How to Find the Best Accountant in Louth
Finding the best accountant to assist with your business can be tough. There are a lot of choices out there and knowing what to look out for when researching is essential. Before I dive into what you should and shouldn’t look out for, let’s go over the basics of what an accountant can help you with.
What can an accountant help you with?
The practice of accounting covers a variety of different principles and services. Most accountants will be able to assist with most financial business elements including but not limited to; payroll, self-assessments and tax returns, bookkeeping and VAT, charity accounts and resident management accounts.
The new Making Tax Digital scheme is another area of accounting you may wish to seek help with.
On to how to find the best accountant in Louth ….
The easiest and most obvious way to find an accountant in your area is to look online via search engines such as Google and Bing. This will usually bring up a few different results depending on the area you’re looking in with a mix between individual businesses websites and directory websites such as Yell or Bark.
Google will also show you results from the Google Maps/Google My Business search results. These results are great as they allow you to see the businesses reviews, opening times, FAQs and more at a glance.
Social Media
Social Media is a great tool for finding new accountants you may not have heard of before. You can use the search bar on social networks such as Facebook to search for terms like “accountant louth” and then filter by pages related to this search. You can also use the Facebook recommendations tool to ask others in local groups which accountants they would recommend. This leads nicely onto my next point …
Ask other business owners
Asking other business owners for recommendations is a great way to get an accountant that is well trusted by your peers. As mentioned above, you can use social media to achieve this or if you’re part of local networking groups and events you could ask here too.
What to look out for
Qualifications and experience
A good accountant should be well qualified and experienced in their field. Most accountants will display their qualifications on their website and may include case studies of businesses they have worked with.
Qualified accountants will be registered with the ACAA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and will likely display the ACAA badge on their website and social media channels. You can also check the ACAA website to ensure your chosen accountant is registered.
Who do they work with
Some accountants will specialise in certain industries while others will work with businesses in a variety of sectors. Some will specialise in small business accounting and others will work more with larger corporations.
Researching who your potential new accountant works with may be beneficial if you’re looking for someone who either specialises in your industry or who works primarily with businesses of a similar size to yours. The best way to do this is to just have a chat with your chosen accountant and discuss your needs and any questions you may have.
What they do
As mentioned at the start of this article, different accountants may offer slightly different services. If you have a couple of different accountants in mind, check online or have a chat with them to see if they cover the multiple different services you may need. It’s also worth thinking ahead to potential future services you may need from them – if you’re a small business with no employees now, this may change going forward and you may end up needing payroll services. In this case, it would be good to choose an accountant who offers payroll services from the get-go rather than having to change or hire an extra accountant further down the line!
Hopefully, this short guide is helpful in aiding your search for the best accountant in Louth. If you’d like to speak to me about my accounting services, contact me today.
