Do I need to hire an accountant?

Today, we find ourselves living in a world where everything can be simplified. Everyday tasks can be completed by a variety of different software and apps. However, at what point do we start to think about our own knowledge and what we would do if we were unable to rely on the computing system that we are lucky enough to have today.

When it comes to accounting, we often find ourselves wondering whether we need to fork out on software and services or whether or not it’ll be more beneficial to us, to just learn it ourselves.

We do find ourselves trying to become more money savvy in this day and age. At a time when knowledge is power - who’s to say we need to use any services to help us with our needs. You can literally learn anything, whether it’s paying for a course to qualify in the accounting skill, or just using youtube tutorials and a good old fashioned book to help you get the job done.

If you want something done right...

Getting it done yourself simply means that you are in control, you know exactly where everything is and what needs to be done with it. It’s knowing how to do it correctly that matters. Being in full control is important to some people so if this is the case with you, maybe learning the accountancy skill independently will be more suited.

However, saying that, accounting isn’t the quickest and easiest of skills to learn, it isn’t something that you can gain and qualify for overnight. It takes time - which, unfortunately, not a lot of businessmen have. That’s where using an accountant or bookkeeper can come in handy or downloading an accountancy software.

Whilst accountants can be costly, your money won’t go to waste. The skill sets that accountants have can help you through a variety of different aspects when it comes to your financials. They can have a positive impact on your business as they understand all the different tax laws and will be able to advise you appropriately.

Outsourcing a major time saver

Also, some accountants may actually help you and your company to save money in the long run as well saving you a lot of time. Depending on the type of company or businesses you run it may be worth enquiring with an accountant. On the other hand, where an accountant is not required and you just need help with your bookkeeping - than you may be able to save some pennies by using an online accounting software, which will be far more cost-effective, especially if you trade in the UK only.

Everyone and anyone is able to use these online tools, however, we would recommend using an accountant if your business is more complex. Find out more about small business accounting costs and the cost of outsourcing payroll.

Once you have decided what it is you want to do (besides at the end of the day, only you know your business and its needs) you can start looking for the appropriate software or accountant to help you out. Unless you have decided to take the bull by the horns and learn the skills yourself, in which case - fail to play to you and good luck!

Finding the right accountant

When it comes to finding the right accountant, you’ll need to take into consideration exactly what it is that you need help with. As different accountants specialise in different things. Some specialise in a multitude of areas whereas some only specialise in a few. You need to be smart with this as you don’t want to be paying for a service where you're only going to get half of the job done because their expertise doesn't cover what it is you need doing.

There are lots of different comparison sites that you can use to compare services provided by different companies and different software etc. So we would recommend that you take your time to research and thoroughly read through the services provided and also the experience which the accountant has.

Also, remember to check through reviews left by other companies so that you know you’re going for a trusted well known/used service. It doesn’t harm to also ask friends and families for services they might have used or know of.

If you're looking at financial advice or support more broadly, take a look at our pages on financial advisor costs and wealth manager fees to help you make an informed decision.