This page is filled with resources which will hopefully help guide you on your journey to being a new business owner. We will continue to update this page as we run into more questions from our clients, almost like a bit of a knowledgebase!

In the next section, we’ve got three New Business packages for you to choose from, so we can help you get off on the right foot. Just book a free consultation with us to move forward!

The role of an accountant

Trying to start (or grow) a business whilst managing the financial aspects of the business can be quite challenging, especially if you don’t know, what you don’t know. Accountants are more than just number crunchers (nerds?) - they are the subject matter experts when it comes to the financial system of your business. When looking for an accountant, look for those that can act as an advisor - those who can use their expertise to come up with financial and tax strategies for your business, those who can help you determine your business structure and those who can provide advise on accounting software that works well for you so that you can focus on your business.

At Refresh Advisory, we love sharing our knowledge and expertise to new businesses. Our aim is for you to walk away from our meetings super confident about what you need to do to ensure financial success while meeting your tax compliance and obligations - and the active role we play in that.

THE ROLE OF A BOOKKEEPER

Without getting into the technical details, bookkeeping refers to the management of all documentation relating to financial dealings. Their key job is to ensure accuracy and compliance. Typically, this includes:

• Bank reconciliations

• Management of bank statements

• Performing operational tasks relating to accounts payable and receivables

• Preparation of financial reports (e.g. income/profit and loss statement, balance sheets, cash flow statements)

Learn more here about how a virtual bookkeeper can help you grow your business.

How important is it to use a bookkeeping or accounting software?

The short answer is, it’s not the end of the world if you DON’T use software for your bookkeeping - such as using Excel Spreadsheets.

The long answer is, using accounting software has many benefits which you have to weigh up the subscription costs against. Below are just some of them:

• Bank feeds for easier reconciliations

• Integrations with other business tools across industries (e.g. Tradify, Service M8, Shopify, etc)

• Ready-to-run financial reporting

• Built-in invoicing - easier management of payables and receivables

• Availability - as most accounting/bookkeeping software are cloud-based, you have access to your business financial data almost anywhere in the world, as long as you have internet connection.

Should i hire a bookkeeper? or can i do my own bookkeeping?

It really depends on what you value more as the business owner and what your level of expertise are. Some questions for you to answer to help you decide:

• Do you enjoy doing this work?

• How much time is it taking you to perform your bookkeeping tasks?

• How much is that costing you (calculate how much income you would’ve made if you had a client or used that time to work on other areas of the business)?

• Could you have spent that time doing something else outside of the business - e.g. more time with your family, pets, hobbies, exercise, etc. What would you rather do?

• How accurate are your books / how accurate do you think you can get your books each quarter?

You need to weigh the answers to these questions against the costs of hiring someone to do your bookkeeping.