Frequently Asked Questions

This is one of the most common questions we get asked. We charge a fixed-price based upon your business’s needs, taking into account the size of your business, your transaction volume and complexity, the time frame, and the speed of service. We don’t charge by the hour because we believe in paying for a desired outcome. You will always know in advance what our services cost and you don’t have to worry about paying for more hours than you thought it would take. The risk is on us to provide you valuable services expeditiously. We also don’t charge you extra for support – unlimited support is included in all our monthly packages. After completion of our diagnostic review, we’ll prepare your customized proposal with our recommendations and pricing for what it will cost to hire us.

We aren’t your typical accounting firm – no hourly billing or stuffy collars here. We work until you are completely satisfied and are so confident in our ability to provide you value that we offer a service guarantee. All our accounting engagements are fixed-price and include unlimited support, so you know exactly what you are getting and what you will pay for it. We love technology and process automation, so working with us is both easy and convenient for your busy schedule. We are a small business too and our success depends on your success.

If you have a hammer and a saw, do you really need a contractor to build your home? Sure, anyone can spend hours (and hours) on the internet and figure out how to build a home, but is that really the best use of their time and is it reasonable to expect a positive outcome?

Accounting software helps organize your business and makes it easier to meet your tax and other regulatory requirements. It also automates some of the routine administrative bookkeeping tasks, such as bank feeds pulling in transactions from your bank accounts. The output you get from your accounting software will only be as reliable as the inputs that go into it. Without having a full understanding of how the software works and of the accounting principles and tax laws driving those inputs and outputs, it isn’t reasonable to expect that you will have reliable, usable data from your software system. We always advise clients to have an experienced accountant or CPA fully trained in QuickBooks Online handling their accounting.

We understand you may not feel ready to hire an accountant just yet. Many small business owners start off wearing a lot of hats and handling all aspects of the business themselves. While this can work for a short period of time, if often leads to problems as your business grows and becomes more complex. We have yet to meet a small business owner using the non-accountant DIY approach who has been successful at it. Many have the best intentions but find it hard to devote the time and lack the expertise to avoid making material errors. Even with a professional review, it is difficult to effectively learn in minutes the accumulated education and experience gained over decades. As a result, we don’t recommend this approach for the long-term success of your business. Also keep in mind that it is much costlier to have your books cleaned up after the fact than it is to do it correctly from the start.

We usually begin our services with a diagnostic review of your QuickBooks data. The goal of our diagnostic review is to gain an understanding of your specific accounting needs and to assess the health of your QuickBooks data, the completeness and accuracy of your accounting transactions, and your ongoing accounting needs. You will receive a written report of our findings and recommendations as well as a fixed-price proposal for our recommended services. Just as you wouldn’t want a doctor to prescribe medication based on a self-diagnosis, we want to ensure we alleviate all your pain points by addressing the root causes and not just the symptoms. This in-depth analysis allows us to determine the critical first steps and plan of action necessary to get your finances on the right track.