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You’re spending too much time on bookkeeping: If you are spending hours on invoicing, data entry, and categorizing expenses instead of focusing on revenue- generating activities, it is time to delegate. Your books are behind or inaccurate: Falling behind on reconciliations, struggling to keep track of receipts, or suspecting errors in your financial records can lead to poor decision making. Tax Time is a nightmare: If you are frantically trying to organize a year’s worth of data for your accountant, or if you are missing tax deadlines, a bookkeeper will ensure you are tax ready year-round. You don’t understand your Cash Flow: When you don’t know exactly how much money is coming in or going out, or you struggle to pay vendors and employees on time, a bookkeeper provides the necessary financial clarity. Your business is growing rapidly: As revenue increases, so does complexity. Hiring a professional help prevents financial disasters and allows you to focus on strategy and growth! Contact one of our bookkeepers by emailing office@accountablebooks.org

Having a signature at the bottom of your emails that matches your brand sends the message that your business is professional, intentional, and knowledgeable. While this is a common addition to emails, it’s not always straight forward on how to add one. In this example I will be using Outlook as the email provider. Open Outlook Click on “Settings” icon Find and click the “Signatures” option Click the “Add signature” button Give that signature a name (your name) In the text box, type in the info you want to include (name, job title, email address, phone number, office hours etc.). This is what will show as your email signature. You can also insert a photo (image, your logo, or a combo of both) or a link (to your website). Use any of the tools to make your signature match your brand colors, fonts, etc. Select the check boxes about how to use this email signature Save your new signature! Before you use it, you might want to send a test email with your new signature to yourself or a co-worker. This way you can make any edits and/or improvements. An important thing to check is that all images are clear and to the correct scale when you send an email. Now you’re ready to send a professional, branded email to your clients and customers! If you have any questions or want someone to set an email signature up for you, please reach out to our Marketing & Office Coordinator!

Misclassifying Employees: Incorrectly labeling employees as independent contractors to avoid payroll taxes and benefits. This can lead to legal penalties. Miscalculating Overtime: Failing to properly calculate overtime pay (time and a half) for non-exempt employees who work over 40 hours in a work week. This violates the Fair Labor Standards Act. Missing Tax Deadlines & Filing Errors: Submitting your payroll taxes late or incorrectly filling out tax forms can lead to heavy penalties, interest, and possible audits. Improperly Calculating Deductions: It is important to not make errors in withholding taxes, health insurance premiums, or retirement contributions. This can lead to incorrect net pay for an employee. Improper Record Keeping: Failing to maintain required payroll records – such as tax filings and timecards – for the required minimum of three years. Our payroll department can help answer any questions regarding these issues as well as processing your payroll for you!

As we head into March, W2 forms should be completed 1099 forms should be completed QB file should be sent or made available to your tax accountant for 2025 tax preparation. Next step: After the tax accountant has your QB file, then set a closing date in your QB file. This prevents transactions from mistakenly being entered into a prior year. Why is this important? Your QB file should match your tax return for 2025. Since the file has gone to the tax accountant, the numbers cannot change now. To set a closing date in QuickBooks Desktop, navigate to the Company menu , select Set Closing Date, then click Set Date/Password to choose a date and create a password (set the date as 12/31/25). Call us with any questions!

Do you have concerns about using AI in the office place? Here are a few things to keep in mind. Pro: Efficiency | Con: Dependency on Technology  While there is truth about the efficiency of AI doing repetitive, simple tasks for you in the office (taking notes, writing a simple email, etc.) there is also the inconvenience of relying on technology to take care of these simple tasks. And we all know how it feels when technology fails us. There is also the concern that AI will cause employees to rely too heavily on it for decision-making and ideas causing them to lose their own creative and unique solutions and ideas. One thing AI is not, is unique- but your business is! So, when you are using AI for simple office tasks, take into consideration what you might lose in the long run and weigh if that is worth it to your business.

Did you know that there is a minimum wage in our state? The minimum wage in PA is $7.25 per hour matching the federal minimum wage set in 2009. However, the minimum cash wage for tipped employees is $2.83 per hour. There are certain professional, administrative and executive roles that are exempt from minimum wage and overtime requirements if they meet specific salary and duty tests. As of now legislative proposals are ongoing to increase this rate. If you would like more information regarding this, please contact our payroll department.

You may have noticed that when you view your chart of accounts, there is a column for “QuickBooks Balance” and one for “Bank Balance” , and they don’t match. That does not necessarily mean that your QuickBooks balance is incorrect. QuickBooks (QB) registers records, checks, and deposits as soon as they are entered , whereas the bank balance is only affected when the check or deposit actually clears the bank. These are often checks that have been written in QB that haven’t cleared the bank (outstanding checks), or deposits that have been recorded in QB that haven’t cleared the bank (deposits in transit). The only way to verify that your QB balance is correct is to do a “Bank Reconciliation” in QuickBooks. For more information on how to perform a Bank Reconciliation or to get help with your Bank Reconciliation, feel free to contact our QBO Bookkeeper!

The IRS has announced the 2026 standard mileage rates, effective January 1, 2026, increasing the business rate to 72.5 cents per mile, a 2.5-cent increase from 2025.

The new year is here, and you feel busier than ever. Here is one simple rule to follow to help stay organized. Clean as you go. This applies in admin organization just as much as it does in your kitchen. As you are doing your normal tasks, noticing things that aren’t in the right file , aren’t labeled correctly , etc., clean them up now , while you’re thinking about it and looking at it. Yes, it will take a little extra time now, but it will save you much more time and stress in the long run.