Bookkeeping is the most natural service expansion for a tax preparer. Your clients already need it, and it creates monthly recurring revenue that stabilizes your income year-round.
Why It Fits
When you prepare a small business client’s return, you already understand their financial picture. If their books are disorganized (and many are), you spent extra time sorting through the mess. Offering to maintain their books monthly means cleaner records at tax time, less frustration for you, and better financial visibility for them throughout the year.
What Bookkeeping Includes
Monthly categorization of transactions. Bank and credit card reconciliation. Accounts receivable and payable tracking (for some clients). Monthly or quarterly financial statements. Sales tax filing support (in applicable states). Payroll coordination (if applicable).
You don’t need a CPA license to provide bookkeeping services. Bookkeeping is the recording and categorization of financial transactions. Accounting (auditing, attesting, issuing opinions on financial statements) is a different service that may require licensing. Know the line.
Software
QuickBooks Online is the dominant platform for small business bookkeeping. Xero is another strong option. Both offer accountant/bookkeeper partner programs with training resources and discounted pricing. FreshBooks, Wave, and others serve niche markets.
If your tax software integrates with QuickBooks (as Intuit’s ProConnect does), the data flow from bookkeeping to tax preparation becomes seamless.
Pricing
Monthly bookkeeping for a small business client typically ranges from $200 to $500 per month depending on transaction volume and complexity. A sole proprietor with 50 transactions a month is on the low end. A small business with employees, inventory, and 300 transactions per month is on the higher end.
Starting the Conversation
The easiest way to start: after completing a business client’s return, say “I noticed your records were hard to work with this year. If I maintained your books monthly, next year’s return would be faster and more accurate, and you’d have a clear picture of your finances every month. The cost is $X per month.”
Many clients will say yes because they already trust you and they already know their bookkeeping is a problem.
The Revenue Impact
Ten bookkeeping clients at $300 per month is $36,000 in annual recurring revenue. Twenty clients is $72,000. That income arrives every month, not just during filing season.
For training on expanding into bookkeeping and building a year-round practice, visit musespring.com.