Biz Bookkeeping

Confront those nagging fears about your small business with a realistic look at money. Then move forward by managing your business finances and using them to achieve your hopes and dreams.

We specialize in QuickBooks products but can work with businesses that use other specialized software. We'll also set up local and remote backup capabilities for your bookkeeping files.

 

Why hire a professional bookkeeper?

Your financial records should answer some basic questions.

  • Where are you making money and where are you losing it?
  • Do you have enough cash?
  • Are you making progress towards your goals?
  • Are you increasing the value of your business?

A clerical bookkeeper (translate that as free or low cost) makes lists of income and expenses. It takes more to answer basic financial questions and give you useful financial information. 

Can you make sense of the numbers in your books? We also teach small business owners to read financial reports and use them to set goals and measure progress. Download The Biz Income Statement, our free booklet to begin the process.  

We specialize in part-time bookkeeping services for small businesses in the Fairfield and New Haven Connecticut areas. Biz 4 the Rest of Us® also provides remote troubleshooting services to find and fix problems for small businesses. See Problems with QuickBooks? for more details.  

We can help you

  • Get started: Confused? Overwhelmed? Setting the books up incorrectly causes most QuickBooks problems. Biz 4 the Rest of Us® offers startup services for business owners who want to keep their own books.
  • Keep your books: Contact us to turn that awful pile of little slips of paper (invoices, receipts, bills and payments) into financial information by providing accurate records, building meaningful reports and conducting periodic reviews of your financial condition.
  • Set up a budget and monitor it: Don't let your bills control your business. We'll show you how to control your finances by setting priorities and limits on your expenses. 
  • Don't make a wild guess--use projections to explore financial impacts: Buy a board game if you want to gamble with business ideas. Don't gamble -- learn how to evaluate your business alternatives with projections to explore the impact of possible choices on your finances. Identifying problems early can make the difference between success and failure.
  • Biz 4 the Rest of Us® also provides remote or on-site trouble shooting and problem solving services for clients.  

Financial basics

We'll help you use money as a resource to take your business where you want to go. Money provides an income for you and increases the sale value of your business when you decide to move on.

The basics are bookkeeping and financial controls.

  • Good financial records are accurate and current. They provide the information you need to make decisions, to monitor their results and to make adjustments along the way. Bookkeeping software such as QuickBooks will build financial information out of those piles of paper.
  • Financial controls are internal processes that help you trust staff to handle revenues, cash receipts, cash disbursements, accounts payable, receiving and payroll.

Set goals for your business then align your spending with those goals by establishing a budget and monitoring it. Begin this process using what you know about your expenses from the previous year and make adjustments. 

Is My Business Making Money?

You make money when you charge more money than you paid for the things you sell.

  • Accurate records are important. A few dollars profit per item can be the difference between success and failure. 
  • Track your sales and expenses over time. It's a good way to test new ideas and measure progress.
  • Different businesses use money differently. Your books must reflect your business.
  • Control costs by summarizing information to get the big picture. Then go from the big picture to details you can recognize.  
  • Know your profit margins. Compare the cost to sell to the sale price (your gross margin) and compare all your costs to the sale price (your net margin).
  • Similar businesses have similar profits margins. Biz 4 the Rest of Us® puts your financial information in context.

Can I get a business loan?

You and your banker have something very important in common: you both want to make money. You want the loan and your banker wants a good customer. You are a good customer when you make loan payments on time.

  • Your banker wants to know about your business: What is it? Who is your competition? Are you different from your competitors?
  • Your banker will want to see your business plan and financial statements.
  • Bankers want to know your profit margins.
  • Your business must provide enough cash to make the loan payments and still stay in business.
  • Your banker will also want collateral and usually a personal guarantee for loan repayment.
  • Be professional and be prepared.

Shop around for a banker. Banking is becoming more competitive. You want a bank that meets your needs. Do they work with small businesses? Have they made loans to other business like yours? Do they give SBA loans?

Be prepared to talk to your banker about a loan. Lenders want to know about your business and your finances. Biz Loans answers the questions lenders ask.