As a small business owner, you specialize in running and growing your business. However, no matter how long you’ve been at it, there will always be some things that are outside of your expertise.
With recent advances in AI, clear answers are right at your fingertips – but what happens when you need more help? Sometimes it takes human help to get customized advice or navigate sensitive situations. Who can you talk to?
At CSI Accounting & Payroll, we’ve worked with small business operations for over 50 years. While we’re able to advise in a large variety of areas (since we know our clients’ businesses inside and out), we know that sometimes a dedicated professional may be the way to go.
Let’s talk about these professionals and how they can help you:
- Accountants
- Payroll specialists
- Attorneys
- Financial advisors
- Bankers
- Business brokers
- Marketing specialists
- Human resource specialists
- Insurance agents
- Benefits brokers
Accountants
We’re starting with how accountants can help small businesses, since this is one of our primary services at CSI Accounting & Payroll.
(Please note: Annual tax accountants can only record the history of your past year by filing your taxes. Monthly accounting, which is what CSI offers, is a more extensive, year-round service and the focus of this section. Learn more about the differences between annual accounting and monthly accounting here.)
Monthly accountants offer a variety of advice. It can include advice which is included in our service at no additional fee, as well as consulting projects that can be added on for additional charges.
Here is a list of advice topics that a monthly accountant can help you with:
- Tax strategy (tax planning, projections, & preparation)
- Applying for credits
- Strategizing asset purchases
- Setting and tracking KPIs
- Maximizing profitability (cutting unnecessary expenses & increasing revenue)
- Industry-specific advice
- Advice based on your financial statements (profit trends, your bank accounts and loans, & leveraging your business)
- Money management (cash flow analysis, credit, collecting money)
- Obtaining business financing
- Budgeting
- Registering your business with the government
- Coordinating a cost segregation study
- Performing software integrations
- Sales and marketing ideas
- Buying a business
- Exit planning & selling a business
There’s some overlap between the advice a monthly accountant can offer and the advice that other professionals can offer. In areas where we feel additional expertise is needed, we have many trusted partners that we can refer small business owners to. However, this is not an exhaustive list of everything we can help with!
Payroll Specialists
Our other main service at CSI Accounting & Payroll is payroll. While it’s nice to have someone else handle your payroll, you can’t forget about the advice that a payroll specialist can offer!
Payroll specialists have lots of knowledge of:
- Employment laws
- Workers’ compensation insurance
- Payroll taxes
- Health and retirement benefits
There is also some overlap between the advice a payroll specialist can offer and the advice that other professionals can offer. In cases where further help is needed, we can refer you to our trusted partners.
The rest of this article will focus on other professionals you may want on your team.
Attorneys
Attorneys, or lawyers, often specialize in different legal areas. For example, you may want to go to a tax attorney for tax-related issues or a trust attorney if you want to establish a trust.
Attorneys can help you by:
- Setting up a new business
- Closing down a business
- Advising on potential legal issues
Please note: Because of legal implications, some things can only be done (or advised on) by an attorney.
Financial Advisors
Financial advisors are most commonly used for personal finances, but small businesses can still talk to financial advisors about securing and investing money.
Remember, a monthly accountant can advise on similar financial topics and is typically a better choice for businesses.
Bankers
This isn’t just referring to a standard conversation with a bank teller. Professional bankers can assist small businesses with securing bank loans and SBA loans.
A monthly accountant can make this process even easier.
Business Brokers
Business brokers are largely involved with the process of selling a business. They can advise on the current state of your market (how much you could sell your business for) and even get a qualified buyer in front of you.
When selling a business, you will also want an attorney and an accountant on your team.
Marketing Specialists
These days, many websites advertise how easy it is to do your own digital marketing. However, many small business owners come to realize it isn’t always that easy.
A marketing specialist can help you:
- Manage your website and SEO
- Establish a marketing strategy (including advertising, social media, & other digital and traditional marketing)
- Find your target audience
If you’re not looking for high-level advice, a monthly accountant can offer some marketing and sales tips.
Human Resource Specialists
Human resource specialists, or HR specialists, have a lot of advice overlap with attorneys. They can help you with employment laws and other issues related to your business or employees.
You can also outsource help from an HR specialist.
Insurance Agents
When you partner with an insurance agent for your business, they will often be a “jack of all trades” to help you with a variety of different types of insurance. An insurance agent can help you by advising on which type of insurance you need and then helping you get insured.
Benefits Brokers
The final professional that a small business owner may seek advice from is a benefits broker. They are like an insurance agent, except they match you with the ideal benefits for your employees.
Get a Majority of Business Advice in One Place!
Now that you know about the different professionals who can advise small business owners, as well as how monthly accountants can advise in many of the same areas (and more), are you ready to check out monthly accounting services?
If so, please consider CSI Accounting & Payroll! To see if we can be a good fit for your business, click the button below for a free consultation:
Not ready to talk? That’s okay! First, learn more about what it’s like to work with CSI by clicking the image below:
