make sure the process of getting you up an running is smooth. What are the steps to make this happen? Here are some typical steps that we take:
Step One: Our experienced staff visits your office to see your system and determine the best way to proceed. Our most important goal is to provide meaningful numbers to your desktop ever day. So by asking questions and applying our extensive small business experience, we will develop an overall plan of attack to assure our system will meet your needs and goals. What gets measured gets managed and what gets managed gets improved, so you can look forward to a better picture of your business.
Step Two: Our highly skilled bookkeeper will spend time at your business to determine how your operation is run now and develop a specific implementation plan to go forward. We do not wish to change your procedures. It can be very disruptive to ask your staff to do things differently. So we work within your current system, adding improvements where appropriate. Step Three: Many of the businesses we work with had an unskilled bookkeeper or consultant set up the accounting software. The resulting reports are not meaningful in determining where the profit centers are. We will review your account classifications and accounting procedures to determine if you are using your software correctly. If necessary, we can perform a QuickBooks Tune-Up to get your system up to speed. In addition, we can provide training for you and/or your staff on how to use the software and how to get the most out of it. Real Accounting Online believes in the 80/20 rule of business. 80% of your profit comes from 20% of your efforts and 20% of your customers contribute 80% of your sales/profits. With accurate accounting data you will quickly be able to focus your efforts on the highest profit work. Our average client finds that this new focus greatly improves cash flow within the first year. We also work toward identifying cash flow leakage and will suggest appropriate expense controls during the course of providing our services. If we find areas for improvement, we will certainly bring them to your attention as part of our service. Step Four: We determine what information is needed and the best way to gather that information. All businesses are a little different, so while we are reviewing your system, we will formulate a plan for gathering all of the data we need to provide you with the right information. This may take the form of faxing, emailing, mailing or picking up and delivering the necessary data.
Step Five: Paperless operation, if appropriate. We will determine if converting all of your source documents to image files (just like Fortune 500 firms do now) is appropriate. In the beginning we will use your current filing system, then move toward filing original documents in banker’s boxes filed by date, then move toward paperless, when and if appropriate. Step Six: To provide you with anytime access to your accounting data we will install an ASP (Application Service Provider) link. We facilitate this process but it is handled directly between your office and the ASP. We currently utilize several ASP’s, one of which is InsynQ, a publicly traded company that focuses on providing services to the accounting industry. They use the same security as ATM machines to protect your data. To make the system work efficiently, you will need to have access to sufficient bandwidth (DSL, Cable, etc). Step Seven: When necessary, we will train your staff on how to input bids, purchase orders and sales orders directly into the accounting software. This will improve speed, accuracy, and provide you with real-time information on how your company is doing every day. For security reasons, access to critical information is password protected. Step Eight: Where possible, online banking & bill pay will be installed (about $20 per month average). This gives you real-time bank balances from any computer and greatly reduces the time it takes to write checks. Real Accounting Online will not have the passcode to issue checks from your account. We will set checks for payment and you will be able to review any payments before they are made and make the final decisions. Step Nine: We set-up a private telephone line for you, your customers and your vendors to call. We answer this line as your bookkeeping office and will answer all bookkeeping questions. You will have a direct line to your bookkeeping team. What does all of this cost? It usually costs less than hiring an internal bookkeeper to do the work, plus you pay no payroll taxes, worker’s compensation, fringe benefits, sick and vacation time, etc, (usually adds up to 20-30% of the actual hourly wage). You do not have to manage the bookkeeping function and you do not have to hire and train bookkeepers. To find out more about how our outsourced bookkeeping service can benefit you and your business, just give us a call or contact us by email or fax. You will be surprised on how our service can simplify your life and save you money.
925 416-0880
Real Accounting Online, Inc.
info@realaccounting.com
Here is what we do in a nut shell:
From anywhere in America you know exactly how you are doing 24/7
RAO inputs all your data correctly.
Data is hosted on an ASP server
You now have access to your critical number 24/7 You retain 100% control of all money. Only you can sign checks Deposits go directly to your bank account Online banking allows you to see your balance You make all decisions about what gets paid You receive daily sales and collection reports
You review at any time.
We go the extra 10% with our service
Contact:
Real Accounting Online, Inc.
Pleasanton, CA 94566 925 416-0880 info@realaccounting.com