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Whether you’re opening a brand new business from scratch or re-opening after a temporary closure, there are some financial “don’ts” for getting your business up and running. It can be easy to become overwhelmed, get lost in poor habits, or take on too much when you’re so focused on becoming successful and profitable as soon as you can. 

Saving money requires discipline and repetition. Whether you’re saving for a purpose or to simply stop spending as much money, it takes dedication and consistency. There are plenty of ways to save, but it never hurts to remind yourself of the ways you can actively improve your financial situation on a daily basis. 

Businesses across the country are giving a whirl at reopening, or attempting to go back to “normal” by opening their locations for staff, clients, and customers. It’s no secret small and mid-size businesses have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a country-wide shutdown for businesses. Owners were forced to adapt, and are still determining and learning the best practices to follow. As we as a whole try to find our bearings in getting our businesses either back up and running, or maintaining a healthy flow, it’s going to be important not to get lost in the complexities of running, tracking, and analyzing the financials of your business. We would like you to focus on the basics of bookkeeping as you get your business back to where it was, and beyond. 

Track your cash. There is no way to track the cash you spend unless you do it yourself. Make sure you keep receipts when cash is spent and log them that day or the next so your books are as accurate as possible. 

It’s no secret that times are tough right now for individuals everywhere, especially financially. Whether you’re a business owner or just trying to pay your rent for the month, you’ve likely experienced the increased strain on your finances recently. There are ways to make these hard times a bit easier, but it takes dedication and consistency! 

Stay on top of your bills. 

Pay your bills on time and avoid missing a payment. Your credit will be affected by a late payment. If you don’t have the funds to pay in full this month, ask for a payment plan, an extension, or to waive the fees. Keep in mind: this should only be done when absolutely necessary and should be abused. If the fees are waived, you will still have to pay, just not right now. 

It’s more important now than ever to maintain accurate and up-to-date books for your business, whatever it may be. With the state of the economy and everyone adjusting to WFH or not working at all, it can be easy for something like bookkeeping to slip through the cracks. However, neglecting your books during a volatile economy is a sure way to lose sight of where your business is headed and how it’s holding up. To keep it simple: a good business keeps good records. 

Having the ability to pull a report at any time is one benefit to having updated books. You can evaluate the finances of your business at any given point to help make important company decisions. Do you need to cut your budget? Run a report to look at the exact numbers of your business in each area - where can you cut expenses? Are there any underperforming products or services? Or maybe you just want to know if you’ll be able to pay your upcoming bills with your current cash flow. You will not receive accurate numbers on these reports if you do not keep your bookkeeping updated at all times. 

As we become mostly transitioned to working from home (WFH), it makes many of us wonder if this will be our new normal. Can things ever really go back to how they were? One thing we are learning is that the new normal requires a new mindset.

The work-life balance has been a hot topic of discussion lately as many people WFH find themselves extending their workdays, while others are realizing how many hours they spent away from home. Whether at the office or at home, work will consume you if you allow it. It’s important to set a cut off time every day to help maintain your work-life balance. If you’re stressed, stop what you’re doing and clear your head. 

It’s easy to lose sight of your goals and your sanity when it seems as though most of the country is shut down to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. What are you really supposed to do when no one knows how long this will last? Let’s consider this our Who-Really-Knows Guide into the Unknown. To keep your business goals from slipping through the cracks, we must work to keep the foundation of our business strong. 

Due to the closing of many establishments in hopes of slowing the spread of the coronavirus, many people are trying out a lifestyle they had never taken part in before - working from home. Under different circumstances, working from home is considered lucky, but it’s hard to feel that way when there is a global pandemic underway. If you are fortunate enough to be able to continue your work from home, the following are some ways to help you adjust to the change and to maintain productivity:

Your bookkeeping requires regular and detailed maintenance. There’s plenty you should be doing to your bookkeeping on a regular basis, but what exactly should be doing when? Rather than overwhelm yourself by doing everything at one time, break it down into separate sittings. 

Let’s make a choice not to give up on our bookkeeping this year. This is such an important practice that cannot be neglected. Starting a few simple habits now will keep your books strong, accurate, and constantly updated. Remember to remain consistent with all of these, and contact Skynar Bookkeeping for any questions regarding setting up, cleaning up, or keeping up with your bookkeeping. 

