Setting Up a Bookkeeping Business
- 1). Research bookkeeping online and at your local library to deepen your understanding of standard bookkeeping principles and practices. Consider taking a bookkeeping course online or at your local community college or vocational school. Be knowledgeable about basic accounting before starting your new business.
- 2). Write a business plan that includes a description of the type of practice you'll be starting, identifying the target markets for your advertising. Include your start-up costs and first year's budget, identify your primary competitors and define the manner in which you will distinguish your business from others.
- 3). Create a name for your business that communicates the positive aspects of your business in a way that's unique and memorable. For example, "Accu-Books" may suggest accuracy in your work in a way that "Mike's Bookkeeping" would not. You may also simply do business under your own name as an "independent contractor."
- 4). Register your business name (unless you're doing business under your own given name) with your secretary of state's office, which will protect your name from being used by other businesses.
- 5). Check with your state's secretary of state office to learn if your state requires you to have a vendor's license to operate. In most states, vendor's licenses are required in order to collect sales taxes on behalf of the state.
- 6). Equip your office with a computer along with accounting software. You may want to invest in a laptop computer, which would enable you to enter your customers' information right at their place of business.
- 7). Design stationery, business cards, a tri-fold brochure and single-page flyers to advertise your new business. Most major office supply retailers can help you design professional marketing materials and print them at a reasonable cost.
- 8). Join your local Chamber of Commerce to begin making connections with other businesses in your area that need your services. In addition to introducing you to the business community, the Chamber of Commerce can provide a source of referrals as well as benefits such as training seminars and group health insurance.
- 9). Go door to door to businesses in your community, introducing your service to owners and managers and handing out your business card and promotional brochure. You may want to consider providing a special discount or promotional offer to entice businesses to try your service.
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Advertise your service in your local newspaper and place flyers around your community in places that business owners are likely to visit. Leave your business card posted on community bulletin boards around town. - 11
Advertise your business online by building your own website, placing free classified ads on websites such as Craigslist, Skepter or Webcosmo, or purchasing paid ads with major search engines targeting your area. - 12
Serve new clients with professionalism and excellence, being sure to meet promised deadlines and meeting each client's specific bookkeeping needs. Be attentive to questions or special requests and demonstrate your ability to deliver outstanding service at all times.
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