Keeping your books up to date is one of the most crucial aspects of running your business, yet it is often overlooked. Keeping your books up to date isn’t just to keep the tax man happy, it has huge benefits for you as well. Who doesn’t want to have a better view of their revenue forecast and a more educated budget for their business.
If consistently keeping accurate financial records seems overwhelming, we’ve pulled together our top four tips to help you.
Set up a Routine
Set a time every week where you will sit and manually update your records, whether this is sending out your invoices or collating your receipts. Not only will this make your life easier at the end of the month or year, it gives you the perfect opportunity to take a look at your cash flow, and notice how this is changing from month to month. (We’ve written a whole blog of managing your cash flow if you need some more guidance on this)
Keep Track of Unpaid invoices
Part of the routine discussed above should involve checking through any outstanding invoices. Doing this on a regular basis will make you aware of the clients who notoriously don’t pay on time and give you a chance to chase them, so you can have more money in the bank! Doing this frequently is vital as once an invoice has been sent, it is really easy to lose track of it – meaning you are loosing out, unnecessarily.
Use a System
If having bundles of receipts lying around is your worst nightmare, why not take a look at the software available. These allow you to virtually keep a track of your receipts. Here at M&L we offer all of our clients the chance to use DEXT. This allows you to simply take a picture of your receipt in the app, as soon as you get it, wherever you are. This will then submit all your documents to your accounting system and that’s it, job done! No more trips to the post office and piles of receipts lying around!
Set Aside Money for Tax
Keeping your books up to date, gives you a chance to set money aside each month to pay your tax bill. Whether you’re handling your accounts yourself or hiring an accountant, make sure each month your taking a look at your estimated tax liability based on your average trading and set this money aside. Doing this will mean that you can avoid any nasty surprises and sets you up for a stress free tax season.
Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help you.
We believe that a personal approach to client management is important! We ensure that we always go the extra mile to make sure that your accounts are up to date and comply with all regulations. With our expert knowledge we are happy to advise you on all finance related matters.
