Small Business Bookkeeping
Source: Forbes | Repost QBScott 12/1/2022 –
Bookkeeping is the process of tracking income and expenses in your business. It lets you know how you’re doing with cash flow and how your business is doing overall. Staying on top of your bookkeeping is important so that you don’t have unexpected realizations about account balances and expenses. We’ve put together this guide to help you understand the basics of small business bookkeeping.
Bookkeeping vs. Accounting
Though often confused for each other, there are key differences between bookkeeping and accounting. At its core, bookkeeping is about recording financial data, while accounting is about interpreting financial data. Accounting can’t happen without good bookkeeping. Without bookkeeping, there would be no data to analyze.
Generally speaking, bookkeepers help collect and organize data and may have certain certifications to do so for your business. On the other hand, accountants are generally equipped with an accounting degree and may even be state-certified CPAs. You can expect most bookkeepers to maintain the general ledger and accounts while the accountant is there to create and interpret more complex financial statements.
Key Components of Bookkeeping
Whether you do the bookkeeping yourself or hire someone to do it, certain elements are fundamental to properly maintaining the books. Some of these elements are done more regularly than others to ensure that the books are always up to date. Other elements are completed at certain time periods as necessary to complete a business task.
Author: Scott Meister, CPA
I help small businesses, accountants, bookkeepers, office managers, and business owners with their accounting needs. I’ve used QuickBooks since 2002 and train folks on how to use it efficiently. I create high-quality video training tutorials for QuickBooks and post them on QBScott.com.
Certifications include: Certified Public Accountant (CPA) | Certified Bookkeeper (CB) | Advanced Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Desktop | Advanced Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online | Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Enterprise | Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Point Of Sale