Starting Up In Business - An Accountants Advice

It is the ambition of many people to run their own business. Some may have been made redundant and find themselves with free time and financial resources. Others make the decision to start up in business to be more independent and obtain the full financial reward for their efforts.

Whatever the reason, a number of dangers exist. Probably the greatest concern is the possibility of business failure.

Read on for guidance on some of the factors which need to be considered before trading begins.

This factsheet cannot cater for every possibility and any decisions should be supported by professional advice.

Initial considerations

In order to make your business a success there are a number of key factors which should be considered:

Commitment - starting a business is demanding. Determination and enthusiasm are essential

Skills - you will need managerial, financial, technical and marketing skills. If you do not have these skills personally, they can be found in a partner or employee, or acquired through training

Your product or service should have a proven or tested market, but must not conflict with the patent or rights of an existing business.

In addition to these general considerations there are a number of more specific matters.

The business plan

The business plan is the key to success. If you need finance, no bank manager will lend money without a sensible plan.

Your plan should provide a thorough examination of the way in which the business will commence and develop. It should describe the business, product or service, market, mode of operation, capital requirements and projected financial results.

Business structure

There are three common types of business structure:

Sole trader

This is the simplest form of business since it can be established without legal formality. However, the business of a sole trader is not distinguished from the proprietor's personal affairs.

Partnership

A partnership is similar in nature to a sole trader but because more people are involved it is advisable to draw up a written agreement and for all partners to be aware of the terms of the partnership. Again the business and personal affairs of the partners are not legally separate. A further possibility is to use what is known as a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP).

Company

The business affairs are separate from the personal affairs of the owners, but there are legal regulations to comply with.

The appropriate structure will depend on a number of factors, including consideration of taxation implications, the legal entity, ownership and liability.

Business stationery

There are minimum requirements for the contents of business stationery, both paper and electronic, which will depend on the type of business structure.

Books and records

All businesses need to keep records. They can be maintained by hand or may be computerised but should contain details of payments, receipts, credit purchases and sales, assets and liabilities. If you are considering purchasing computer software to maintain your records, obtain professional advice.

Accounts

The books and records are used to produce the accounts. If the records are well kept it will be easier to put together the accounts. Accounts must be prepared for HMRC and if a company is formed there are strict legal requirements as to their layout. The accounts and company tax return must now be submitted electronically to HMRC in a specific format.

A company and a LLP may need to have an audit and will need to make the accounts publicly available by filing them at Companies House within a strict time limit.

Taxation

When starting in business, taxation aspects must be considered.

Taxation on profits

The type and rate of taxation will depend on the form of business structure. However, the taxable profit will normally differ from the profit shown in the accounts due to certain expenses which are not allowed for tax purposes and the timing of some tax allowances. Payment of corporation tax must be made online.

National insurance (NI)

The rates of NI contributions are generally lower for a sole trader or partnership than for a director of a company but the entitlements can also differ. In a company, it may be possible to avoid NI by paying dividends rather than salary.

Value added tax (VAT)

Correctly accounting for VAT is an essential part of any business and neglect may result in a significant loss.

When starting a business you should consider the need to register for VAT. If the value of your taxable sales or services exceeds the registration limit you will be obliged to register.

Employing others

For the business to get off the ground or to enable expansion, it may be necessary to employ staff.

It is the employer's responsibility to deduct income tax and national insurance and to account for student loan deductions. The balance must then be paid over to HMRC. Payroll records should be carefully maintained.

You will also need to be familiar with employment law.

Premises

There are many pitfalls to be avoided in choosing a property. Consideration should be given to the following:

-          suitability for the purpose

-          compliance with legal regulations

-          local by�'laws

-          physical restrictions such as access.

Insurance

Comprehensive insurance for business motor vehicles and employer's liability insurance are a legal requirement.

Other types of insurance such as public liability, consequential loss, business assets, Keyman and bad debts should be considered.

Pensions

Putting money into a pension scheme can be a way of saving for retirement because of the favourable tax rules. Many businesses have to provide access for their employees to a stakeholder pension.

