Bookkeeping is the process of recording and coordinating a business’s financial transactions. Therefore, bookkeepers record transactions, process payments, send invoices, manages accounts, and prepares financial statements.
Though Bookkeeping and accounting are similar, bookkeeping forms the basis of the accounting process.
Approximately 40% of small business owners believe bookkeeping and tax preparations are the tasking parts of building a business, 47% say they are against the financial cost, and 8% don’t enjoy all the paperwork.
Why Bookkeeping is crucial to Small Businesses in Nigeria
Bookkeeping is critical to the sustainability and success of any small business. Because you still need to have a perfect picture of all the financial inputs and outputs of your business. Understanding the state of your business’s finances helps you to make accurate financial decisions and plan for the future.
Bookkeeping also enables you to safeguard your business. For instance, your business is involved in a dispute with a vendor or under audit by the government. Without a comprehensive financial record system, you may find yourself at risk of paying settlements or tax penalties for unnecessary financial errors. It helps you to prevent or uncover fraud and discrepancies from vendors, customers or employees.
Bookkeeping also saves you time as it simplifies your business financial processes from payroll taxes, managing invoices; it saves you the stress of tracking down all your expenses amongst others.
An efficient bookkeeping system makes information easy to find, because it places everything in perfect order, making your information search stress-free rather than staying up for hours to find a particular document. This is one of the best features of a great business bookkeeping system; it makes it easier to find useful numbers automatically.
With bookkeeping, your vital information is secure. You don’t have to worry about losing information because you have a backup of everything.
Tips for Effective Management of Bookkeeping Process
How do you turn Bookkeeping into a new habit? Habits are loops with three parts – Cue, Routine and Reward
Cue – Delegate an hour weekly to your business finances. Scheduling an hour per week in advance will help you in creating a weekly habit. Choose an hour in your diary when you will be available and block that time off. Then set reminders to help you stay on track with the agenda and stick to it!
Routine: Map out the activities you plan to undertake within the allotted time weekly. The most effective way to work on it is to create a checklist.
Reward: As a business owner, you will learn something new about your business by paying attention to your books. There is a wealth of knowledge to gain by spending regular time on your bookkeeping business. It will also make you more proactive, for example, when was the last time you reviewed your expenditure for Q3?
Basic steps to small business bookkeeping
- Create and manage accounts
- Record every financial transaction
- Balance the books and prepare financial statements
Create and manage accounts
The striking difference between personal budgeting and business bookkeeping is in the managing of accounts. A bookkeeping account doesn’t imply an individual bank account. It is an account that records all financial transactions of a particular activity – production or sale.
Each account falls under one of these five types:
- Assets – These are a total of cash and resources owned by the business.
- Liabilities – These are obligations and debts owed by the business.
- Revenues or income – This is money earned by the business, often through sales of products or services.
- Expenses or expenditures – This is cash that flows out from the business to pay for some item or service.
- Equity – This is the residual value remaining after liabilities have been deducted from assets. It represents the owner’s held interest in the business.
How to create Bookkeeping Accounts
Traditionally, business accounts were recorded in a physical book called the ledger. Today, the practice has evolved with technological advancement. Most businesses use computer software to record accounts, but the file is still referred to as the ledger. There are three methods for creating a ledger:
- Spreadsheet software – Excel
- Desktop accounting software – QuickBooks Desktop
- Cloud-based software – Xero
Meanwhile, there are companies you can pay to manage your business accounts and ledgers. These companies are known as outsourced accounting service providers or virtual accounting service providers because they manage your bookkeeping for you.
Some companies that offer bookkeeping services in Nigeria include AccountingHub, PML, Audeo, Pundit Bookkeeping services, Your Accountant, amongst others.
Record all financial transaction
Document all your transactions to know what is happening with your money. Most bookkeeping is done using the double-entry accounting system, which is similar to Newton’s Third Law of Motion, but for finances. Newton’s law states, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”
In double-entry accounting, any transaction in one account requires an equal and opposite entry in another account. The single-entry system is another option for small business bookkeeping, but it is not usually recommended unless you run a small business with little financial activity. Single-entry bookkeeping is simpler and faster compared to dual-entry, but it provides only a limited picture of your business’s finances, thereby making it challenging to produce important financial documents, such as balance sheets.
In the double-entry bookkeeping system, there are two entries for each transaction – Debit (Dr) and a Credit (Cr).
Debits and credits are documented as journal entries in the ledger. The Debit is usually recorded first (on the left), followed by the Credit (on the right).
To record a transaction, first determine the accounts that will be debited and credited. For example, you purchased a new point-of-sale system (POS) at N20, 000, for your retail business. You paid N20, 000 for the POS system in cash.
