what is the best way to open an accounting business and get clients?? Any CPA's out there?? Bookkeepers??

Question

I am wanting to open my own accounting and bookkeeping service, but alot of companies want to watch over you like hawks. How can I get clients, and be able to work from either home or my office and be able to do this. Should I do an LLC and become a corp company? I have bachelors but no cpa, however, I would like to do accounting but as my own business. How does one go about getting clients to trust you enough to do their books without having to watch every little sing thing you do??
All CPA's, Bookkeepers, and Accountants welcome to answer please.

Answer 1

Assuming you haven't worked in a public accounting firm and worked towards your CPA you may want to look at attaining your CMA (Certified Management Accountant).

Getting your CMA is similar to getting a CPA, you must take approved coursework and pass a board test that gives you certification.

Check out the IMA homepage (http://www.imanet.org/) for more information on the certification.

Having this certification will mean a tremendous amount for your business. Right or wrong it brings immediate credibility with it. It shows your clients that you are well schooled, tested, and certified.

You have to remember that the finance and accounting world has become radically different in the last 5-7 years. Things like corporate governance (Sarbanes-Oxley) and ever increasing tax law changes mean you have to stay on your toes and current with current regulations (FASB / GAAP / etc..).

Without certification you can still do bookeeping for smaller businesses. Processing payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable, invoicing, are all things a good bookeeper can do.

Getting clients will require you to be able to show some practical experience. Being able to show a potential client a resume that shows you have worked in the accounting field for a period of time will go a long way in getting you business.

Most clients are going to need to see this skill set rather than have someone with little or no experience. You are working on building a trust that will ultimately allow you some freedom (e.g. a home office etc).

An office, even if it's a small one in a local business/retail area lends an air of credibility, it shows that you're serious and not just some "fly-by-night" operation. You are trying to build a lifelong business relationship here and anything you can do to show your clients that this is your livelihood the better.

Once you have a stable list of clients you can look into potentially incorporating, but to me this is something you should work on after you get up and running.

My best advice to you right now is to go to work for a local accountant for a couple of years to build that experience base. It will also help hone your ability and you'll get a feel for what you really like doing.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Associations may be a good avenue to explore. These organizations will address many of the thoughts, questions and concerns you'll inevitably have as well as many you haven't anticipated yet. See the source box for some relevant links.

Research, research, research – this cannot be stressed enough. Read as much as you can about the industry. Here are some book titles that are relevant:

* Starting and Building Your Own Accounting Business, Third Edition by Jack Fox
* Bookkeeping & Tax Preparation: Start & Build a Prosperous Bookkeeping, Tax, & Financial Services Business by Gordon P. Lewis
* Start & Run a Bookkeeping Business by Angie Mohr
* How to Open your own In-Home Bookkeeping Service 2nd Edition by Julie Mucha-Aydlott

There are plenty of free informational resources out there. Check the source box for links to articles.

Hope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures!

Answer 3

There is a book out that can probably answer a lot of the questions you have. It is called, “How to Open Your Own In-Home Bookkeeping Service”. It is a larger size, spiral bound book that comes with a CD.

You can buy it at Amazon.com for about $69.00. And at Amazon.com you can actualIy look through the book online. Check out the table of contents. I have a copy.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Then spend some cabbage on promoting to get your call obtainable. think ofyou've got to pound the pavement and examine with small agencies. also examine into networking communities: BNI, the Chamber of commerce etc. that is not any longer elementary starting up your human being organization.