Part of running a business in 2020 is accepting multiple forms of payment and knowing how to do so. We’ll cover how to accept credit card and payment processors like PayPal or Venmo. 

Step 1. Create a new bank account in QuickBooks and name it after the payment processor (like PayPal or Google Checkout). Set up multiple accounts for your convenience - one account for each merchant that processes payments for you. 

Step 2. Once your payment is received, deposit it into the merchant account you created in Step 1. Do not deposit it directly into your checking account. 

Step 3. Once the money shows up in your checking account, transfer the funds from your merchant account to your bank account. If you regularly accumulate funds in your PayPal or other similar account, it’s better to transfer the amounts randomly when needed. 

Customer pays via CC or PayPal > Money hits Merchant Account > Money hits Checking Account

Every professional individual should have a well-rehearsed elevator pitch. This could be used at networking events, with clients, possible business partners, and more. Some tips to create the best elevator pitch for you…

To keep track of the financial ups and downs of your small business, there are three important reports to reference: balance sheet, cash flow statement, and income statement. Although there are countless other reports, these three will give you the best idea of where your business stands and where it is headed. Each report provides its own window to further understanding the financials of your business. We challenge you to run these reports once a month to maintain a firm understanding of where your small business stands!

An unfortunate truth in business is sometimes people don’t pay on time. What steps can you take to avoid this? Be consistent and timely with sending your invoices, and establish payment terms prior to doing work together to make sure everyone is on the same page. However, if a client fails to pay an invoice on time, there are certain steps you should take to act on this. 

The first step when dealing when a client who won’t pay is to simply send a polite remindervia email, attaching the invoice again. This is usually enough for them to remember to pay you - life gets crazy and sometimes we forget things, it happens. 

Tax season will begin soon, which means it’s time to start issuing tax forms to employees,  independent contractors, and vendors. A 1099 is a tax form that describes wages paid to someone not by their employer, and must be issued by January 31. Who should you send a 1099 to this tax season? A basic rule of thumb is to issue a 1099  to anyone you paid over $600 throughout the year, but follow our flow chart for guidance. 

Below is a decision-making tool to help you decide if you should send a 1099. Follow the bolded questions, choose between the options given, and follow the arrows until you find your answer.

WHAT DID YOU PAY THE VENDOR FOR?

Rent → Did you pay over $600?

• No → Do not issue 1099
• Yes → How was it paid?
  • PayPal or Credit Card  (PP or CC)
    • Yes → However, you do not have to issue the 1099, PP or CC will issue it.
  • From Your Bank Account via Check, Bank Draft or Debit Card
    • Yes → Issue 1099
    • No → Is the vendor a corporation (either C corp or S corp)?
      • No → Issue 1099
      • Yes → Do not issue 1099

Services → Did you pay over $600?

• No → Do not issue 1099
• Yes → How was it paid?
  • PayPal or Credit Card  (PP or CC)
    • Yes → However, you

It’s a new year and it’s time to stop messing around. Your bookkeeping is being pushed to the side while you focus on other aspects of your business. Or maybe you don’t have enough work for your current bookkeeper, or you don’t have the funds to pay an employee to do your books. Whatever the reason, it’s time to act on this with a suitable solution: outsource. Why? Let’s discuss why outsourcing could be the best option for your bookkeeping. 

Soon the ball will drop and we’ll be ringing in 2020, another year of opportunities, goals, and challenges. Before we celebrate this blank slate of possibility, let’s wrap up this past year nicely, typing up any loose ends. Some things to review when looking back on the past year: 

Review Your Goals

Pull out your goals from the beginning of the year and review one-by-one. This includes both financial and otherwise. What steps have you made toward them? Have any been accomplished? Now look at the future year ahead of us. What would you like to rollover and continue? What are some new dreams?

Your company’s payroll is not something you should take lightly. There are rules and regulations that you and your payroll solution must follow to avoid getting into trouble. The new year is a perfect time to change up your payroll solution if you’re unhappy. Contact Skynar Bookkeeping for our advice on the best payroll solutions out there, and we’ll set you up free if you start a new payroll subscription in January, a fee that would otherwise cost $500. 

