To keep their businesses afloat in an era of do-it-yourself software, an increasing number of independent bookkeepers here have adjusted to meet the needs of tech-savvy business owners.


Quickbooks and other accounting software, such as Mas 90 or PeachTree Accounting, have been embraced by small businesses and have been marketed as replacements for full-time bookkeepers in recent years. But while business owners might navigate through these programs with ease, they dont always understand the accounting concepts the programs employ, say bookkeepers. In response to that, many bookkeeping services now offer software training and support, a decision that may keep independent bookkeepers prospering.


Andy Anderson, co-owner of B&B Business Services LLC, says, I dont think we could survive if we didnt provide software training and support. Quickbooks is just too convenient for people, he says.


Rather than filling traditional bookkeeping roles, many services now send their employees to their clients offices once a month or a quarter to tidy up the records the businesses have maintained on their own while using accounting software. While they might still pay clients bills, prepare invoices, and complete payrolls, many bookkeepers also are interpreting reports generated by the new software programs and are teaching clients how to input day-to-day data. Some have put client data online, allowing both the client and the bookkeeper to access it at their convenience.


Im kind of a middle man, says bookkeeper Mary Yager, owner of Spokanes Yager Company. Im a full-charge bookkeeper, but I only do it once a week or once a month for them.


Most of Spokanes independent bookkeepers offer software training. Some business owners pay for a one-time training session, then sign on for additional support when stumbling blocks arise. Logically, this trend might indicate a decrease in the need to use outsourced bookkeeping services, but bookkeepers say that isnt the case.


I set it up. I give them assignments, says Yager. Sometimes I never hear from them again, and sometimes I hear from them all the time. And then sometimes they say, Forget this. You do it.


Anderson says that despite these changes, the bookkeeping industry has remained strong and vigorous while adjusting to clients needs.


Most (business owners) realize when they start doing it on their own that they cant handle it, says Anderson. Theyre not experts at it.


Long-term demand


New businesses and well-established ones often hire outside firms to handle their bookkeeping needs to save time and money. Handing bookkeeping over to a professional often frees the time of business owners and managers who would rather focus on their own products or services. Bookkeepers say that as long as tax laws remain complicated and government regulations fluctuate, outsourced accounting services will have a place in the business community.


Melinda and Cole Smith, owners of Other Mothers Inc., a franchise chain of second-hand clothing stores based in Spokane, contract with Yager for bookkeeping expertise.


We train all our employees on Quickbooks, but Marys our backup lady because shes the expert, says Melinda Smith. She knows our accounts. She makes payroll easy . Its worth it.


Other Mothers has 22 locations across the U.S. and Canada, and each shop employs about 10 people.


Yager streamlined Other Mothers bookkeeping operation and set up the identical templates for all the shops.


Since we have so many stores, shes able to quickly figure out what needs to be done, says Smith.


Clients use accounting services to different degrees. Many business owners enter data daily using their own software programs, but rely on independent bookkeepers each month or quarter to clean up loose ends.


Some of Yagers clients simply have her pay their bills and prepare the invoices they send to their customers. Others give her their bank statements and pay her to reconcile them. She also completes quarterly tax reports.


It depends on the size of the business and the owners comfort level with accounting, says Yager.


Bookkeepers typically charge from $25 to $50 an hour. By comparison, the hourly rate of a certified public accountant is $80 to $210.


The Smiths opened Other Mothers in 1979 and have contracted with CPAs in the past. Three years ago, they began using Yager, in part, to cut costs.


This is a good intermediate for us, says Melinda Smith.


Going online


Another trend in bookkeeping and accounting services is to take such functions online. In the past three years, a growing number of bookkeepers and accountants have put clients financial records on secure remote computer servers that can be accessed over the Internet.


Todd and Rebecca Jensen opened The Accounting Source five years ago and began using an Internet-accessed server in 2000. Todd Jensen says allowing clients to access and update their records on a remote computer speeds up the service his employees can provide.


If a bookkeeping service sends a staff member out to a clients office, it faces a problem if another client needs that staff member, he says. Jensen says that because The Accounting Source only works on its clients books online, its employees are at their desks most all of the time.


If theyre are all in the office, we can immediately address our clients who call, says Jensen.


Jensens use of the word office is broad. Although he works in a brick-and-mortar office on North Division, many of his employees operate out of their homes.


There are a lot of very qualified people out there, but their family situation doesnt allow them to go into an office every day, says Jensen.


So how does it work for The Accounting Sources staff members and clients? A scanner acts as an inbox, he says. When a client receives a bill or other document, he or she scans it, puts it into the computer, drags it, and drops it in The Accounting Source server. Jensens bookkeepers and CPA take it from there. Depending on the needs of the client, they can perform tasks such as managing payroll, paying bills, and reconciling bank statements. The Accounting Source also provides financial advice.


Mary Yagers company also uses a remote-access server for some accounts, which helped her when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last December. Yager scaled down her client list and worked around chemotherapy treatments. Using data files that reside on the Internet meant that she could travel much less to clients offices and have a faster recovery.


The advantage of doing work remotely is twofoldat least, says Jensen, in that its both convenient and cost effective for clients.


Theres a revolving door with bookkeeping, partly because many small employers cant justify keeping a full-time bookkeeper on staff, Jensen says.


Hiring an on-site person costs more than just salary and benefits, says Jensen. Time drainers, such as office small talk, take their toll. Because The Accounting Source doesnt send its employees to clients offices, hes done work for some businesses hes never visited before, Jensen says.


Nate Riggan, a CPA with LeMaster & Daniels PLLC, one of Spokanes largest accounting firms, takes a different approach. Through a new program called CFO as You Grow, Riggan and a team of financial-management experts aim to be a visible part of their clients business.


A lot of financial-management services require advanced skills from an advanced set of technical knowledge, says Riggan. Its hard for companies to find all that in one person.


The CFO as You Grow team of five offers budgeting, forecasting, strategic planning, financial literacy training and more. The services they provide are on a management level, he says.


Its like youre renting the skills of the whole group, says Riggan.


CFO as You Grow costs businesses anywhere from $2,500 to $10,000 a month, depending on the size and needs of the client.


Companies are really starting to embrace outsourcing in a lot of key areas, says Riggan. A lot of companies are proving they can be more effective by hiring a specific expertise.


That leaves entrepreneurs with time for the work, or passion, that drove them to own businesses ownership in the first place.


They realize this lets them do their job and lets us do ours, says Andy Anderson. That way well both make money.