New Book keeping business?

[CH_2006]

Hi Guys

I'm currently contemplating starting up my own book-keeping business in the Lanarkshire area.

I'm currently an ACCA qualified accountant working in a largish practice in Glasgow but am getting disillusioned by all the red tape that is involved with accounts and audits nowadays so I'm looking for a slightly easier life!!!

I'm just looking for a little advice on whether this would be worthwhile doing and how I would get clients. I would like to charge around £20+ an hour for my services.

As a sideline to book-keeping I'm also thinking about offering Microsoft Excel and Word training and maybe completing the MOS qualifications for those packages.

The main problems I see are getting clients before I quit my full time job. Obviously, I still have a mortgage to pay!!!

[Joyous]

If you’re a qualified ACCA you should go straight for a practicing certificate and set up an accountancy practice rather than a bookkeeping one. I’m pretty sure that based on your qualification and experience you’ll find a bookkeeping practice really limiting and it’s very easy to fall foul of the ACCA’s rules by straying into practice territory without a practising certificate.

At £5.6m the current audit threshold is sufficiently high for you be able to run a successful practice without even touching audit so I wouldn’t let the red tape put you off.

You’ve worked hard for the qualification so now’s the time to make it work for you.

Just my twopence worth.

Regards

Joy

[CH_2006]

Joy,

While I agree with what you're saying about the audit threshold, I still think there is a lot of red tape running an accountancy practice even with audit exempt companies and ST/Partnerships. Having to comply with all the guidelines and inspections by the JMU and ACCA and having to comply with the disclosures in the current FRS's as well as future standards.

I thought there would be a lot less stress involved in just doing monthly book-keeping and management accounts. Obviously I wouldn't have to give any professional opinoins and would not require an accounts/audit report.

I realise that any profits from this type of business would be lower but so would the risks and initial outlays.

Really I don't know what I want to do in the future and I thought this might be an option worth considering.

I do welcome and appreciate your comments though!

[Joyous]

If you’re any good you’ll soon find that clients start asking you to do “just have a look at this for me” or “just run your eye over my tax return for me” and it’s really hard to say no some times.

Before I got my practising certificate I found myself having to grit my teeth and turn down work that I could have done in my sleep. There’s nothing to stop you turning down work if you think it will be too involved.

Regards

Joy

[Peopletopay]

Originally Posted by CH_2006

Hi Guys

I'm currently contemplating starting up my own book-keeping business in the Lanarkshire area.

I'm currently an ACCA qualified accountant working in a largish practice in Glasgow but am getting disillusioned by all the red tape that is involved with accounts and audits nowadays so I'm looking for a slightly easier life!!!

I'm just looking for a little advice on whether this would be worthwhile doing and how I would get clients. I would like to charge around £20+ an hour for my services.

As a sideline to book-keeping I'm also thinking about offering Microsoft Excel and Word training and maybe completing the MOS qualifications for those packages.

The main problems I see are getting clients before I quit my full time job. Obviously, I still have a mortgage to pay!!!

I agree, if you are a qualified accountant, that's what you should be doing! In our business of outsourced payroll services we have relationships with one or two small one-man-band accountants, who subcontract to us any payroll work required for their clients. One of these chaps has the name Certax Accounting, and this is a franchise setup. This may be a good idea for you, as they will help getting you clients to begin with. I am sure there are other franchises in the accountancy field, but have no idea of the cost.
Good luck!
Linda

[evej13]

I think he's saying he wants a simpler life-- therefore bookkeeping vs accounting, right CH?

I think it could be very worthwhile, but you might consider doing a feasibility study first. I don't know what accountants charge in the UK vs bookkeepers, but here in Canada it's significantly less. Usually however, bookkeepers don't have the qualifications you do. Because of that, I think I'd look at charging more than bookkeepers in the area generally do. Have you done any market research yet CH? How many businesses are there in your area that might use your services? What kind of competition do you have? What do they charge?

There are lots of ways to find clients. Would you have to stay within your local area or would you consider trying to come up with a way to broaden your target market? One way would be with a company website. Another might be direct mail sales letters. Still another would be a series of letters and follow-up phone calls.

If you need some help, don't hesitate to email me directly.

Eve

[CH_2006]

Yes I do want a simpler life and I like the idea of working from home. I enjoy working with numbers which is a relatively small part of being an accountant/auditor now.

I feel I could also offer another couple of services such as spreadsheet design, Word and Excel training, payroll.

This may sound like a stupid question but how do I go about doing Market research?

I've been thinking about creating my own web site so that I'm not limited to my local area. I'm quite computer literate so a simple website would not be a problem for me. I figure that any potential clients could send their books by recorded delivery etc and I could send them back the same way if they contacted me through the website from afar.

I'd also be checking to see if I could increase my web presence by using techniques to come top of search engine queries (if possible!)

[Joyous]

Originally Posted by CH_2006

Yes I do want a simpler life and I like the idea of working from home.

Nothing to stop you working from home as an accountant. My office is in my back garden and apparently the majority of sole practitioners work from home, something like 80% I heard.

Anyway with regards to bookkeeping there’s plenty of work out there so I wouldn’t spend a fortune on market research. The trick is to get your name out there and be known for doing good work.

I’d suggest the following.

Put an ad in the opportunities section of accountingweb. That’s worked for me in the past.

Write to (or better still telephone) all of your local accountants letting them know of your availability. Many of them will have clients with shocking books - as you probably already know.

I heard of one bookkeeper who together with her 10 year old son posted fliers through the doors of every business on her local industrial estate.

Companies like Selectabase will sell you leads of new businesses for given postcodes

Then there’s always the old favourites such as postcards in local shop windows and ads in our local paper, although I’d suggest a repeater ad if it’s to be effective.

And finally get business cards printed out and hand them out like confetti. Tell absolutely everyone you know what you’re planning. Even if they don’t want you they may well know somebody who does.

Best of luck

Joy

[CH_2006]

Thanks for the advice Joy

[evej13]

CH,

Good luck with your idea.
Are you looking for market research or ideas on marketing your small business?

I wouldn't spend a fortune on market research either, but I would conduct some of my own. I would bet your idea is feasible, but how much competition do you have? Who's your target market and how are you going to reach them? What is your competition charging? etc, etc...

As for marketing ideas, there are lots of them, but marketing depends on factors that you discover through your market research.

I think Joyous' ideas are mostly good ones, but I would have to respectfully disagree with flyers. One of our clients sent out a number of flyers last year, and got zero response. He did however, get a great response with one of our direct mail pieces.

If you'd like some help with your market research and strategy, please email me. I'd be happy to make some suggestions.

Eve