Start A Bookkeeping Service - Business Ideas
Please note that the data provided in this article are estimates and may vary depending on various factors, and should not be considered as perfect or definitive.
As the nature of business changes, bookkeeping is an essential function that is on-demand across all business sectors.
Bookkeeping services support businesses by handling their accounts receivables, creating and sending invoices to the correct accounts, and processing accounts payable to ensure business owners settle them when due.
To become a bookkeeper, pick the niche market, choose a bookkeeping software, and set up the necessary business infrastructure. You need a website, an address, client database software, and file-sharing tools where your clients can access records on demand.
Starting a bookkeeping service requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.
If you're interested in how to sell bookkeeping , or selling bookkeeping online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.
Key Stats
Startup Costs
| Min Startup Costs | Max Startup Costs | |
|---|---|---|
|
Office Space Expenses |
$0 |
$7,000 |
|
Employee & Freelancer Expenses |
$151 |
$352 |
|
Website Costs |
$223 |
$7,215 |
|
Business Formation Fees |
$5,600 |
$20,400 |
|
Software Expenses |
$162 |
$3,094 |
|
Advertising & Marketing Costs |
$0 |
$2,800 |
|
Total Startup Costs |
$6,136 |
$40,861 |
Successful Businesses
| Business | URL | Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Bench Accounting |
bench.co |
10,757 |
|
|
Bean Counter |
dwmbeancounter.com |
109,898 |
|
|
pilot |
pilot.com |
127,009 |
|
|
inDinero |
indinero.com |
156,165 |
|
|
Bookkeeping Services |
books2taxes.com |
253,363 |
|
|
Botkeeper |
botkeeper.com |
267,301 |
|
|
Reliable Bookkeeping Services |
reliablebookkeepingservices.com.au |
291,266 |
|
|
Outsource Bookkeeping |
velan-bookkeeping.com |
481,616 |
|
|
Meru Accounting |
meruaccounting.com |
512,177 |
|
|
Owl Bookkeeping & CFO Services |
owlbookkeepingandcfo.com |
665,697 |
|
|
SLC Bookkeeping Services |
slcbookkeeping.com |
697,964 |
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Description |
|---|---|
|
Flexibility |
You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own. |
|
Ability to start your business from home |
It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning! |
|
Meaningful business connections |
You never know who you will meet as a bookkeeping service. This could be the start of an incredible business opportunity! |
|
High customer retention rates |
Once a customer invests in your product, they've invested their time and energy to utilize your product/service which is highly valuable to them. Typically, your product or service becomes indispensable to your customer. |
|
Pick & choose the clients you work with |
Bookkeeping Servicees have the ability to choose the clients they work with. You have the freedom to work with only a few loyal clients or with hundreds of clients! |
|
Gain exposure and experience |
This career allows you to gain experience working for multiple different businesses - which will benefit your resume and also keep things interesting for you! |
| Cons | Description |
|---|---|
|
Motivation of employees |
If you plan to have a sales/content team on board, finding creative ways to motivate them can be a challenge. It's important that you're able to offer great incentives and a good work environment for your employees. |
|
Longer Sales Process |
A bookkeeping service can be a big time and money investment for your customer, so it's important you plan and predict a longer conversion funnel and stay in communication with potential customers. |
|
Security Issues |
With any Saas business, data loss and security issues may arise throughout your process of building your product. It's critical that you understand exactly what you're responsible for and how to avoid potential issues down the road. |
|
Low margins |
The gross margins for your bookkeeping service are typically around 18%, which can make it more challenging to incur new expenses and maintain profitability. |
|
High employee turnover |
In the bookkeeping service, employee turnover is often high, which can be quite costly and time consuming for your business. It's important to try and avoid this as much as possible by offering competitive pay, benefits, and a positive work environment. |
|
Taxes |
As a bookkeeping service, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it. |
Marketing Ideas
-
1
Affiliate Program
Affiliate marketing is a great way to bring in a new revenue stream, especially when you don't sell products or services.
Simply put, an affiliate program is an agreement where a business pays another business or influencer ("the affiliate") a commission for sending traffic and/or sales their way.
The affiliate typically gets a unique link where clicks and conversions can be tracked.
-
2
Direct Sales
Direct sales strategy implies a direct contact between a seller and a consumer without the involvement of any third party. Direct selling is popular in sectors where sellers communicate with their clientele personally. The sales technique occurs at non-store locations which include at home, work, or online.
For direct selling to succeed, hire a few (or many) salespeople to support the sales conversion process. It's critical that you assign them specific roles and responsibilities to nurture the client and provide excellent support.
-
3
Word of mouth
Word of mouth is when a consumers reflects their interest in a companyβs product or service in their daily dialogues.
Therefore, word of mouth advertising is essentially a free advertising triggered by the customers experience.
According to Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family.
Therefore, in todayβs hyper-connected world, a single recommendation through a word of mouth can have a huge impact to your business.
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