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5 Tips On How To Choose Accounting Software For Your Business

It is important that you choose accounting software that is both suitable for your business, and is easy for your employees or yourself to use. Manual accounting can be very time-consuming, and is also prone to human error. No matter how experienced a traditional accountant is, he or she can still make mistakes that software cannot make.

Most people now understand that a 'computer error' is either a programming or an input error, and that people make errors, not computers.  It's somewhat amusing that a machine that can count only in ones and zeros cannot make computational errors. Perhaps we should follow their example! Perhaps one day we will, but that is irrelevant for the moment!

For the same reason, established accountancy software not only saves you time and effort, but also eliminates calculation errors.  Redundant data entry is avoided by means of fields and macros, where addresses, for example can be entered at the press of a single button.

Such software has developed in recent years to the extent that virtually no accountancy expertise is required to use it. Hence, if you run a small business, you may be able to avoid the cost of employing a dedicated accountant for anything but auditing and signing off your accounts.

The following 5 tips on how to choose accounting software should give you a good feel for how to select an accountancy software package that best suits your needs. Keep in mind that most modern packages can be run by anyone with computer literacy, and if you make the right choice you can save the cost of hiring a qualified accountant.

1.  What do You Need?

First, you should list the accountancy features you require.  If you only need to record your income and expenditure, and record profit and loss, then the package you require will be fairly basic and therefore of relatively low cost. There's no point in buying a Ferrari just to do the shopping!  

However, if you run a larger organization, where you wish to track the finances and expenses of individual departments or even individuals, then you will need a few more bells and whistles. You may opt for a more expensive industry-specific accountancy package if you are in an industry such as construction, real estate or finance.   In short, the accountancy software you choose should meet your needs, and you are better purchasing the best that meets these needs  than an average multifunctional package offering options you will never use. 

2.  Additional Features

In practical terms, additional features would be included in the heading above. However you also have the choice of the physical form of your hardware to consider. Should the software be suitable for online or desktop use, and should it particularly be designed for portable devices. Can you use it on your laptop and on an iPad or other portable electronic device?  Ask this question of yourself first, and if hardware versatility is important then ask the software provider before committing to purchase. 

3.  Which Brand?

There is a large number of accounting software packages available and the big named brands are not always the best value for money. Once you have decided on the options you need you will still find a good choice available to you - how do you choose then? The important factors are:  

a) to make sure you have the features you need, 

b) is the support good and 

c) can you get a free trial before committing yourself.  

4.  Shelf Life and Upgrades 

You must make sure that your software will not be obsolete when the next generation of computer comes along. Some software packages are more expensive than the hardware that runs them and it is important that you get free upgrades as hardware develops.  

Your accountancy software should also be able to be upgraded as your business grows. Rather than purchase a new package, you should look for software that offers extensions or upgrades to your initial package to compensate for your developing business. 

5.  Cost:  Outright Purchase or Lease

Depending upon your choice of accountancy software, you should be able to either purchase the software outright, pay monthly or lease it. Some offer the software on a monthly subscription basis, and often this or leasing might be your preferred method of payment since you are guaranteed upgrades as technology advances - either in software or hardware.

A final tip is that, once you have come to a decision, you should check out peer opinion of your choice of accounting software by visiting forums and reviews. You should enter a search term such as 'MySoftware review' and check up what others that have used the package think of it.  

This can be the most powerful way to get the best information on your accountancy software available to you. Peer opinion counts for a great deal, and this is possibly more important than any of the above 5 tips on how to choose accounting software.

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The Benefits Of An Umbrella Company For UK Employment

An umbrella company is an alternative to being paid PAYE by your client or agency and is equally safe and compliant.  You become an employee of the umbrella company and receive all the statutory rights that go with it. In addition working through an umbrella company, you can claim expenses that you incur whilst going about your work. This in turn should improve your take home pay.





The UK has special employment agencies that work for autonomous service providers so to offer them work usually temporary contracts. The employer to these people is usually a company. An Umbrella Company is an example of such kind of company. Normally a limited company is chosen for a contract as it reduces the recruitment agencies liabilities towards the contracts. The process for the payment is like this. Invoices are issued to the staffing agency or may be to a client. When the sum of the invoices is made, the outworker will be paid through PAYE.





