Once you decide to start your own accounting business, there will be many ups and downs along the way. It’s important to view your business as a growing, changing, improvable entity rather than just starting it and staying on the same level all the time.
To help make sure you stay on the right track and continue to grow your business, you can study by reading books, keep learning more details about your field in accounting, and always do research on something you’re working on if you aren’t positive about a detail or step of the process.
Continuing to read and study will also help you maintain your inspiration for your business. And you don’t even have to study books about accounting or watch videos on accounting to learn more; you can mix it up a little by reading about small business, finance, and anything else you have a passion about that you can apply to your journey.
You can also continue to gather bookkeeping credentials in order to maintain or enhance your credibility as an accountant. For example, you can get a membership to a professional network of people in your field. I’m going to take a look at two such associations and briefly discuss the benefits of each one.
AIPB: The American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers
AIPB is one of the most well-known and widely recognized associations for bookkeepers in the United States. For an annual membership fee, you receive membership benefits and informational updates that will help you and your business. As a member, there are also job listings to take advantage of to help you get more clients.
Membership Benefits:
* Stay current on accounting, bookkeeping, and payroll tax news with a monthly newsletter called The General Ledger.
* Access to a members-only phone line for accounting and payroll help whenever you need it.
* Three free reports: Better Bookkeeping in 15 Minutes, 21 Key Bookkeeping Changes in Current Tax Law, and The Bookkeeper’s Guide to Internal Controls.
* Membership discounts on continuing education, FedEx shipping services, and professional liability insurance.
* Certification at a discount so you can put “CB” after your name.
* Save up to 50% on an introductory membership.
* Certificate of membership so you can display your professional association where you work.
* You get your money back but keep the free bonuses if you aren’t satisfied with your membership.
Throughout the web site, you will also find other resources such as a free bookkeepers hiring test, a membership chat area, and informational articles on all things accounting and bookkeeping.
Membership prices range from $39 for a year on special to $180 for three years regular price. The membership fees are reasonable and affordable, and there are a number of perks that go with becoming a member. A professional affiliation is a good thing to have when you own your own business, so this would be a viable option for any accountant.
See AIPB.org for more information.
NACPB: National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers
Of course there are other organizations out there who will do similar things, provide similar credibility, and charge similar prices, so it depends on you which is more appropriate for your business and for you. The NACPB membership also includes a number of benefits and the website states that this organization continuously maintains the integrity and professionalism of its members.
This organization seems to be more devoted to business owners and independent bookkeeping and accounting professionals, so if you’re doing this for your business, it may be a good idea to look over the benefits and credibility of both organizations before choosing one.
Membership Benefits:
* Free website and email accounts
* Free training
* Free directory listing
* CPE discounts
* Guidebook discounts
* Certification exam preparation discounts
* QuickBooks software discounts
* Technical support discount
* Practice management support discount
* Professional liability insurance discount
The membership requires that you are an owner or employee of a public bookkeeping or accounting firm or practice and that you are not named in any regulatory or criminal suit or claim. The annual membership fee for this organization is $100.
See NACPB.org for more information.
Joining an organization such as these will give you more credibility as an accountant, give you access to information and resources you might not have otherwise, and allow you to look for higher-end job opportunities specifically for members.
when you start. Do you want to do all the work yourself or do you want to use other accounting freelancers to help you? If you want to start off small and grow from there, that seems to be a smart approach. That way you can learn to do the work yourself before asking someone else to do it. As you grow you can hire on accounting freelancers or you can contract out specific work if you’re not comfortable with it (like payroll compliance, etc.). By doing this latter approach, you’ll have more flexibility with respect to the assignments you can take and how you can delegate the responsibilities.
