Starting Your Own Accounting Firm: What You Should Know

The global market for accounting services is expected to reach $735.94 billion by 2025, which means there’s no better time to go out on your own as an independent accounting professional. Owning your own firm certainly has its challenges, but starting an accounting business could give you the opportunity to increase your annual earnings, set your own goals, and become more financially independent.

Plus, there are numerous tools and resources to assist you in operating your accounting firm, from BalanceWare Trial Balance Software to project and task management tools like Asana and Basecamp. Other tools are available to help you market your new business, form a legal entity, and land your first clients.

Read on to learn more about the different things that go into starting your own accounting business and the various tools and resources you can utilize along the way.

Meet Accounting Requirements

Accounting professionals don’t necessarily need to become certified public accountants (CPAs) when starting an accounting firm of their own, but they will need to earn their CPA license if they wish to offer assurance, attestation, and/or auditing services. As such, all new business owners should start by creating a business plan: a comprehensive document that outlines their goals, services and specializations, target market, financial needs, marketing strategy, and other requirements they’ll need to meet in order to go out on their own.

Other requirements new accounting firms may need to meet include:

Forming a legal entity and applying for an Employer Identification Number (EIN).
Obtaining any necessary licenses and permits.
Opening a business bank account.
Purchasing the right type of insurance coverage.

To help you along the way, be sure to look into tools such as online formation services and free business plan templates, as well as resources like the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), Accounting Today, and Strategic Finance Magazine. The SCORE Association and Small Business Administration (SBA) are other excellent options for new entrepreneurs.

Market Your New Firm

As part of your business plan, you’ll identify your target market and marketing strategy. But to officially reach your target market and land your first clients, you’ll need to put your marketing plans into action. This means creating a website and social media presence, starting an accounting blog or podcast, and building an email list. You can then create relevant content that demonstrates your value and expertise: blog posts, webinars, podcasts, videos, and infographics are all great options.

While having some marketing skills can be helpful when starting a business of your own, this doesn’t mean you need to be a marketing pro in order to successfully reach your target customers. Many free online tools are available to help you with creating your own infographic designs, advertisements, social media posts, and other marketing materials. These tools make it easy to design graphics that demonstrate your expertise and provide your customers with valuable information while simultaneously promoting your new business.

Explore Other Helpful Tools for Accountants

To successfully run your new accounting business, look for other helpful tools such as tax and trial balance software, document management systems, and cloud-based project management tools. BalanceWare Trial Balance Software offers a variety of features to help you effectively manage your client’s accounting functions, taxes, and other financial documents — and you can even try it free for 30 days to see if BalanceWare is right for you.

Starting your own accounting business may be hard work, but it’s the best option for you if you’re passionate about being your own boss, setting your own goals, and changing the accounting industry for the better. Lots of tools and resources are available to assist you throughout every stage of the startup process — from designing your own infographics and other marketing materials to forming a legal entity — and BalanceWare Trial Balance Software makes it easy to manage your clients while keeping up with modern-day accounting technologies.

The global market for accounting services will continue to grow in the coming years, so put your accounting skills and expertise to better use by launching your own firm today!

BalanceWare is the next-generation trial balance software offering features to assist businesses with tax preparation, accounting, document management, and more. Learn more about BalanceWare at balware.com or download your free 30-day trial to get started.