While we’d love to work with everyone, we know that it’s not so simple.
If we onboarded every person who was interested in our services, we’d spend too much time trying to make them 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 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.
Technical Components of a Client
What types of clients does CSI work with? We aren’t set up like your standard accounting firm; we don’t work with individuals’ annual tax filing, unless you’re a business owner client of ours. Here’s the base level of the CSI client pyramid: the technical components of the businesses that we work with.
- Business size: Small or Medium
- You need to be a small or medium-sized business that isn’t large enough to warrant having an internal accounting or payroll department. Essentially, this means your business is more than a hobby - it generates profits.
- Location: USA
- You need to have an operating location in the United States. We cannot service businesses in other countries.
- Industry: Any
- There is no industry requirement. We’ve had over 50 years to work with a variety of industries, so chances are we’ve run into a business or two that are similar to yours!
- Financial Position: Stable and Willing to Grow
- If you’re interested in monthly accounting services, you must be in the position to grow, not struggling to pay your bills. This is especially true for new businesses. Think of us as protein powder, not a Band-Aid.
- If you’re interested in payroll services, you must be able to pay your payroll taxes. You must also have the funds to run a payroll for your employees. Be sure that payroll is set to come out of the correct account so your employees can get paid!
Values of a Client
To justify the purchase of an item, you need to understand and appreciate the value. The same can be said when you partner with a service. To ensure CSI’s services are right for you, you should value the following ideas and benefits.
- Your business’s profitability and growth
- If you don’t value this, you likely won’t see the value in receiving monthly financial statements.
- Outsourcing
- With CSI, this means having the pressure taken off of you without feeling like you're losing control.
- Accuracy, timeliness, customer service, and communication
- These are all qualities that CSI’s accounting and payroll experts have that are ordinarily not found in an annual tax accountant or national payroll service.
- Monthly statements to gain financial analysis and advice
- You should be able to understand why monthly statements provide insight on your business, and you should have the faith in them to utilize the advice that your accountant brings forward.
- Setting aside time each month with your accountant to review how your month went and to plan for the future
- If you can’t make time to analyze your statements, you might as well not be working with a service that provides them!
- Tax planning, preparation, and filing to keep you in the tax loop year-round
- This helps you prepare for tax season ahead of time, and it helps you find potential ways to reduce what you owe.
- Doing your research on accounting options available to you.
- Check out our Learning Center to learn more about the basics, and be sure to research other solutions on search engines like Google or Bing.
Agreements
You also need to have a certain mindset when thinking of partnering with a service. To ensure a good working relationship between you and your provider, it’s critical that you agree on certain points. The following are some points that we should agree on.
- An annual tax accountant can’t provide hands-on advice throughout the year; they can only record your historical financial data.
- Monthly statements help you understand how your business is performing in real-time. They also help build a solid foundation for evaluating your business' health and guiding business decisions.
- Not all professional services are made equal.
- Some offer lower quality and less detail, and others offer higher quality and a more complete service package. It is up to you to decide which service level is the best match for your business.
- When it comes to accounting fees, you get what you pay for.
- Rather than moving away from a quality service in favor of a lower-priced one, consider what you can do to minimize your fees with a quality service first.
- Professional experience is invaluable when it comes to business services.
- An experienced accounting service will have a background of working with and offering professional advice on profitability, operating budgets, buying and selling businesses, and your industry in general. An experienced payroll provider will have experience with working with various payroll taxes, garnishments, and additional features, such as time clocks and reports.
A Match Made in Heaven?
Most likely, our staff at CSI Accounting & Payroll doesn’t know if we’re a good match or not - because we have no idea who you are! Luckily, you now have the information to decide that for yourself.
If you align with our…
- technical requirements,
- values,
- and agreements,
…do you believe in love at third sight, or do we have to list a fourth point?
If you’ve been struck by Cupid’s arrow, you can get a free payroll proposal or schedule a free consultation.
If not, we understand! Now is a good time to either walk away or continue to learn about:
