When you own a small business, one of the most important things you need - timely, accurate financial accounting records - tends to fall to the back burner while many of your other responsibilities take precedence. How can you possibly expect to juggle it all efficiently?

As if things weren't overwhelming enough already, at tax time, your annual tax accountant tells you how much you owe. Often, you're not prepared to hear this number - and if you filed for an extension, the timeframe between finding how much you owe and the time the money is due is greatly reduced. When the profits from your small business are such an important part of your life, it's helpful for you to be able to anticipate your tax liability.

CSI Accounting & Payroll has worked with thousands of small businesses over several decades, so we know that it is essential that your bookkeeping and accounting services are organized, up-to-date, and handled on a monthly basis. This will avoid tax surprises and ensure that you always know where your business is and where it is going financially.

Follow these five tips to help increase your efficiency and organization - and hopefully relieve a bit of stress, too.

If your small business uses accounting software to prepare your financial statements in-house, then you're putting in all of that extra time and effort for a reason!

Maybe you think your business is not the right fit for an accounting service, or maybe you trust yourself to handle your books and don't see the need to outsource. You could even want nothing more than to just balance a checkbook or file your taxes. But most likely, you're concerned that having somebody else do the work will cost you an arm and a leg.

When you use accounting software instead of outsourcing, you're counting on it saving you some money. What happens when it doesn't? Record inaccuracies can result in penalties and interest down the line or make you miss out on reimbursable expenses. Not to mention, going through an audit will take up a lot of the time that you could have put toward making profits. If you don't have a background in accounting, you may not even realize you're getting lost.

How can you tell if your bookkeeping is getting mixed up? Start by taking a look at your financial statements. Here are some common red flags.

When you’re passionate about your small business, you care about its profitability and growth. If your current business services are either unaffordable or aren’t meeting your needs in some way, then it’s time to start looking for an alternative. You're here for a reason, and that reason is because not all professional services are made equal.

At this point, you’re probably asking yourself, "What makes CSI Accounting & Payroll so special? What do they do that my current bookkeeper and annual tax accountant don't? What about my payroll provider?"

We acknowledge that our services are not the best solution for every business, much like how not every business is an ideal client for us. Continue reading to see if we can be a good match for each other. This article will cover the services we offer, as well as how they vary from other solutions.

While we’d love to work with everyone, we know that it’s not so simple.

If we onboarded every person who showed an interest in our services, we’d spend too much time trying to make them into the right fit, and we wouldn’t have enough time to provide quality service to the people we’re supposed to be here for. Plus, working with the wrong person isn’t beneficial to them either; signing a contract to pay for services that aren’t a good match for their business is no joke!

We acknowledge that our services are not the best solution for every business, much like how not every business is an ideal client for us. However, when working together is the right fit for both parties, we can come together to use monthly financial statements to monitor and grow your business, run your payroll efficiently while you maintain as much or as little control as you like, or both! Continue reading to learn about the technical components, values, and beliefs that it takes for us to be a good match.

Life is about choices - but sometimes your options aren't as clear as you'd like them to be. When the stakes are as high as selecting the accounting solution that's the best fit for your business, you should feel confident in your knowledge of each possibility.

After over 50 years of working with small business owners, we've developed a full understanding of all three categories of small business accounting. In this blog post, we will discuss:

• Hiring an in-house accountant
• Working with an annual tax accountant once a year
• Outsourcing a monthly accounting service

Do you own a home healthcare practice, such as senior care or disability care? Your PCAs, RNs, physical therapists, assisted transportation drivers, or guardians of at-risk or vulnerable patients are incredible at what they do, and that's why they're a major part of keeping your business going.

Want to add another competitive advantage for your business? Consider monthly accounting.

You likely started your business because your entrepreneurial mindset was driven by your passion, not because you like performing financial tasks.

How can you reduce your time spent on financial tasks while maximizing your profits? Take advantage of the free resources available to you online, especially if they have been crafted by an accountant or payroll professional.

Luckily, CSI Accounting & Payroll offers a variety of free resources for small businesses. Let us help - your nightmare is our passion!

Hello, 2021! With tax season just around the corner, it's time to start getting ready to file. Are all of your forms prepared?

Tax season can mean extra stress for your business. Luckily, putting in a little effort ahead of time can save a lot of time come tax season. The following article will help get you through it!

Brian Paulson, the owner of CSI Accounting & Payroll, has put together some end-of-year planning tips.

He writes, "Everything we do is focused on the core belief that we succeed in life by helping others succeed. This letter is one complimentary piece of our intense planning and research effort throughout the year to help in your success. Feel free to share it with anyone you know who could benefit."

This section covers tax law changes in 2020. Tax laws are subject to change, of course, but this year has presented several transformations.

Brian Paulson, the owner of CSI Accounting & Payroll, has put together some end-of-year planning tips.

He writes, "Everything we do is focused on the core belief that we succeed in life by helping others succeed. This letter is one complimentary piece of our intense planning and research effort throughout the year to help in your success. Feel free to share it with anyone you know who could benefit."

This section covers a unique topic: changes in the IRS due to COVID-19. Pandemics definitely don't happen every day, but they can result in massive government changes.