Business and Practice Startup

When setting up your accounting system, review the options available to you. Many software solutions, such as Intuit QuickBooks® and Sage Intacct®, are cloud-based and offer affordable pricing.

You will want a software that can grow with you and gives you the financial reporting required by your lender and accountant.

Learn more about accounting software options.

Utilizing an experienced accountant as an advisor, you will need to establish how you will handle the following areas of your business:

• Choosing your entity structure will require understanding the tax considerations that come into play based on if you choose a C-Corp, S-Corp, LLC, sole proprietorship, or partnership structure.
• Choosing your accounting method takes an understanding of the facts and circumstances the IRS considers when preparing the required elections and forms.
• Start-up costs will need to be reviewed to determine if they should be expensed, capitalized, or amortized for tax purposes.
• Budget planning and forecasting is a critical tool in the planning process. There are different forecasting models and tools your accountant can review with you to help you identify the best revenue and expense forecasting methodology.

BIZ TIP: Business Entity Types: Which is Best For Your Business?

ProfitCents is a powerful tool we use to generate projections and perform various “what-if” scenarios.  Whether you're budgeting for growth, preparing projections for a loan, or acquiring a business, we use ProfitCents to generate detailed financial forecasts as well as benchmark your company’s performance against industry peers.

Thinking of purchasing new equipment or expanding operations? Our ROI analysis helps you evaluate whether the investment makes financial sense. We’ll help you understand the profitability of your investment and provide clear picture of your potential return and the timeline for reaching it.

Tax planning will help you minimize your tax liability and maximize the available credits you can benefit from.

Some of the areas to talk with your accountant about are buying vs. leasing equipment, evaluating depreciation methods, and multistate/Nexus tax planning. As more businesses sell online and across the U.S. and beyond, you will need to plan for the impact of multistate taxes on your bottom line.

Learn more about our business tax services.

A critical step in starting and running a successful business is having good financial records. Efficient and effective records will help you:

• Monitor the progress of your business
• Prepare your financial statements
• Identify sources of income
• Keep track of deductible expenses
• Track your basis in property
• Prepare your tax returns
• Support items reported on your tax returns

This is an area where accounting expertise at the start will ensure you have the records you need, when you need them.

Learn more about our accounting services.

Understanding your break-even point is key to making confident business decisions. We can help you calculate how much you need to sell—daily, weekly, monthly, or annually—to cover your costs.  You can use this analysis to better understand how to generate profits in your business. Whether you’re launching a new product or simply reevaluating operations, our break-even analysis provides a granular look at the sales targets needed to keep your business on track.