Following IR35 legislation set up by the British government; the occurrence of these umbrella companies has been greater than before. This legislation defines such clauses that put into effect to decide the ability and service status so as to offer some tax release to the small company.





UK ‘s umbrella company  provides much more advantage for employment . If a contractor is not deemed to be self-employed (and many will not be deemed to be) then they will be subject to the new IR35 tax regime (i.e. subject to tax and national insurance as if the individual were an employee. Take much more advantages of umbrella services in UK.





The Umbrella Company should have high principles, which are recognized all throughout the United Kingdom. This body corporate assures you as a contractor making your business simple and easy. The Contractor Umbrella is the first in its kind, to have been reviewed by the British Government and which found it to be complying all the HMRC regulations.





The Contractor Umbrella Company was certified by the KPMG, for being compliant with all the HMRC regulations which included the MSC legislation. This corporation was reviewed on the 29th of February 2008, according to the income tax and NIC policy that were in force at that time. This was the path breaking event in the history of this company, which completed the contractor and the recruiters use its services the most. The Contractor Umbrella was also recommended as the approved supplier of the British Passport, under the Professional Passport proposal.

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CRM Software - Best Buying Tips

Getting right CRM software for any business can be complex and confusing. It’s very important for any business to know which points to be considered and which not while purchasing CRM software. Purchasing customer relationship management (CRM) software can be complex and confusing.  By recognising the key stakeholders, primary business drivers, bottlenecks and critical success factors as well as future plans can impact your CRM software purchase decision that you can most clearly understand and define your requirements.


A cheaper CRM is not always better and the most expensive ones may not have all the features as per your requirement. It’s necessary to find a CRM software provider which suits your requirement and get the maximum out of your purchase.


Performing a comprehensive review:
CRM Solutions integrate an extensive collection of functionality. It is essential to streamline interdepartmental communication, follow the customers from initial lead through end of sale and identifying the prospect of your company that it has and address those business issues most effectively. It’s attractive to expand the focus but doing so could engulf new users and may risk end user adoption.


Making the vendor list and depicting the advantages of your CRM:


The companies providing CRM software solutions are to be analysed and reviewed.  Its history, products features and capabilities are to be considered for getting the right CRM for your business. Instead of prolonged pitch meetings and project estimates, you should focus on vendors that have a reputation for quick rollouts and frequent feature updates.
Look at the future of your business needs and buy a CRM system that will accommodate them, decide on the best methods of how to reach them. Finally when the CRM Solutions are implemented you must be sure that you set your goals or you will never know if you are on right track or not.


Bargains the superlative Deal
The best possible deal for your company can be made based on the following points:


* Identify the standard discounts and use the discounted price to begin with the negotiation.


* Continue evaluating other solutions. And avoid being carried away by free stuff. Unless it suits your requirement don’t get carried away by the bait.


* Negotiate for reduced implementation, consulting, and maintenance costs. Or, try to get free training or upgrades into the deal.


Companies opting for hosted CRM Software can negotiate lower monthly fees in exchange for longer contract terms.





CRM Solution Potential
Apart from of the size of a company, doing a thorough assessment of CRM solutions available is critical to the ultimate success of the business. It is significant to be confident the CRM solution will meet all of the businesses current needs, it is equally important to be sure it can grow with future needs. Different departments will have different needs and having a user interface designed around those needs can make it a much more effective solution for each department. Ensuring that the business needs will be fully met by a CRM solution is only part of the equation. Making sure it falls within budget and can be maintained efficiently and at reasonable cost will be critical to the overall health of the business long term.


Employee involvement in the adoption process
Employees need to be engaged in the implementation process and encourage them for feedback. The success of your new CRM software lies in user adoption. Involve your sales, marketing, and support staff at every step of your project, so that their needs are heard and addressed from the outset. Once they are comfortable with the software it will help to drive faster and better result throughout the organization.


