Did you know there are over 1 million accountants in the United States? If you have been overwhelmed trying to hire an accountant for your business, you are in the right place. We are going to share our top tips on how to find a good accountant in the article below.

Explore How to Find a Good Accountant

Half the effort of hiring a business accountant is knowing when you need one specialist in your trade or small-business accounting generally they are more likely to be up to date with any changes in regulation and allowances that affect you. So let’s know about how to find a good accountant.

1. Ask for Referrals

When you are looking for an accountant, one of the best places to start is by asking your business friends for referrals. Asking other business people will help you not only find a reliable accountant but will also give you insight into whether or not they are satisfied with their services.

Use the referrals as how to find a good accountant to your starting point when you make your list of potentials.

2. Local Search

You can add to your potential list of accountants by doing an online search of accounting firms near you. When you call places like Clickandmortaraccounting.com you can ask the receptionist the type of business they usually work with.

If they are not familiar with your type of business then you can ask them if they know of any local accountants that they can refer you how to find a good accountant.

3. Questions to Ask

Once you have your list of potentials it is time to start calling them to discuss their services. You want to ask them about their education and their experience with your industry. You also want to how to find a good accountant and ask about billing rates and how they determine what they charge.

If you have a quick question you want to know if they will charge for that and if they are easily accessible. You will want to know upfront what they charge for a basic business tax return to help give you an idea of what to expect. Prices will vary because some accounting firms will charge by the hour and others will work on a monthly retainer.

Look at the References

Last but not least, ask for references. You can even ask for references from clients in your industry that they work for. Make sure to call these references and ask how to find a good accountant  and how satisfied they were with the accountant’s services, their fees, and their availability.

After you speak with them make sure you check with the professional association to see if their qualifications are valid and that they do not have any outstanding disciplinary issues. This is all public information that you want to make sure you are aware of.

4. Meet in Person

Once you do a few phone interviews you will want to set up face-to-face meetings with your potential accountants. This will help you see how comfortable you feel working with this person and sharing your finances.

Making sure that you are able to communicate without an issue is important. If you feel comfortable during the face-to-face meeting then you can see if they offer other services that might help take some weight off your shoulders.

Discuss to Management Consultant

Anything from bookkeeping to management consulting might come in handy down the road. Instead of finding an accountant that specializes in only taxes, it will be more beneficial to how to find a good accountant one that also specializes in bookkeeping and even payroll. This will avoid you from having to hire other people if you have one person that can do it all.

5. Expert in the Latest Technology

With technology updating almost on a daily basis you want to ask your potential accountant how current they are with the latest accounting technology. There is a lot of modern software to help accountants complete their work efficiently while giving them a deeper insight into how to find a good accountant a client’s financials.

Familiar with Latest Technology

Accountants and bookkeepers alike should be willing to not only learn new technology but embrace it when it will help their clients. The last thing you want is an accountant that refuses to keep up with the times and continues to use outdated software and solutions that do not make their work efficient.

You can ask any potential accountant what type of software they use and why they use it. Then you can do your own research to see how to find a good accountant and new it is and look for any reviews from fellow accountants online about this specific software.

6. Do They Understand Your Business Type?

You truly only want to hire an accountant that is well versed in your business insurance and niche. For example, if you have an e-commerce business you want someone that understands that type of business inside out because it will be different than running a physical store.

Previous experiences

You want someone that is familiar with common procedures and costs that are related to your business. The ideal candidate will be experienced working with other companies in the same industry. This will benefit you not only in tax preparation but also with advice for future tax years as your company grows.

Something else you will want from your potential accountant is someone that has experience working with businesses that are at a similar stage as your company. If this is how to find a good accountant to your first year in business, have they worked with other businesses during their first year?

Ready to Hire an Accountant?

Now that you know our top tips of how to find a good accountant , you can begin your search to find the perfect accountant for your business needs. Do not forget that the right accountant will be more than a tax preparer, they can help you build a blueprint for the future of fax machine for your business.

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