As a business owner, you’re probably already well-aware of the value of working with a business CPA during tax time each year. But what about the rest of the year? Do you see any value in working with a business CPA throughout the rest of that time? If not, you may need to review these six reasons Charlotte businesses need Charlotte accountants to work closely, not just at tax time but all year round.

Five Benefits of Working With a Business CPA Year-round

1. Financial Advice and Consultation

A business CPA can help you manage your money, including devising a budget that minimizes and accounts for your tax liabilities. He or she can help you answer critical questions like:

• What degree of risk can you truly afford to take?
• Is it reasonable to open an additional credit line, or would it be better to find ways to cut down on expenses?
• Do the decisions you make best serve your employees, your clients, or customers and your business?

A business CPA can also help you devise future projections for how you want your business to look in five or ten years.

2. Business Planning and Strategizing

A small business tax advisor is the perfect professional to help you devise your business plan’s financial portion and determine the practical risks and potential rewards of your investment. He or she can even help you choose the best business entity to form for your business. During this initial setup phase, your accountant can also help you set up the accounting and financial record-keeping system for your business, including payroll and benefits.

After you’re all set up, your accountant can continue helping you strategize adjustments to your business plan moving forward. Your business CPA would be best suited to maintain the bookkeeping, accounting, and payroll system he or she set up for your business. As your business grows and your responsibilities increase, your business’s demands to manage its finances also grow larger and more complex. Your accountant can help you every step of making sure you have the inflow and outflow of money needed to support this growth, including allowing you to navigate obtaining financing and business loans.

Just some of the areas to which your business CPA could bring unique expertise include:

1. Improving cost-efficiency
2. Increasing profits
3. Making wise investments
4. Identifying and harnessing economic and consumer trends
5. Devising and reviewing contracts
6. Forming non-profit entities
7. Conducting forensic accounting
8. Manage Documentation

Your tax filings are only one set of records your business must produce, and even they contain information gleaned from records kept throughout the year. Every business should keep current and accurate income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for the best chances of success. The right tax advisor can not only set up and maintain these, but he or she can also help you understand them and utilize them to make smarter, better-informed decisions for your business.

3. Continuing Education

A CPA is a wealth of knowledge, much of which is extremely valuable for you and employees to know. Your business’s CPA can lead in-house seminars and workshops on Excel and Quickbooks on topics and skills to the upcoming changes to tax law that may affect your business and its employees. You can also offer personal tax preparation workshops to your employees as a courtesy to help them navigate tax time as smoothly as your business CPA has enabled you to do so.

4. Retirement Planning

A small business tax advisor can also help you develop a suitable retirement plan for you and your workers.

5. Extensions, Audits, and Unfiled Taxes

Finally, not all tax responsibilities end at tax time. Sometimes, you’ll need your small business tax advisor to file tax extensions or missed filings or handle audits. The IRS may note certain inconsistencies or errors your business CPA can help iron out for them. The government may also request certain financial records, like compilation or review reports, which your CPA can help you put together. The right business CPA can keep you from paying too much in taxes or not paying enough, missing tax deadlines, failing a tax audit, or facing fines and penalties.

Finding the Best Business CPA to Work With Year-Round

When you work with the best CPA in Charlotte NC, you can rest assured that your business’s finances are in order and its records are audit-proof. Scott Boyar is the best CPA in Charlotte NC, for small businesses, with years of experience as one of the top Charlotte accountants for small business bookkeeping and tax preparation and planning.