Celebrating result


You should celebrate each milestone that your company achieved after the CRM implementation. The more buy-in you have from the entire staff, the higher the chances are of your CRM Rollout being successful. Your company need to track results against objectives. Performance management is an ongoing process - key metrics must be analyzed periodically to ensure continued success.

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The Benefits Of A Bookkeeping Service

Bookkeeping is disposed to forename a chore that is to remain proceedings of dealings that leave throughout each day. Any trade, whether great size or medium-scale incomplete level, clothes like the bookkeeping proceedings are not simple to stock up in correct mode.

Bookkeeping is a vital job for little and great monetary compacts. Bookkeeping offers financial answers and methods that can be helpful for all industry. Though, bookkeeping should be ready suspiciously. In detail, bookkeeping is the orientation during which single can recognize on the demand for the industry.

Numerous bookkeeping rigid proffers particular bookkeeping services permitting you to use your precious occasion centering on your industry. Ordinary bookkeeping services assists in little industries to keep instance and currency with correct recordkeeping. Numerous bookkeeping service suppliers currently employ QuickBooks software, to run financial records receivable and financial records owed, billing, store reconciliations; heading periodical duties, make sure reconciliations homework and compilations.

Currently existence bookkeeping can be finished online and since of this anybody can employ the online bookkeeping amenities. Bookkeeping are quite a few of the most threatening and protracted process in the industry earth and the significance of these conditions lengthily awfully significant. It really gets multifaceted to uphold bookkeeping as well as secretarial near with running the usually workplace or business so it’s better for you to obtain the bookkeeping services from a healthy documented business.

Through the start of Internet skill, bookkeeping has been fundamentally easier and low-costing in the shape of online bookkeeping services. At current, there are fairly a little online bookkeeping services lined up to obtain mind of your financial records and volumes.

Here are quite a few most vital repayments of the online bookkeeping services. The major assistance is that these online armed forces are an abridged quantity of limited as compared to the additional services. If you burden your bookkeeping armed forces with any entity or any software then the chance of faults get superior but when you employ an expert business and get online bookkeeping armed forces then you be able to you’re your additional spending tremendous on persons.

Also the main advantage is that these online bookkeeping services inform your industry monetary business evidence and new facts and sum up this information from the outside and illegal right of entry. Online bookkeeping services inform each and all deal with in no occasion and keep you from the difficulty of information misplaced, you be able to see your information online at whatsoever instance you need.

While by means of the online bookkeeping services by an ordered business you will be talented to knob the additional industry job easily. This is the major gain of the online armed forces that as an industry owner you can center extra on various other industry issues because these armed forces keep your instance.

So, these are the most significant benefits of the online bookkeeping services for your industry. Expect so these compensations will direct you in a correct course.

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When Entering The Earth Of Last Fantasy XI

No subject the brand new game fanatics of Ffxi Gil or even the more mature players, last Fantasy XI is well-know and favored for them. probably the most effective factors in last Fantasy XI are its scenes and systems.

When entering the earth of last Fantasy XI, the game fanatics will confront a dim earth which could be filled using the evils. There certainly are a terrific amount of solution monsters in everywhere. The lost civilization also to the bad individuals are residing on this world. In last Fantasy XI, the effective insane grownup males conquest the whole kingdom and turn to the king of Aquilonia. on this unusual and fantasy world, the dark wonder also to the blooding fighting are spreading in every and every corner of last Fantasy XI. every one of the individuals reside a difficult lifestyle all through the look after of the cruel leader.

By entering the company of hold out online, the game fanatics can key in the earth of last Fantasy Gil. different sorts of game fanatics are enjoying and operating day time and night. In last Fantasy XI, it inherits the careers plan of FF series. The game fanatics can choose the occupation they like most and start to develop. Except the principal careers, once the game fanatics finish off some tasks, they nevertheless can choose the extra occupation to develop. For example, it is not astonished to decide the bright magician who can take advantage of the dark magic. last Fantasy XI not just focuses inside the exercise of art, but in inclusion the obtainment of holy weapons. What is more, the scenes of last Fantasy XI are amazing. once the game fanatics key in into that place, they really feel instead relaxing and happy.

