How to Start a Bookkeeping Business

Someone who’s new to the profession, for example, may start their rates at $20 an hour, while someone with several years of experience may charge $35 an hour or more. Researching average bookkeeper salaries for your area can give you an idea of what your competitors may charge. It’s possible to start a bookkeeping business from scratch, even if you don’t have a professional or educational background in accounting or bookkeeping. Having a degree or certification in either area could be an advantage, but it’s possible to acquire the skills you need to become a bookkeeper online. Likewise, you don’t need to have experience running a business, but that could also prove helpful.

• And, because these bookkeepers often work for multiple clients, their combined hourly rate is much greater than the set pay of an employee position.
• Implementing a clear client communication strategy will ensure effective client relationship management and help you build trust with your clients.
• I know plenty of people with big home office setups, but you can easily start your bookkeeping business with a humble laptop.
• Online marketing can be especially impactful and allow you to reach prospective customers everywhere across the United States.
• This insurance will cover you against claims you made a mistake in preparing a client’s books.
• There were 700 local cannabis farmers in our county and most of them were new to business.

Use a service like Wix or Squarespace to make nice-looking sites quickly, or have WordPress installed on her personal website domain. WordPress is pretty easy to learn and comes with tons of https://www.bookstime.com/ clean, free layouts that you can tweak to work for your business. When you’re working from your home, you must reassure your clients that you’re actively and carefully securing their data.

How a Bookkeeper Is Different Than an Accountant

Now I have two bookkeepers helping out, so I rarely do client work, unless they get stumped. While I feel that this business model is perfect for an introvert, you do need to be able to communicate with your clients. Of course, there remote bookkeeping services are creative ways to do this, but most people do a phone consultation, so it’s important to have good communication skills. Bookkeeping is quickly changing with new cloud technology and being able to work remote with clients.

Therefore, there are often opportunities opening up for in-house bookkeepers, remote bookkeepers, or freelance bookkeepers. Bookkeeping has the potential to be a profitable business if you’re able to maintain a solid roster of clients who are willing to pay competitive rates for your services. A typically remote bookkeeper’s salary is just over $55,000 a year, but it’s possible to make much more than that, depending on your clientele and the rates you charge.

What Skills Do You Need to Start a Virtual Bookkeeping Business?

You should consider the following questions when picking a billing method. You should also consider health insurance as an added expense, especially if you previously had health insurance through your employer. Replacing employer-sponsored coverage can be one of the most expensive costs of going into business for yourself.