Bookkeeping for electrical contractors | Here’s what you need to know
What you need to know about bookkeeping for electrical contractors?
Being an electrician is far from an easy job, and we’re fully aware of that. If you operate as an electrician or electrical contractor in Canada, you probably spend a good proportion of your time working on managing your business in this demanding environment.
We also understand that properly organising your finance and bookkeeping department can sometimes be overwhelming. However, in most cases, the quality of your bookkeeping determines the grade of success for your business and can make a huge difference regarding its future.
The good news is that you don’t need to handle all this alone. The evolution of technology and cloud computing has made it easier than ever to outsource the bookkeeping needs of your business to whoever you see fit without being limited by location. Below on this page, you’ll find everything you need to know about bookkeeping services for electricians.
Looking to outsource bookkeeping for electrical contractors?
Connect with us and find out how we can help.
Looking to outsource?
Here are the main benefits of outsourced bookkeeping services for electricians
Accurate financial Insights
A professional bookkeeper will analyse the acquired data and offer you insights in regard to your business performance. At the same time, it will provide professional advice based on the interpretation of the accumulated information.
Fewer Taxes
Having an expert on your side can ensure that you’re claiming all the expenses your business is entitled to. This way, a larger percentage of your taxes becomes deductible, increasing the overall profit margin.
Lower accounting fees
Outsourcing the bookkeeping needs of your business will have pay exactly for the number of hours needed, as opposed to having a house bookkeeper. Besides, some bookkeeping firms like ourselves provide their clients with a clean and up-to-date set of books at the beginning of the collaboration so your accountant will spend less time on the year-end financial statements.
Focus On Growth
Most business owners didn’t go into business to do bookkeeping. By having someone else handle the books, you’ll save precious time that you can use to focus on growing and improving your business.
Bookkeeping tips for electricians and electrical contractors
Whether you have an in-house bookkeeper, do it yourself or outsource your company’s accounting needs, there are a few good practice rules that you always need to keep in mind. Following a basic set of rules will ensure you reduce the amount of effort, time and resources you need to invest in order to keep your business and your books up to date.
1. Make data-driven decisions
Whether you employ accounting software and do the bookkeeping yourself or collaborate with a professional, it’s vital that you always have access to comprehensive and precise reports of your business performance. Modern-day bookkeeping software can generate accurate reports of profit and loss, cash flow, account receivables and many more. As an alternative, a dedicated professional can also provide you with those listed above while also offering advice and information related to your current business condition.
Simple things such as cash flow statements can show you determine when you will have extra cash to invest in different sectors of your business, such as investing in new equipment, apart from that. Precise reporting will help you make sure that all your expenses align with your revenue and identify the areas of your business that turn in the most profit.
2. Outsource when necessary
Newly started businesses in the electrical industry usually don’t have many clients and implicitly not many expenses or transactions to consider. Nevertheless, as the business grows and your finances become more complex, your bookkeeping will also get more complicated.
Hiring an in-house accountant might seem like a big step and is, without a doubt, a considerable expense for a small business. This is the main reason why more business owners see outsourcing as a viable option in these cases. In most cases, choosing to outsource the bookkeeping needs of your business to a dedicated professional will provide you with the expertise of a dedicated professional at a fraction of the cost. If you’re on the look for reliable bookkeeping services for electricians, we’re here for you. Contact us and find out how we can help.
3. Always stay up-to-date
Regardless of the industry, you operate in, keeping your books up to date is vital for effectively managing your accounting department. The most efficient to ensure that your books are always up to date is to create a weekly routine of documenting all your income and expenses on a specific day of the week. If you stick to this routine for long enough, it will eventually turn into a habit that will last for years to come.
It’s important to remember that the more time you let pass without tracking your income and expenses, the more difficult it will be to get everything in order when you decide to do so. Collaborating with a professional will help you ensure that your books are taken care of and regularly updated even when you don’t have the time to do so.
4. Track your expenses carefully.
As you probably know by now, all business owners in Canada must report their income to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Failure to do so or to report accurately will result in your company being investigated by the CRA. During this, they perform an audit on your return and reassess your tax liability based on the income that wasn’t reported.
However, you can always subtract business expenses from your annual income. That’s the main reason why tracking your expenses carefully is so important for your profit margin at the end of the year. This way, you’re always in control of your business finances and avoid facing a higher tax liability than you should. One of the most practical ways of tracking your company expenses is by using your bank statements. On the same note, you should always make sure that your personal and business expenses are recorded and separated from each other.
Looking to outsource bookkeeping for electrical contractors?
Connect with us and find out how we can help.
Here’s what others say about their experience with AIS Solutions:
“I have now had the pleasure to work with Juliet on 5 mutual corporate tax clients. I can honestly say Juliet and her team are not only cheerful, but they are good! The amount of time that has gone into these mutual clients has been about 20% lower than a comparable-sized client without a trained bookkeeper. The records are clean and reconciled. Any unusual items are easily explained, and the team is quick to provide any information we request. If you want accurate date books and records and to possibly save money on your year-end accounting and tax fees, I would highly recommend AIS Solutions!”
Tim Miron, CA Partner Beckett Lowden Read LLP
“Just wanted to thank you for last week’s QuickBooks training. I look forward to using it…hopefully proficiently…and you provided a great framework with which I can get started. I also really appreciate the handout you supplied at the end of the session. I will make good use of that, I’m sure!”
Buffy Knowlton - Workshop Facilitator & Author
“I have had the good fortune to work with Juliet and her team, at AIS, on 2 business circumstances over the last few years. Her commitment, dedication and professionalism are unquestionable. In every circumstance, she and her team have treated our business like their own. A results-oriented, knowledgeable, focused team of professionals with the highest degree of integrity. It has been a pleasure to work with them.”
Gary Brent - Deblen Holdings Limited
“Juliet is very professional in her business and is highly thought of by her staff, she leads by a good example. Through our years together at BNI I have also got to know Juliet on a personal level and know she has high standards and morals. This makes it easy to refer her. I would not hesitate on recommending Juliet to anyone I know.”
Sharon Jackman - President at Service First Forwarding
“Juliet is very professional in her business and is highly thought of by her staff, she leads by a good example. Through our years together at BNI I have also got to know Juliet on a personal level and know she has high standards and morals. This makes it easy to refer her. I would not hesitate on recommending Juliet to anyone I know.”
Sharon Jackman - President at Service First Forwarding
Frequently Asked Questions
Are outsourced bookkeeping services a good fit for my electrical business?
Will a professional bookkeeper increase my profit margin?
Poor financial management is the main cause of business failure. Many small and mid-sized businesses fail to manage and measure their finances appropriately, causing them to fall out of business eventually. A bookkeeper will help you instil good financial practices in place and avoid common mistakes and consequences such as:
- Insufficient tax planning
- Lost revenue
- Missed financial opportunities
A dedicated bookkeeper can handle all your profit and loss statements, account reconciliations and regular balance sheets in a timely manner, therefore, helping you get your finances under control with a minimum input of effort on your part.