Tax season is just around the corner! If you pass off your taxes to your tax preparer, whoever it may be, then you may not be aware of all the information your W-2 holds. Since this information pertains entirely to you, we encourage you to become familiar with the basics. Grab an old W-2 from past years (yes, you need to save these) to use as a reference. It may look intimidating, but everything is broken down very particularly and you’ll have a basic understanding of it by the time you’re finished. 

Tax Season comes around every year, yet people still always scramble come mid-February when filing has taken way like they had no idea it was coming. This tax season, that won’t be you. Follow our simple steps for preparing to file taxes - what to do before you file for an easier experience while filing. 

First and foremost, you’ll want to schedule an appointment with your tax preparer, whoever it may be. If you don’t have a tax preparer, reference our blog on how to find a reputable tax preparer you can trust. Once your appointment is scheduled, it’s time to turn to your important documents. This includes any documents that track your income, personal information, banking information, and records of any purchases. 

Adding information into QuickBooks Desktop doesn’t have to be monotonous and time consuming. Sometimes it can really be as easy as copy and paste! We put together the simple steps it takes to add many customer jobs at one time on QB Desktop, or watch these steps in our tutorial.

To begin, open your Customers tab. Look in the top left for the dropdown menu that says “New Customer & Job” and select “Add Multiple Customer Jobs.” Now you’ll see a grid that matches the QuickBooks grid to the left in your Customers tab, both listing your customers. In the top right of the grid, you can “Customize Columns” so you’re seeing the information that is most important to you. For example, you can choose not to see the customer’s address or fax number because that information isn’t important for you to see. To do what we’re doing, we want to see the columns Name, Company Name, and Job Of. 

It’s important that whatever way you choose to customize your columns, they are identical in the Excel file you are using to record this information. In the Excel file, copy the grid (CTRL + C) and paste into the bottom of your “Add Multiple Customer Jobs” entries (CTRL + V). You just added all customer jobs simultaneously! Remember to save your changes before closing the window. Now, in your QuickBooks Customers tab to the left, you’ll see your entries have been added. 

When you first start doing this, add only a few jobs at a time and double-check to make

The software programs Quicken and QuickBooks have a couple things in common, including being founded by Intuit and beginning with the word “Quick.” However, the similarities end there. Let’s discuss the differences. 

Quicken

Quicken was released in 1983 as a personal management tool for individual users. It uses the single-entry accounting method and assists with your personal accounting needs, like recording your transactions. It categorizes your expenses to show where your money goes, and has budgeting features to help you take control of your finances. There are a variety of Quicken software programs available: Starter, Deluxe, Premier, and Home & Business.

Have you considered outsourcing before? If not, don’t dismiss it just yet. Outsourcing is a convenient, effective way to make sure the work for your business is getting done and being done well. You can rest easy knowing you’re handing your work off to someone who is an expert in the field. When exactly is the right time to outsource your bookkeeping? You’ll find the answer in your own day-to-day work life. 

While running a business, you may run into the issue of one of your vendors not receiving your payment, although you sent it and it was deducted from your bank account. Regardless, where the money went, your vendor wants to be paid. Here’s how to make this work in your books so they don’t turn into a disaster. 

Let’s say your vendor is Ashley’s Apples. Pull up their information via the Vendors tab in QuickBooks. You’ll see in your records that the $500 payment you made ACH (Automated Clearing House - basically, they take care of transferring mass amounts of money for vendor payments, payroll, and direct deposit) and that Ashley’s Apples never received it. Your bank register says the money was cleared from your account, so voiding the check isn’t an option. 

Cut Ashley’s Apples a check for the $500 in the current month. In the memo section, explain the reason for the payment. Try to make your check identical to your first payment by using the same account and paying their same account. Now, Ashley’s Apples will finally be paid, and we can deal with fixing our books. 

When you look at your Check Register, you’ll see two payments for Ashley’s Apples - the original payment via ACH and the check you just cut. Once the bank confirms that the first check (the one Ashley’s Apples did not receive) has not been cashed, you’ll get your money back after X number of days, according to the bank’s terms and agreements. Knowing you’ll get this money back, you need to make a deposit in your books using the same date as