Want your weekends back? Hire a bookkeeper.

Imagine your perfect Saturday morning.

There’s nothing better than that first sip of coffee while strolling through the farmer’s market in downtown Southern Pines on a Saturday morning. Crisp morning air, the smell of fresh produce. It’s heaven!

Unless you’re stuck at home trying to log all of your expenses.

One of the most challenging aspects of owning your own business is having to wear all of the hats. You're either training an employee, making a sale, catching up on filing, or perhaps your most dreaded task: catching up on the bookkeeping.

Frustration sets in.

While it may seem simple on the outside - grab your receipts and log them - the process of keeping your books meticulous month after month takes patience, a practical obsession with detail, and the discipline to get to it on a regular basis.

Not to mention knowing enough about accounting to ensure it's done correctly. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time.

Deciding which accounts to post transactions to, being able to spot red flags, and understanding how the flow of money can affect your day to day business takes an experienced bookkeeper who is fluent in Quickbooks, understands how to troubleshoot apps and connections, and is savvy about capturing all of the details involved in monthly bookkeeping.

In other words, you’re spinning your wheels and wasting your weekend trying to save a little money each month, and most likely creating even more work for yourself in the longrun.

When you could be at the farmer's market.

Why delegation is your best friend.

When you find a trusted partner for your bookkeeping, that firm becomes an partner for years, sometimes decades, keeping you informed of the ins and outs of your monthly finances, and keeping everything perfectly organized and up to date for your accountant and year-end taxes.

How much are you worth?

The true test of whether you’re ready for a bookkeeper is to ask yourself: how much are you worth on an hourly basis? If you’re consulting, running crews or closing sales, chances are it’s a pretty high number.

If you spend your time trying to figure out how to get to the chart of accounts in QuickBooks, you miss out on much higher-value business endeavors such as revising your business plan, going over your workflows or getting through that list of sales calls.

There are so many more important and effective ways you can spend your time rather than trying to do your own books.

The payoff is tenfold.

Think about it: if you take those four or five hours you normally spend trying to track expenses, and instead put those to use in other ways, you’re bound to increase your income, land new clients and streamline your processes.

The extra income you make and money you save by hiring a bookkeeper is much more than the amount you would pay for your monthly service. It’s a win/win relationship that almost instantly elevates your business.

Choosing the right partner

SWIFT Bookkeeping of the Sandhills is a local, Moore County business that specializes in small business accounting.

Run by Kitty Bateman, SWIFT brings over 25 years of varied financial experience to your business. Kitty is a proven partner that can help you sort out your books and set you on a charted course for success.