Accounting Basics for SMEs and Start-Ups

From simplifying credit control to managing expense receipts and improving record-keeping, accounting professionals share their simple and ingenious tips on how to quickly master your financials.

Mixing personal and business transactions together in one bank account is bound to lead to a long list of queries. And not keeping hold of documents to confirm the nature of expenses can significantly complicate the accounts production process; the better organised and documented the records of the transactions for the year are, the quicker and more easily these can be converted into a set of accounts.

According to Richard Williams, partner at accountancy Beever and Struthers, an HLB International member firm, leaving the annual accounts to the last minute can also be costly.

1. Time equals money

By submitting information close to the deadline, businesses are limiting the time that their accountants have to spot any potential issues, such as bad debt, says Keith Steele, partner at accounting firm PKF Littlejohn.

See also: Finance jargon buster guide for SMEs

He suggests using time spent commuting or travelling to scan invoices or expense receipts via smartphones and software such as Receipt Bank and making use of online banking to check balances and decide which suppliers to pay to control your creditors.

“Rather than creating invoices in Word and then transferring into the accounting system,” he says, “why not put them straight into the accounting system and do the same with payments? This could save a lot of time and reduce the risk of duplicate payments being made on the same invoice.”

2. Detail is decisive

Another common issue accountants face is businesses not providing supporting documentation for transactions because they think a bank statement is sufficient detail. Amanda Greppellini, manager of outsourcing and accounts at one of the UK’s first accounting practices Saffery Champness, member firm of Nexia International, says that this is often not the case since income may have costs deducted before payment of a net amount, which is only apparent with sight of the underlying documents.

“Businesses sometimes assume that accountants only require information regarding payments made and receipts received during the period in question, whereas in fact we need details of all income and expenses due, regardless of whether these were paid or unpaid at the year end,” she says.

3. The digital dividend

Keeping manual records can lead to missing or duplicate transactions, says Darren Clarke, client service director at accountant and tax adviser Rickard Luckin, an MGI Worldwide member firm.

See also: Seven smart saving tips for start-ups

The automatic bank feeds available through online accounting software reduce the risk of duplicate transactions and speed up the process of recording and reconciling receipts and payments.

“If up-to-date information is used, online accounting software can produce useful reports on how the business is performing, including identifying the customers that owe money,” says Mr Clarke.

The software can also be accessed by the firm’s accountant, enabling them to work more collaboratively throughout the year, rather than only in the immediate period before a return is due.

4. Asset management matters

Many small businesses fail to maintain a fixed asset register, which can make it difficult to trace assets identified and acquired throughout the year, says Grant Anthony, partner at audit, tax, advisory and risk firm Crowe.

“This means that potential eligible capital-allowance claims could be missed, resulting in the business paying more tax than it needs to,” he says. “Failure to keep records of transactions (such as petty cash receipts) can also be costly since without records, input VAT that could have been claimed will be lost.”

Staying on top of financial information and processing it in a timely manner rather than delaying the processing of invoices is another step small businesses can take to make the accounting process run more smoothly. Regularly updating and reviewing financial information will prevent issues from arising further down the line as a result of accountants dealing with out of date and/or incorrect information.

5. Share a structure

Mr Williams also recommends establishing a system that works for both the business and your accountant. Ask your accountant how they would like to receive the information from you and when – many will provide spreadsheets, which just need to be populated by you throughout the year. This makes their job more efficient.

See also: Cloud-based accounting for rural businesses - your questions answered

“Using cloud-based bookkeeping means information can be accessed any time from any web-enabled device,” he adds. “This approach ticks the box for the digitalisation requirements brought in by HMRC’s Making Tax Digital.”

6. Perfect your payments

Cloud-accounting systems allow businesses to raise sales invoices within the system and email them direct to customers, and then chase the debt by a simple click of a button. Some systems even allow payment methods such as PayPal to be added, so customers can pay via a link on the invoice itself.

Of course, businesses don’t want to chase debts if they’ve already been paid or pay supplier invoices twice. “To avoid this we recommend clients use a bank feed as part of the system, whereby the bank will transmit the banking transactions to the accounting software on a regular basis so that owners can allocate receipts and payments quickly,” says Ms Greppellini.

This article first appeared on NatWest Business Hub

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