The transaction will affect two accounts: cash (Asset account) and equipment (Asset account). Because you’re decreasing your cash and increasing your equipment, you would document a N20,000 debit (on the left) in the equipment account and a N20,000 credit for the cash account (on the right).
It is important to note that journal entries don’t include specific details about the item, or vendor, you simply track debits and credits by account.
Balance the books and prepare Financial Statements
The final step in bookkeeping is to balance and close the books. When you tally up account debits and credits, usually at the end of the quarter or year—the total figure should match. This is what it implies by your books are “balanced.”
Creating financial reports is a vital task of the bookkeeping process, and it is key to every business. Summing up the flows of money in each account creates a picture of the financial health of the company that business owners need to make decisions about the future.
Below are some financial reports created in Bookkeeping:
Balance sheet: This document summarises your business’s assets, liabilities, and equity at a single period. Your total assets should equal the sum of all liabilities and equity accounts. The balance sheet provides a look at the current health of your business and whether it can expand or needs to reserve cash.
Profit and loss (P&L) statement: This report is also called the income statement. It breaks down business revenues, costs, and expenses over a period of time (e.g., quarter). The P&L helps you compare your sales and expenses and make forecasts.
Cash flow statement: This statement is similar to the P&L, but it doesn’t include any non-cash items such as depreciation. Cash flow statements show where your business is earning and spending money and its immediate viability and ability to pay its bills.
Bookkeeping software helps you prepare these financial reports—many in real-time. This can be a lifeline for small-business owners who need to make quick financial decisions based on the immediate health of their business. Read below for more details about getting help with your bookkeeping by using accounting software.
Schedule Bookkeeping and Secure your Records
Design a schedule for your bookkeeping activities, at least weekly or twice a month for recording all financial transactions, including invoices, sales, and purchases amongst others. Also, ensure to close your books regularly, this can be carried out every month or quarterly. It is best to work on your books when your mind is still fresh – often, at the start of the day rather than when the day’s work is over. With appropriate bookkeeping for small businesses, it’s easier for you to be compliant with the law. It saves you time from chasing down past missing invoices, and you don’t want to have misappropriation issues.
Open a Business Account
Opening a business account cannot be overemphasised; it helps you to separate your business money from your personal funds. Operating different bank accounts keeps records accurate and make it easier for audit when its tax time. As a small business owner, if you can afford to hire an accountant to manage your taxes, then consider it. If your personal funds is mixed with the business’s money, it will be hard to report errors, if there are any.
File Documents Appropriately
Filing is a crucial part of the bookkeeping process, from transactions to receipts, invoices, and records. Record management is an integral part of running a successful business. File your documents right away to ensure that everything is in order.
For example, start a daily routine of recording bills, expenses, and other financial transactions. By doing this, you can track your expenses and profits effectively. Efficient record-keeping ensures that vital documents and records are up to date.
Do I need extra bookkeeping help?
As a small-business owner, you will probably do everything by yourself, especially creating the product or service that your targeted market needs. Depending on the overwhelming demands of the business, you may consider getting extra help with your bookkeeping because bookkeeping mistakes can be costly and affect the growth and success of the business.
For example, have you ever looked at your bank statements and wondered how much profit your business generates for the month? Then, it’s time to get help with bookkeeping.
As a small-business owner, there are some cost-effective bookkeeping solutions to consider, such as hiring an in-house accountant and also investing in accounting software.
Outsourcing your bookkeeping to a third-party company – managing both in-house and outsourced bookkeepers can be quite expensive. Outsourcing to a third party is a cheaper alternative that small business owners can try. An example of a third-party accounting firm in Nigeria is AccountingHub. The firm is recognised as Nigeria’s small business accountant; it offers online and retail shop accounting services. It strives to connect small business owners with trusted accounting and tax professionals.
If you need a cheaper solution, though, bookkeeping software takes care of the basics without foisting too much manual work on you: they reconcile bank transactions, adjust account balances, and generate financial statements.
Review your Bookkeeping System regularly
For newbie business owners, you can start with a simple spreadsheet to manage your records. However, as the company evolves, it is crucial to consider advanced methods and systems. As the business continues rising, it is important to reassess your current system. Evaluate the volume of time you spend on managing the books. Also, review your bookkeeping system to know if it is cost-effective and how much it costs your business. When you do this assessment regularly, you can decide to transit from one system to another.
With the right bookkeeping solutions, you are investing more time and resources in the business itself and not the bookkeeping process. In the long term, this will enable you to save money, time, and effort. And you even have more time to develop new ways of boosting your sales and business.
Whether you manage the bookkeeping process of your small-business yourself or get help from an expert, having a clear understanding of the basics will help you manage your finances better. It will save you time chasing receipts, protect the business from costly errors, and gain valuable insights into your company’s potential.