The harvesting method in actually Quest a few of is genuinely a considerable skill. after you certainly are a brand determine new player, the 1st responsibilities DTBLQIHg in your situation are mining, foresting and gathering and so on. In actually Quest 2, before for you arrive on the level of forty all through the element of technique, you experienced much better not leave the island. if you actually need to turn in to a cook in actually Quest 2, you also should include the technique of fishing. When all these methods attain the level of forty, you can obtain the materials of tier 2. all through the brand new players’ island, you must spend the attention for the method every one of the time in Eq2 Plat.

The method to observe your individual method can be to press the essential of “L” all through the keyboard. If your greatest amount arrives to forty, you need to concentrate inside the improvement of making crafts in actually Quest 2. if you actually do not get forty quantities and leave the island, it will pretty difficult in your situation to further improve these knowledge in other metropolitan areas precisely where you choose to reside in. there are in any way instances a massive selection of a massive amount of game fanatics all through the brand new players’ district. However, it is pretty beneficial in your situation through the crafts and harvest to further improve your methods in actually Quest 2.

The principal aims of gathering in Eq2 Gold are roots, shrubs and plants. if you actually phone to the roots and plants, this method is needed and important. after you choose up the vivid item all through the ground, you will improve your collecting method automatically. Gathering technique is easy to improve. once the game fanatics in actually Quest a few of need to further improve it at a fast speed, the concentrate must acquire place all through the roots and plants.

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Why Use Professional Services Automation?

Professional Service Automation (PSA) is a solution that enables services organizations to manage their projects and resources better. PSA helps bring together disparate systems and make them more efficient; i.e., if the organization’s data is stored at different locations and is not consistently updated in all systems simultaneously, consolidating and reporting it can be challenging – PSA addresses this issue.

With PSA, a company can have a clear picture of all the related activities and jobs being undertaken with the advantages of efficient Management Information System (MIS), timely reporting, and quality output, hence eliminating possibilities of errors due to manual feeding of disparate data at multiple locations. Also, by switching to automated data entry, the levels of data accuracy and trust increase along with on-time access to information to support critical decision making. All service-based organizations and departments benefit immensely with implementation of professional services automation. As it provides a comprehensive view of available resources, it helps them to accurately assign resources to projects and track progress and all other parameters transparently and easily.

Thus, PSA can impact all aspects of the business. Benefits are in terms of improved business performance, streamlined operations, and faster integration of new businesses. PSA also helps maintain tight control of processes and information, streamline accounting structures, and share information to help ensure that teams adhere to corporate policies.

Further, PSA software can directly help in increasing revenue because one can automate numerous processes depending upon the nature of the business such as:

• 
  Time and expense entry and subsequent billing without loss of time.
• 
  Reconciling project and financial accounting and reporting the status.
• 
  Finding client, contact, employee and project information at one location.
• 
  Project and resource management across the company.
• 
  Reconciling financials for multiple currencies or projects or companies.
• 
  Centralizing management of operational processes.

A business can focus on growth and core functions as PSA efficiently handles all non-core and peripheral tasks. Automation of non-core functions reduces workloads and hence, helps the company to grow faster. Employee productivity is also positively impacted with PSA as employees are now able to concentrate on more productive activities.  Effective resource utilization and retention is another great benefit that the usage of the PSA software confers. Along with effective resource management, the usage of PSA software also guarantees complete client satisfaction with faster and better work. Some PSA providers like FinancialForce.com also provide a groundbreaking accounting systems which integrate seamlessly with the PSA application. Research shows that those organizations with integrated PSA and Accounting are more profitable and have higher utilization of billable employees. design that is not only easy to integrate with the current system in use but is also easy to use. This saves the employees and the organizations a lot of time which would have been otherwise used up in extensive training programs.

Professional Services Automation (PSA) delivers a complete, end-to-end solution that elevates operational performance to new levels. It increases profitability and offers unmatched client service that sets an organization ahead of the competition by integrating the financial, human, and intellectual capital aspects of project-based organizations.

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