5 Accounting Tasks Online Businesses Should Outsource

ALT: Outsourcing accounting tasks can help your online business.

An online entrepreneur has a lot on their plate, beginning with supply chain management, inventory, shipping and returns, product catalog, customer service strategy, and marketing - all of which are critical components of an e-commerce business.

Many businesses, from start-ups to well-established corporations, rely on outsourcing to handle a number of accounting activities.

Accounting chores (yes… they’re a chore!) should be handled by an efficient and cost-effective bookkeeper or outsourced accountant for organizations to be successful with sales and growth. This saves time and money, and allows e-commerce business owners to focus on their core strengths.

Continue reading to learn more about the accounting tasks you should outsource:

Recurring and Repetitive Tasks

Repetitive financial tasks such as AP (accounts payable) and AR (accounts receivable) are often a source of frustration.

Bookkeepers are perfect for managing financial operations and utilizing e-commerce business accounting software. They're knowledgeable enough to set up and track recurring AP and AR, saving business owners the time often spent manually entering items every month.

If your accounting software doesn't support automating these tasks, a good bookkeeper will help you find a better system. A bookkeeper will know when it’s necessary to work around platform-specific constraints using a clever process.

What to outsource:

• Accounts payable

• Collections

• Accounts receivable

• Invoicing

• Financial reporting

• Internal reporting

Manual Items

Manual financial entries are more likely to contain errors. While bookkeepers are not immune to making mistakes, they are often less likely to do so than business owners because they have additional checks built into their process to detect errors earlier. Furthermore, they tend to have greater financial knowledge to call on when doing their duties, and thus, reducing basic errors.

What to outsource:

• Reconciliation of bank and credit accounts

• Credit agreements with customers and unique payment terms

Payroll-Related Tasks

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ALT: Outsourcing payroll will reduce error in the process.

Payroll-related functions are a common choice for outsourcing because all businesses have employees. Since e-commerce business owners usually lack the time required to master the subtleties of withholdings and benefit calculations, this can dramatically enhance productivity.

Bookkeepers can use payroll software to make payroll processing easier, as well as provide benefits to employees such as direct deposit. Depending on the sophistication of the payroll software, it may also incorporate automatic local, state, and federal tax filing to help in this area.

As a result, companies benefit from increased accuracy, while employees benefit from streamlined compensation.

What to outsource:

• Employee Benefits

• Withholdings on employee taxes

• Wage surcharges

• Timekeeping

• Compensation for employees

• Other monetary benefits

State-Specific Initiatives

Sales tax payments can be difficult for business owners to maintain and handle, especially in places where both state and municipal (city or county) taxes must be reported.

To avoid fines and penalties, e-commerce businesses must properly report, charge, and pay these fees. This process is complex enough for enterprises in high-taxed areas, but it becomes more difficult when buyers are situated abroad, necessitating the calculation of use taxes.

A bookkeeper may handle sales and use tax, allowing business owners to concentrate on selling things and building their company rather than on these time-consuming responsibilities.

What to outsource:

• Filings and payments for sales taxes

• Use Taxes

• Property Taxes

Tax Functions

Because there is so much potential for error, many business owners avoid preparing taxes on their own. Even when taxes are properly filed, there is always the nagging issue of whether money was lost owing to unutilized tax write-offs.

An e-commerce accountant can ensure that taxes are error-free and can be able to uncover tax breaks to take advantage of. Qualified accountants add a level of experience to the role that many business owners lack.

What to outsource:

• Filing of local and state taxes

• Issuing W-2 and 1099 forms

• Filing a new hiring report with the state

• Receipts for charitable contributions are mailed to donors

Final Thoughts: Accounting Tasks to Outsource for E-commerce Businesses

Our team of seasoned professionals and financial experts at Today CFO will assist you with all of your accounting needs. We are committed to providing skilled accounting specialists to small and mid-sized e-commerce businesses to handle day-to-day bookkeeping, accounting, mandatory governmental reporting, and special accounting projects.

Contact us today for a free, no obligation consultation.