While you might enjoy being the owner and operator of your very own trucking business, you may feel you can do without the accounting and bookkeeping aspect of the job. Luckily, you don’t have to become a master of record-keeping to handle your company’s finances. Here are few tips to get you up and running.
Make It a Daily Practice
Do yourself a favor and get into the habit of carving out time every day to handle owner operator expenses. It’s easy to leave the task for tomorrow or the weekend, but doing so just makes the work pile up more and more. Not only does daily bookkeeping make your life easier, you’ll also have a more accurate picture of how your business is doing so you can plan and adjust accordingly. After all, you don’t want to make business or financial decisions for tomorrow when you don’t have a clear picture of what happened yesterday.
Use the Right Software
There are more bookkeeping and accounting software options available than ever before. Explore your options to decide the best fit for you and your business. Specifically, you might be better off with a cash-based system that allows you to count your income as you receive payments and your expenses as you take care of them. Don’t be afraid to try out different types of software (especially if there are free trial offers) until you find one that’s a solid fit for you.
Consider Going Digital
Because paperwork can take up a great deal of space and become cumbersome to organize adding even more time to your day-to-day workload, go digital when it comes to keeping up with financial documents. This is an especially great idea if there’s already an abundance of paperwork you have to deal with on a daily basis. Keep all those invoices and bank statements on a cloud where you can easily and quickly access them from a computer, tablet or smartphone.
Learn How to Properly Manage Your Cash Flow
One of the first things you should learn when it comes to bookkeeping is the ins and outs of cash flow. Knowing how much money you have available right now can mean the difference between paying your suppliers and employees on time and getting hit with late fees or having team members quit on you. Money or payments you have coming later in the month won’t do you much good right now, especially because those future payments might be delayed.
Prepare for Audits Before They Happen
As a business owner, the last thing you want to deal with is the IRS sniffing around. Bookkeeping for truck drivers involves a great deal of preparation, including audits. Head trouble off at the pass by keeping your personal expenses and accounts separate from your business expenses and accounts. Get and save the receipts for every purchase you make on behalf of your business, no matter how insubstantial that purchase might be. You never know when you’ll need them either for yourself, or for an audit.
Get a Business Credit Card
Business credit cards are a solid idea as you work on keeping your business finances separate from your personal finances, mainly because you’ll have fewer monthly statements and paperwork to keep up with, even if you are going digital. While you can always keep track of your receipts, using a credit card cuts down on time and can make your life that much easier.
Don’t Forget About Tax Deductibles
Speaking of the IRS, don’t forget to look into tax deductibles and write-offs when you’re buying office equipment. For instance, some computers, printers, company vehicles and business software might qualify for tax deductibles. When it’s time to buy equipment for your business, it’s a good idea to have a list of qualifying brands and models that qualify for deductibles before you start shopping.
Bring In the Pros
As stated earlier, there are plenty of accounting and bookkeeping software options for business owners to take advantage of, but nothing beats the advice and insight of a professional accountant who’s familiar with how the trucking industry works. Should you ever feel you’re in over your head when it comes to keeping up with your trucking company’s financial health, or if you have a question you can’t find the answer to, turn to a professional.
Even if you do have an easy time keeping up with your business accounting, it’s still a good idea to check in with a professional accountant a few times throughout the year for financial advice, and to make sure you’re doing everything right. You don’t want to find out the hard way that your business isn’t doing nearly as good as you might have thought.
Bookkeeping is made easier when you have the right tips, software and expert help. Fulfil your business potential by taking care of your company’s financial health. Best of luck!